Wildfire experts say a changing climate leading to longer and hotter fire seasons, combined with more than a century of fire suppression, has led to tinder dry and ageing forests that have created perfect conditions for high intensity wildfires to spread quickly.
“This areas has a lot of use by wolves and cougars and coyotes and there’s a high prey density in this area – elk and deer – so we’ve closed down some of that area to provide them some habitat security,” said Blair Fyten, human-wildlife coexistence specialist with Banff National Park.
“This areas has a lot of use by wolves and cougars and coyotes and there’s a high prey density in this area – elk and deer – so we’ve closed down some of that area to provide them some habitat security,” said Blair Fyten, human-wildlife coexistence specialist with Banff National Park.
After a century of wildfire suppression, the forest in Banff National Park has grown into an ideal fuel source for wildfires. The evergreen trees are all an even age, undisturbed by fire, and have become so dense they choked out other species.