People who fear human activities can have negative impacts on the environment are often called fearmongers. Those who are happy with business as usual believe fearmongers are spreading scary rumours because they are against progess.
I’ll take a chance on being labelled a wildfire fearmonger. Some say climate change is the underlying culprit in the Fort McMurray inferno. Others shake their heads at that. There probably are a number of contributing factors, but no matter what or who is responsible, human beings are no match for the fire. Traditional fire fighting methods couldn’t stop it and the only hope, according to experts on the scene, is a weather change. We don’t know how to make the weather change, so it’s a matter of watching and waiting for nature to do her thing.
There are similar but smaller fires in B.C.’s Peace River area but cooler weather and a snowfall slowed them down a bit.
Was the Fort Mac fire totally unexpected? Well no. In 2009, when 70 fire scientists and fire managers met in Victoria to discuss what possible impact climate change might have on the fire situation in Canada, they already knew wildfires were “exceeding thresholds,” becoming more unpredictable, burning hotter and faster than ever before. In 2011, a report following the devastating Slave Lake fire made 21 recommendations on how to prepare for the next one. A recent study, which used tree-ring data to reconstruct the coastal climate back to the 1600s, suggests B.C. can expect severe droughts in the next few decades. It doesn’t take an expert to connect hot dry weather with wildfires. So far, so good in Cariboo Chilcotin, but it’s only mid-May. What will the summer bring?
Premier Christy Clark says BC is ready for whatever. After the fearsome fires in the Chilcotin six summers ago, local governments are no doubt on the ball, but while we trust the authorities to do the right thing, disaster preparedness and fire prevention are everyone’s responsibility. The thought of fires surely puts a damper on the joys of summer. Hopefully we’ll be lucky. Or fearful enough to be prepared if we’re not.
Diana French is a freelance columnist for the Tribune. She is a former Tribune editor, retired teacher, historian, and book author.
