Following the disasterous forest fire in Jasper this past summer, Parks Canada and several Bow Valley municipalities are planning to build firebreaks to reduce the likelihoood that nature-caused fires can damage thens and affect the tourism industry. Canmore is already a year into their process, Banff’s Protection Mountin firebreak project is already underway, and this winter the firebreaks will be built just west of the Town of Lake Louise. All these fire guards improve safety for park visitors and residents while creating high-quality habitat for local species including “at-risk” flora and fauna.
This also protects the Main Route of the Trans-Canada Highway from potential extended closure in a forest fire situation.
Lake O-Hara / Field
The 49-hectare fireguard, about one kilometre long and 400 to 500 metres wide, will be heavily logged east of Lake O’Hara Road and northwest of Lake Louise, spanning from Ross Lake to Sink Lake along Highway 1A in Yoho National Park over winter, beginning in November.
Lake Louise
Just west of Lake Louise, the fireguard will be 165.4 hectares/1.65 square-kilometres (or roughly the size of 300 US football fields) will span from the south slope of Mount St. Piran behind the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise across the Bow Valley to the parking lot and ski runs of Lake Louise Ski Hill on Whitehorn Mountain.
Parks Canada is building a firebreak on the south side of Protection Mountain (between Lake Louise and Castle Junction, on the north side of the Trans-Canada and Highway 1A,) by mechanically cutting trees, and taking advantage of existing avalanche paths. The swath is 400 metres wide and 1.5 kilometres long and work on it started in December 2022.
Banff
Since 2014, Parks Canada, in collaboration with the Town of Banff, have completed over 107 hectares of FireSmart thinning directly adjacent to the Town of Banff and over 330 ha in mechanical thinning through landscape level fuel reduction to protect the Town of Banff and surrounding area. Parks Canada has also completed FireSmart thinning on over 150 hectares of forest to protect the community of Lake Louise and adjacent infrastructure and facilities.
Prescribed fire is another strategy that can be used to reduce the risk of very large, high intensity and severe wildfires. In 2022, the Alexandra prescribed fire was completed in the northern portion of Banff National Park. Approximately 4,500 ha of prescribed fire have been completed over the past 5 years.
Between 2019 and 2024, Parks Canada completed two large, landscape-level fire guards in Banff National Park. One on the west side of Sulphur Mountain, adjacent to the Town of Banff. The West Sulphur fuel break, completed between 2019 and 2023 helps protect the Town of Banff in the event of a wildfire. Through the removal of large sections of trees, this fuel break will slow the speed at which a wildfire can spread, greatly reducing how fast a wildfire could reach the Town of Banff.
Near the Banff townsite, Parks Canada is planning to proceed with tree thinning in the Tunnel Mountain area to create a more open forest, which can help reduce the wildfire risk to the town of Banff, and the nearby communities of Harvie Height, and Canmore.
Canmore & Harvie Heights
Canmore is adding fireguards near the town with a combination of mechanical tree removal and forest thinning. This work may begin in October, building firebreaks to the north side of Harvie Heights, and north of Canmore by Stoneworks Creek on the approaches to Bald Eagle Peak (anu Katha Ipa)
We would like to thank Kelsey Eade, Fire Communications Officer for the Lake Louise, Yoho & Kootenay Field Unit of Parks Canada / Government of Canada.