Open AccessFifty years of wildland fire science in Canada
Author(s) -
Sean C. P. Coogan,
Lori D. Daniels,
Den Boychuk,
Philip J. Burton,
Mike Flannigan,
Stéphane Gauthier,
Victor Kafka,
Jane S. Park,
B. M. Wotton
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
canadian journal of forest research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.677
H-Index - 121
eISSN - 1208-6037
pISSN - 0045-5067
DOI - 10.1139/cjfr-2020-0314
Subject(s) - fire ecology , wildfire suppression , fire protection , environmental resource management , environmental science , climate change , forest management , geography , forestry , ecology , engineering , ecosystem , civil engineering , biology
We celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Canadian Journal of Forest Research by reflecting on the considerable progress accomplished in select areas of Canadian wildland fire science over the past half century. Specifically, we discuss key developments and contributions in the creation of the Canadian Forest Fire Danger Rating System; the relationships between wildland fire and weather, climate, and climate change; fire ecology; operational decision support; and wildland fire management. We also discuss the evolution of wildland fire management in Banff National Park as a case study. We conclude by discussing some possible directions in future Canadian wildland fire research including the further evaluation of fire severity measurements and effects; the efficacy of fuel management treatments; climate change effects and mitigation; further refinement of models pertaining to fire risk analysis, fire behaviour, and fire weather; and the integration of forest management and ecological restoration with wildland fire risk reduction. Throughout the paper, we reference many contributions published in the Canadian Journal of Forest Research, which has been at the forefront of international wildland fire science.