Alberta wildfires continue to burn, favourable for some ecosystems

Wildfires continue to burn in Alberta, even after the state of emergency has been lifted and though fires can have a devastating effect on people, many animals actually thrive after a forest area is burned.

So far this season, officials have responded to 587 wildfires that have consumed more than 1.2 million hectares of forest land across Alberta.

Mark Boyce, a professor of ecology, explains that this is good news for some wildlife.

“[For] wildlife like moose, elk, deer and bears, fires are fantastic because it creates a landscape where light can get to the surface of the soil, you get regeneration of plants, and it’s happening already,” he said.

The burns can have devastating effects for some animals like nesting birds whose habitats are destroyed by fire, but Boyce says some forests are fire-maintained environments.

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“There was huge loss of infrastructure of livestock. enormous loss to some people as a consequence of these fires, but from the standpoint of wildlife and the big picture of things, fire is part of these ecosystems,” he added.

Boyce has visited some burned forest in the Edson area and has already seen recovery on the forest floor.

None the less, fire crews will continue to battle wildfires throughout the summer; trying to prevent the devastating effects fire can cause to people.

“We will see as we move into the summer — July and August timeframes — we’ll see more active lighting on the landscape and that too can cause numerous wildfires,” said Derrick Forsythe, a wildfire information officer with Alberta Wildfire. “So it’s going to be a long summer, but it’s nothing we haven’t seen before.

“We’re used to this pattern and we’re prepared to meet these challenges as they pop up.”