The Get FireSmart Podcast

In this episode we are joined by David Tavernini, Fire Management Officer for Parks Canada in the Banff Field Unit.

This episode allows listeners to learn from an expert who works in one of the most beautiful areas in all of Canada. We discuss how fires broaden the landscape, and also the different practices and tools that are used through FireSmart principles, including the use of Prescribed Fire. 

This episode was recorded at the FireSmart BC Conference, which took place in May of 2022 in Kamloops, British Columbia.

Links:

Learn more about Parks Canada Fire Management in Banff: https://www.pc.gc.ca/en/pn-np/ab/banff/nature/conservation/feu-fire/restoration

Follow Banff National Park on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BanffNP

Follow Banff NP on Twitter: https://twitter.com/BanffNP

Learn more about FireSmart BC: https://firesmartbc.ca/

In this episode we speak with Forrest Tower, Communication and Engagement Specialist and Fire Information Officer with the BC Wildfire Service. 

In our conversation with Forrest, we discuss the behind-the-scenes of the BC Wildfire Service, including the processes, systems and tools that the organization uses to communicate with the public regarding the threat of wildfire. 

This is a great episode to learn about the different tips, tricks, and responsibilities that everyone has in preparing your home and community to become FireSmart.

Links:

Learn more about BC Wildfire Service: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/safety/wildfire-status

Learn more about FireSmart BC: https://firesmartbc.ca/

Wildfires of Note Webpage: http://bcfireinfo.for.gov.bc.ca/hprScripts/WildfireNews/OneFire.asp

Download the BC Wildfire Service mobile app on Apple or Android

Follow the latest wildfire news:

• on Twitter: https://twitter.com/BCGovFireInfo

on Facebook: http://facebook.com/BCForestFireInfo

Today we are speaking with Erik Leslie, a forestry consultant based out of Nelson, British Columbia. 

In our conversation, we unpack Erik’s presentation from the FireSmart BC Conference, where he speaks about the value of community forests and the forest ecosystem. This episode, with an expert who has built his career in forestry, looks at both the risks and realities of fire and covers the value of collaboration and innovation as well as discusses how forest types and FireSmart principles can really make a difference. 

Links:

Learn more about FireSmart BC: https://firesmartbc.ca/

To learn more about the Harrop Procter Community Co-Op visit: https://hpcommunityforest.org/

Today, we are speaking with Jack Blair from the Office of the Fire Commissioner. In our interesting conversation with Jack, we discuss his personal background, his history in fire and wildfire, and his lessons learned from evaluating and investigating multiple fire events throughout the Province and Western Canada. 

Jack also shares about the role that FireSmart plays in protecting homes and communities. This is a great episode to learn more about fire investigation, how fire moves, as well as the impacts and influence of FireSmart principles.

Links:

Learn more about FireSmart BC: https://firesmartbc.ca/

Homeowners Manual: https://homeowners-manual.firesmartbc.ca/

Office of the Fire Commissioner Website: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/safety/emergency-management/fire-safety

Today on the show we speak with Dr. Jack Cohen, a Research Physical Scientist and one of the most renowned and experienced voices on the FireSmart program. We chat with Jack regarding his experience with fire, what he’s learned, and what we can learn by looking at past fires. This episode also covers how homeowners can be prepared, and the importance of FireSmart education and engagement.

Dr. Jack Cohen has been involved in wildland fire research since 1972 and was a research scientist at US Forest Service fire laboratories in Missoula, MT, Riverside, CA and Macon, GA. Dr. Cohen has been interested in understanding the wildland-urban (WU) fire problem since the 1970s, but he formally started his research on how structures ignite during wildfires in 1989. Using computational modelling, laboratory and field experiments, and WU fire disaster investigations, he found that a home and its immediate surroundings within 100 feet, called the home ignition zone (HIZ), principally determine home ignitions during extreme wildfires. 

Dr. Cohen retired from the US Forest Service in 2016 but continues his involvement in developing effective methods for preventing WU fire disasters, including research on the recent Lytton events.

Links:

Homeowners Manual: https://homeowners-manual.firesmartbc.ca/

Learn more about the Home Ignition Zone by watching this video: https://firesmartbc.ca/resource/firesmart-home-ignition-zone-assessment/

Explore the report and other resources on Lytton: https://firesmartbc.ca/lytton

Thank you to the Institute for Catastrophic Loss Reduction for sponsoring this recent research on WU Fires. Please see their website at https://www.iclr.org/ for recent reports including Lytton. 

Learn more about FireSmart BC: https://firesmartbc.ca/

In today’s episode, we have a special guest, Alan Westhaver. In this conversation, Alan discusses his history with FireSmart, his vast Wildland Urban Fire experience, as well as some of the interesting progress he’s seen over the years within the industry. 

