On February 20 I attended the latest meeting of the Williams Lake and area Community Wildfire Roundtable held at the Cariboo Fire Centre at the Williams Lake Regional Airport.
The facilitator, Mike Simpson, who contracts with the Fraser Basin Council guided the 41 participants from a wide variety of backgrounds including five levels of government, UBC , forestry consultants, industry and private citizens.
Mike has been involved with the Williams Lake roundtable for five years and has also been involved with establishing roundtables in five other communities. The session started with UBC grad students Mike Stefanuk and Georgina Preston (via zoom link) describing their research in the dry belt fir stands.
Their research supported by field plots confirms existing work about the need to change our forest protection practices to a more diversified approach including forest thinning and pruning along with controlled burns similar to the First Nations approach.
For the next two hours Mike asked for input from the attendees about preparing for the next fire season, who is doing what regarding wildfire risk reduction, fuel management, fire smart education, training and equipment and First Nations traditional burning.
Tom Foley from the fire centre who is involved with the mapping options provided some examples of information sources for detailed maps for controlled burns and general maps for planning and the general public information. There was considerable discussion among the participants regarding how keep the public informed about planned activities involving harvesting, spot burns, controlled burns or other activities that might cause them to contact the various levels of government or industry fire control services.
One of the positives coming out of these roundtables is the ongoing need to examine and improve the communication between the various participants and the public.
The Fraser Basin Council (FBC) is a charitable non-profit society that brings people together to advance sustainability in the Fraser Basin and across British Columbia. Established in 1997, FBC is a collaboration of four orders of government (federal, provincial, local and First Nations), along with those from the private sector and civil society.
No doubt Mike had a positive influence on six other communites developing roundtables in Clearwater, Clinton, Lillooet, Quesnel, Prince George and Similkameen along with the associated areas of each urban centre.
For the past 25 years, FBC has helped people learn about sustainability, resolve conflicts, and roll out partnership initiatives with a focus on climate change and air quality, watersheds and water resources, and community sustainability and resilience. They support leaders in government, business and community organizations in finding collaborative solutions to tough issues and promising opportunities.
FBC has had an office in Williams Lake since its inception, and it is currently staffed by Jane Wellburn and Bettina Johnson.
It is a challenge to achieve social well-being, a vibrant economy and a healthy environment — but it’s a legacy owed to future generations. We’re proud to share the vision with others and to work together for it.
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