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Fuel management work underway in Williams Lake’s Dairy Fields area

Work will go on for several weeks
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The City of Williams Lake has contractors doing fuel management work in the Dairy Fields area were locals also enjoyed outdoor skating during the holidays. (Monica Lamb-Yorski photo- Williams Lake Tribune)

Fuel management treatments and beetle tree removal activities are underway in the Dairy Fields near Midnight Drive and Eleventh Avenue.

A bulletin from City of WilliamsLake notes that ap to 5.5 hectares will be treated over a period of several weeks.

Contractors will be implementing plans prepared according to professional forestry standards on behalf of the City, supervision of the work will be provided by KDay Forestry Ltd, with funding for this project provided by the Province of British Columbia’s Community Resilience Initiative through the Union of BC Municipalities.

The purpose of the fuel management treatments is to minimize the impact of fire in the area, if one were to occur, by reducing the amount of dead timber as well as forest fuels that have built up over many years. No fuel treatments will completely remove the risk of future fires; however, the intensity of a potential fire will be reduced and the ability to suppress it will be enhanced. The treatments will selectively remove trees killed by bark beetles, as well as small live and dead conifer trees.

Over the course of the treatment period, we expect that the fuel cut from the area will be transported to timber processing as available or chipped and distributed in place; however, if required due to inaccessible or hazardous conditions some burning may need to take place. Considerations will always be taken for appropriate weather conditions and venting before these actions are taken.

The area designated for treatment is popular for a variety of recreational activities, therefore the area will be closed to the public during the fuel management process to ensure both the safety of the public and the contractors.

There will also be a meeting at City Hall on Wednesday, Jan. 15 at 7 p.m. to discuss other fire risk reduction projects in the area.

Read more: Wildfire risk management information meetings coming up in Williams Lake, Miocene



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