The podcast episode dives specifically into the home ignition zone, as well as the recent report he was instrumental in bringing to life: An Examination of the Lytton, BC wildland-urban fire destruction. Alan shares what he and his team learned, what recommendations they have and some of the insights they gathered throughout their research and investigation process.

This podcast was recorded live at the FireSmart BC Conference on May 12th in Kamloops, British Columbia.

Links:

Explore the report and other resources on Lytton: https://firesmartbc.ca/lytton

Thank you to the Institute for Catastrophic Loss Reduction for sponsoring this recent research on WU Fires. Please see their website at https://www.iclr.org/ for recent reports including Lytton. 

Learn more about FireSmart BC: https://firesmartbc.ca/

Homeowners Manual: https://homeowners-manual.firesmartbc.ca/

Learn more about the Home Ignition Zone by watching this video: https://firesmartbc.ca/resource/firesmart-home-ignition-zone-assessment/

In this episode of the podcast, we focus on the theme of preparedness. During the conversation, Darren Wilkinson, Senior Wildfire Officer of Operations, shares his personal experience with wildfire, the importance of preparation, as well as the value and effect that FireSmart principles can have on responding to wildfires.

Darren has been in the wildfire industry for years, and he has vast experience in leading teams and managing high-risk situations. His role includes preparation for the wildfire season and during the season, Darren works closely with Incident Management Teams, as well as the four fire zones, and assists them in being prepared and responding to wildfires.

Links:

Learn more about FireSmart BC: https://firesmartbc.ca/

Homeowners Manual: https://homeowners-manual.firesmartbc.ca/

Learn more about the BC Wildfire Service: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/safety/wildfire-status

With the launch of the FireSmart BC Landscaping program this week, we also have the exciting launch of another plant-focused episode on the podcast! In this episode, we speak with Karla Hoffman, Resident FireSmart Landscaping Expert. 

In our conversation with Karla, we discuss all of the different landscaping resources including the FireSmart BC Plant Program and the Plant Tool. We cover what it is, how it came to be and how everyone all across British Columbia can utilize this program. This is a great episode for everyone to learn about the importance of preparing your home with the right landscaping decisions and vegetation tools!

Karla Hoffman originally worked on the FireSmart Canada Guide to Landscaping and has designed, installed, and maintained landscapes — from small residential sites to commercial, university, and municipal grounds. For more than a decade Hoffman led a public education campaign about plant health, integrated pest management, and how to conserve landscape water in a semi-arid climate. During this time, Hoffman was tasked with taking two seemingly opposing objectives and making them compatible with each other, namely, xeriscaping and being FireSmart.

Links:

Learn more about FireSmart Landscaping:

https://firesmartbc.ca/landscaping-hub

Plant Tool: https://firesmartbc.ca/landscaping-hub/fire-resistant-plants/

https://firesmartbc.ca/landscaping-hub/plant-program/

Connect with Karla in our Ask the Expert Section here: https://firesmartbc.ca/landscaping-hub/landscaping-tips/

We have a special episode this week featuring Brian Minter from Minter Country Garden! On the show, we chat with Brian about his history in gardening and his passion for people all across BC. He also shares about the importance of gardening, as it relates to FireSmart and how homeowners can make smart decisions around their garden, and vegetation landscape. This is a great episode to learn from one of Canada’s most experienced gardeners about how to protect your home and protect your province. 

A recipient of the ‘Order of Canada’, the ‘Order of British Columbia’ and an ‘Honorary Doctorate of Technology’, Brian Minter, B.A., is a horticulturist, entrepreneur and co-owner with his wife, Faye, of Minter Country Garden, an innovative destination garden center and greenhouse growing operation in Chilliwack, British Columbia, Canada.  You may know Brian from his magazine and syndicated newspaper columns and TV and radio programs.

Links:

Learn more about FireSmart Landscaping:

https://firesmartbc.ca/landscaping-hub

https://firesmartbc.ca/landscaping-hub/landscaping-tips/

https://firesmartbc.ca/plant-program/

Learn more about Brian Minter & Minter Country Garden:

https://mintergardening.com/about/brian-minter/

Today on The GetFireSmart Podcast we have a special and important episode, speaking with Tony Pesklevits from the BC Wildfire Service. In our conversation, we discuss the topics of Cultural Burning and Prescribed Fire. Throughout the show, we cover how fire can be used as a tool, the different benefits it can bring to a landscape, as well as its role in community protection. We also chat with Tony about the history of Cultural Burning and Prescribed Fire, how it is implemented, why it is used, and what makes it important to our province.

For more information, visit firesmartbc.ca/prescribedfire

To hear more from Tony Pesklevits, join us at this year's FireSmart Conference! Visit https://firesmartbc.ca/2022-firesmart-conference/ to register.

To learn more about the events in Logan Lake listen to our episode here

Documents and resources:

4 Pillars of Emergency Management 

About BCWS

Cultural Burning & Prescribed Fire

History of Fire

Benefits of Fire

Process of Prescribed Fire