Opposition MLA pushes for wildfire policy reforms in B.C., such as following Australia's 'stay or go' model

With B.C. still dealing with a series of massive wildfires that have displaced thousands of people in the Okanagan and Shuswap, an opposition MLA is calling on the province to explore policy changes that could help in future seasons. 

"The frequency, the severity and the size of these interface fires are getting more and more challenging and problematic," said B.C. United MLA Todd Stone, who represents Kamloops-South Thompson.

"There's a tremendous amount of lessons that should have been learned by now from previous fire seasons that haven't fully been embraced."

Stone mentioned increased funding for the B.C. Wildfire Service, increasing the organization's community engagement, expanding volunteer certifications, bolstering support to regional governments during evacuation orders and a review of forest management practices. 

"If we want different results, we have to do things differently," he said. 

Important to understand why people stay: professor

The province faced local criticism of their initial response to the Bush Creek East wildfire for a variety of reasons, including an initial blanket ban on people outside the evacuation zone delivering unauthorized aid, or people inside the evacuation zone helping with firefighting efforts. 

Both policies have been softened over the past week, and the amount of criticism by residents has significantly lessened. 

Tara McGee, an earth and atmospheric science professor at the University of Alberta who has studied social science aspects of wildfires for more than 20 years, said the province would be wise to research the reasons many people in the Shuswap decided not to evacuate. 

"There are a variety of factors that influence those decisions and actions by people. So I think it's important to have an understanding of the factors that influence how people respond," she said. 

McGee also said it was encouraging to see the province integrate people who stayed behind into their firefighting efforts.

"One of the things we've found … is that some people will stay behind because they want to fight the fire, whether or not there's a policy in place that enables them to do that," she said.

"And so it's great to hear that B.C. is now looking at ways to enable people to do that safely."

Stay or go?

While every jurisdiction has different strategies for fighting wildfires, those in Australia have caught the attention of many in B.C. this year. 

The country heavily utilizes volunteer firefighters from local communities during blazes, and has also had a longstanding "Stay or Go" policy of allowing people to stay in their homes during evacuation orders.

"We can work on liability, we can work on safety certifications and training, all that stuff," said Stone. 

"But I'm confident if … Australians and others can do it, we can absolutely do it here in British Columbia."

McGee said incorporating volunteers and local knowledge into wildfires could have positive effects. 

But she cautioned against B.C. adopting a Stay or Go model, noting that Australia has downplayed that strategy in recent years following a series of bushfires in 2009 where 173 people died, instead emphasizing that people be proactive in leaving should they feel threatened.   

"Communities and people have to be extremely well prepared to be able to do that safely, so unless that high level of preparedness is there, I wouldn't advise that."

Government officials were reluctant to speak on the record about any potential changes to the province's wildfire policies with the current season still underway, although they acknowledged the ad hoc nature of regional government policies in evacuation zones can present challenges.

And while the province is planning to unveil long-anticipated changes to its emergency management legislation this fall, most of the rules around evacuation orders are covered under the Wildfire Act, which has not been the subject of consultations. 

At the same time, talk of being better prepared for future seasons is expected to be a topic of conversation at next month's Union of B.C. Municipalities convention. 

"The new normal is we're going to have busy wildfire seasons every summer," said Stone.

"We've got a much more localized effort with broader capacity to hit fires hard and fast."