(Ottawa) Jasper Mayor Richard Ireland came to the defence of Parks Canada Monday amid accusations the agency allowed a mountain pine beetle infestation to fester, saying the tiny insects provided more fuel for the monster blaze.
“To anyone who perceives this as a failure: I reject that premise. This is a success. We anticipated, with Parks Canada, that something like this could happen,” said Mayor Ireland, whose own home was destroyed by the fire.
“When we were attacked, the defense lines held. Yes, we suffered casualties, and it is so incredibly painful. But we held on, and they [Parcs Canada] “saved 70% of our city,” he continued at the end of a technical briefing session.
Before him, the Minister of Environment and Climate Change Steven Guilbeault and the President and CEO of Parks Canada Ron Hallman had been questioned on the role that the pine beetle infestation could have played in the forest fire.
PHOTO ARCHIVES NATURAL RESOURCES CANADA/CANADIAN FOREST SERVICE
Jasper Mayor Richard Ireland has come to the defence of Parks Canada amid accusations the agency has allowed a mountain pine beetle infestation to fester.
“Parks Canada has been working to implement fire prevention measures around the town of Jasper since 1996, 1997 […] We mechanically harvested wood that had been affected by this insect, precisely to eliminate sources of fuel,” stressed Minister Guilbeault.
“There are a lot of measures that have been put in place, including the creation of a buffer zone around the city,” but the reality is that “we are now facing forest fires that are outside the norms,” he argued.
Buffer zones could be larger around towns like Jasper. “That’s certainly a question we’re going to have to ask ourselves,” continued Minister Guilbeault. Because “we’ve entered the era of climate change,” he said.
PHOTO SPENCER COLBY, CANADIAN PRESS ARCHIVES
Steven Guilbeault, Minister of Environment and Climate Change
Gradual reintegration
The Jasper wildfire has burned about 358 buildings in the popular Alberta resort area.
There were no injuries or deaths.
PHOTO AMBER BRACKEN, CANADIAN PRESS ARCHIVES
Jasper victims have not been allowed to return home.
All the fires raging in the community have been extinguished, but the Jasper victims have not yet been allowed to return to their homes, Minister Guilbeault said.
Their reintegration, he said, will be done in stages, according to a timetable that has not been provided.