2023-08-30 17:58:47
Who should be named as responsible for the forest fires that have been ravaging Canada for three months now? The British Columbia government has an answer: 60% of fire starts are caused by lightning and 40% by human activities.
The State of Alberta gives virtually the same figures by reversing the culprits. On the other hand, no one disputes the prior role of global warming which, according to the World Weather Attribution (WWA), would have made the extreme weather conditions at the origin of the conflagration seven times more likely.
Charlotte Dawe, conservation and policy campaigner with the Canadian association Wilderness Committee, does not deny this. But, according to her, the human impact is not limited to the cigarette butts thrown on the parched ground. “When talking regarding forest fires, most people point to climate change, fossil fuel operators and gas emissions, and they are right to do so. But we often forget to point out the role of forest management,” she points out.
Excessive industrialization
In itself, a fire is not particularly negative. Low intensity, it promotes the migration of species, fertilizing the soil with ashes, and helps rejuvenate and renovate the ecosystem. In fact, Canadian aboriginals had traditionally resorted to “burning” to eliminate fuel before the settlers, in the 19th century, prohibited this practice, replacing it with a fire suppression policy. A counterproductive choice, since newly burned forests are more resistant to fires, as highlighted in particular by a study carried out by eight researchers for the journal Nature in 2020.
“We have created forests that are just waiting to burn”, summarizes Charlotte Dawe. For her, the logging companies are to point the finger. “When they fell the trees, they eliminate the diversity of species to replant only identical individuals, of the same age and no more resistant. They make forests as flammable as a box of matches,” she says. “The worst thing is that the felling of trees continues, even though the total area of the forest is decreasing,” continues the activist, who is calling for a suspension of operations.
“We have to hold the authorities to account, but they are usually very slow. Companies continue to do what they want, while we still do not know the extent of the damage. The timber industry is heavy. In 2021, it generated 7.3% of Canada’s total exports. The negotiations promise to be “delicate”, underlined the New York Times recently, “with a politically powerful industry. »
Over-industrialization of the boreal forest is also destroying habitats for species that are emblematic of Canada, such as the caribou or the spotted owl. “These are animals whose habitat is very specific,” explains Charlotte Dawe. If the fires burn what the logging companies haven’t already cut down, they will no longer find the conditions necessary for their survival. »
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