What actions are taken?

Every wildland fire is assessed. Depending on the location of the fire, availability of resources, fire behavior, and the potential to affect values at risk, the following actions may be taken:

• Monitoring - monitoring the fire to make sure it does not affect values at risk later in the fire season
• Limited action - taking action to protect values at risk
• Full suppression - suppressing (fighting) a fire

Meeting the challenges together

Forest managers seek to balance wildland fire’s ecological benefits with the need to protect people’s safety, property and timber resources. Increasingly, Canadians realize that it is not economically possible or ecologically desirable to eliminate all wildland fires.

Canadian Wildland Fire Strategy

To establish a balanced approach, federal, provincial and territorial governments developed the Canadian Wildland Fire Strategy. The strategy charts the future of fire management, and includes measures to mitigate hazards and improve fire preparedness, response and recovery capabilities.

Fire management is a big responsibility, and firefighting can be an expensive proposition. Fortunately, Canada’s forest management agencies have a strong record of cooperation and are well organized to meet the challenges ahead.