Northern Wildfire Risk Assessment Completed

Wednesday, September 07, 2005 at 13:37

 

 

Saskatchewan Environment now has a good idea about which northern communities are at increased risk to forest fires.

 

The department recently completed a community wildfire assessment, which graded over 100 communities in or near the northern boreal forest.

 

Study authors examined issues like historical fire starts, surrounding vegetation and community readiness.

 

Over 60 per cent of the communities were found to be at high risk, very high risk or extreme risk to forest fires.

 

Grandmother’s Bay was the only community determined to be at extreme risk.

 

Department spokesman Larry Fremont says potential forest fire fuel around the community played a large part in that grade.

 

Fremont says the purpose of the report was to give communities an idea on how they can make themselves more fire safe.

 

Communities that were found to be at very high risk from forest fires include Stony Rapids, Uranium City, Stanley Mission, Sucker River, Missinipe and Waterhen Lake.

 

Ile-a-la-Crosse was one of only two communities to be given a low risk grade.