Examining Post-Fire Perceptions of Selected Mitigation Strategies after the 2016 Horse River Wildland Fire in Alberta, Canada

Abstract

Our aim was to study post-fire perceptions of selected mitigation strategies for wildland fire-induced risks proposed in a previous scientific study for the communities situated within the forested areas. Consequently, we considered engaging relevant professionals in the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo (RMWB), Alberta who experienced the costliest wildland fire occurrences in Canadian history known as the 2016 Horse River Fire (HRF). To meet our goal, we formulated a questionnaire based on the scientific evidence presented in a previous study and conducted a structured survey. Our results revealed that 24 professionals participated in the survey during the June 2020–April 2021 period, providing a 32% response rate. We observed that a high percentage of the participants agreed (i.e., between 63% and 80%) with the proposed wildland fire-induced risk mitigation strategies, including the presence of no to little vegetation in the 30 m buffer zone from the wildland–urban interface (WUI), extending the 30 m buffer zone to 70 m from the WUI, constructing a 70 m width ring road around the communities, and parking lots of the social infrastructures in the fringe of the communities encountering to the forest. We also found other views, including the use of non-combustible and fire-resistant construction materials, and developing the 70 m buffer zone as a recreational space.

Keywords

• 2016 Horse River Fire
• qualitative survey
• stakeholders’ engagement
• wildland–urban interface (WUI)