The Lower Similkameen Indian Band ignited a prescribed cultural burn on up to 280 hectares of grassland and brush in the West Chopaka area between Osoyoos and Cawston to mitigate wildfire risk and enhance wildlife habitat.
Volunteers from the B.C. Wildlife Federation were crucial to these plans as they deployed cameras to give the project partners the ability to assess how the changes in the land were affecting living creatures in the area, said BCWF Executive Director Jesse Zeman.
The B.C. Wildlife Federation has been engaged for more than a year on this multi-agency project.
“We’re thrilled to partner with the Lower Similkameen Indian Band, the Province of B.C., and the Government of Canada on this project,” said Zeman. “Our members have been actively volunteering to help deploy cameras in an area where a number of them have hiked and hunted in the past. Research has shown that prescribed burns can have positive effects on biodiversity, from species at risk such as badgers, to large mammals such as mule deer, along with trees, shrubs, and grasses.”
Indigenous people had managed their lands with prescribed burns for thousands of years through the pre-colonial period to maintain the pine forests and productive grasslands for the benefit of keystone species.
“We have done a lot of planning and built partnerships with BC Parks, First Nations, and in the provincial government and now we are ready to move forward. This is an important beginning for Indigenous-led land management,” said LSIB Chief Keith Crow.
Over many decades of fire suppression in the modern era, fallen branches and ingrowth have increased fuel loads, encroached on grasslands, and encouraged sage infestation. Increased fuel loads lead to more intense wildfires that are difficult to control, burn hotter, harm wildlife, destroy healthy forests, and disrupt human settlements through property damage.
“When you put a fence around a place, maybe you think you are protecting it, but what happened is that it has become an overgrown mess and a lot of wildlife is suffering as a result,” said LSIB Knowledge Keeper Rob Edward.
In the 2023 Eagle Bluff wildfire and the 2023 Crater Complex wildfires high fuel loads led to more intense wildfires that were difficult to control.
When used at the correct time in the spring, under expert supervision, cultural burns encourage new plant growth, which can pull excess water from the ground and decrease the risk of flooding. Research has shown that prescribed burns have positive effects on biodiversity, from microbes to mushrooms, large mammals, reptiles, birds, trees, shrubs, and grass, and replenish nutrients in the soil.
The first phase in this multi-year project plans to treat up to 280 hectares with BC Wildfire Service crews and First Nations fire crews leading the ignitions.
