FireSmart Landscapes
Last Review/Updated: April 27, 2004
The FireSmart philosophy focuses on mitigating the likelihood of large, high-intensity, high-severity fires and the risk associated with the use of prescribed fire. FireSmart landscapes are a core part of this, and are designed to recognize the interaction between the ecological, economic and social impacts of fire.
Wildfire impacts can be positive or negative depending on resource management objectives. Although wildfires can destroy homes or burn valuable timber, they can also diversify wildlife habitat and sustain forest health (Partners in Protection, 1999).
Since fire plays such a crucial role in the dynamics of fire dependant ecosystems (i.e., boreal forest, montane) it is important to consider and manage the integration of fire and forest management, two disciplines that have primarily evolved separately.
One approach
to integrate fire and sustainable forest management is to strategically
designing FireSmart landscapes to provide greater certainty for an
array of landscape values. This process and its characteristics are
fundamental elements of sustainable forest management.
