What happens when you suppress fires in a fire forest?

- Fire suppression and replanting regulations in BC's southern interior fire forests has transformed fire-resistant open forests, such as ponderosa pine savannas, to dense even-aged forests with a dangerous and unnatural amount of fuel vulnerable to ignition by summer lightning storms. Debris on the forest floor can pre-heat the canopy during a surface fire leading to crown fires, destroying even those tree species that have evolved mechanisms to survive ground fires;

- Even-aged stands also contribute to outbreaks of mountain pine beetle (MPB), Douglas fir beetle and dwarf mistletoe which would normally be somewhat controlled through fire. For example, before forest suppression began, only 7% of interior lodge pole pine was susceptible to MPB. This number has increased to 53 % since fire suppression policies and reforestation  policies were

introduced. Trees  killed  by infestation in turn  create  more fuel, increasing  the

chances of a catastrophic fire;

- By changing the fire regime you also degrade wildlife habitat causing species that are specially adapted to the fire regime to struggle for survival;

- In terms of ability to regenerate a fire forest after a catastrophic fire, at best, nutrients are volatilized (vaporized) into the air, which is believed to have happened in the Okanagan, rather than released into the soil. At worst, the thin productive upper layers of forest soils can become sterilized and incinerated. Some fires, such as the infamous Los Alamos, New Mexico fire, even vitrified the soil (melted it into glass);

- In BC typically burn sites are re-seeded with an agricultural mix of non-native grasses. This is largely for cosmetic reasons and to prevent short-term soil erosion. Non-native grasses are ecologically undesirable as they prevent an area from being colonized by native species, introduce noxious weeds such as cheat grass, and create more ground-fuel for "re-burns" in the 5 to 10 year window following a catastrophic fire.

So why have we been suppressing fires?

- Fire suppression policies were first introduced in the late 1800s through the government's policy of cultural assimilation for First Nations. Prescribed burns conducted by First Nations in BC's southern interior for many hundreds of years previously, which were integral to forest health, were outlawed or stopped indirectly as First Nations were moved onto small reserves and off traditional territories managed for wildlife and food gathering;

- The more wide spread introduction of fire suppression happened in the late 1940s and early 1950s as large swaths of provincial forests were handed over to major forestry companies through forms of surface lease called tree farm licenses and timber supply areas. Fire suppression was considered a means of "protecting"  trees on the companies' tenures. At that time  little was  understood

about the ecology of fire and the  companies were likely unaware that they  were

putting forests at a greater risk through fire suppression;

- Since then, an increase in the number of people living near or in the southern interior fire forests has contributed to the continuation of fire suppression policies. People have been worried about smoke from prescribed burns (where a specific area is selectively burned), and the possibility of a fire getting "out of control".

Have other government policies increased the likelihood

Or severity of fires?

- In addition to fire suppression, clearcut logging and replanting regulations in BC's southern interior fire forests have contributed to fire susceptibility. For example, ponderosa pine savannas, once common in the interior, typically have about 35 trees per hectare. When these trees are cut, they are replanted with a minimum density of 900 trees per hectare. The result is an unnaturally dense forest that can not be supported by the soils or precipitation in the area, resulting in an even drier unhealthy forest;

Forest policies have also been turning coastal and inland temperate rainforests into fire forests through clearcut logging. Second-growth forests planted after coastal forest clearcuts tend to be even aged stands, very close together, with a lot of branches that act as "fire ladders."