Wildfire hazard assessment and abatement

Last updated on June 25, 2024

Fire hazard assessments and hazard abatement are key activities in reducing the potential threat of wildfires arising from fuels left on the land base following industrial activities. Under the Wildfire Act a person carrying out an industrial activity or prescribed activity is required to assess and abate fire hazards as necessary. 

In conjunction with Natural Resources Canada, the BC Wildfire Service has developed A Guide to Fuel Hazard Assessment and Abatement in British Columbia to assist those carrying out industrial activities determine whether or not fuel hazard abatement is necessary, and if so, the threshold necessary to comply with the legislated obligations.

The guide provides a procedure to determine fuel hazards created by an industrial or prescribed activity on forest land and contains a straightforward step by step instruction to enable a person to determine when fuel hazard abatement is needed in relation to the fire risk, proximity to interface, and, fuel loading and arrangement.

Tools to help determine fire risk

Photo guides and other useful information

Photo guide for quantifying forest stands in British Columbia photo guide #501 – forest stands

Part Page number (as it appears in document) PDF document page number Description
Part 1 (PDF, 1.9MB) i 2 Table of Contents
  ii 3 Acknowledgements
  iii 4 Abstract
  iv 5 Trees - Latin, Common Name & Abbreviations
  v 6 Brush and Shrubs - Latin and Common Name
  vi 7 Herbs - Latin and Common Name
  vii 8 Definition of Fuel Types
  viii 9 Key Words
  Blank - C3-8 10 - 27 Fuel Type C-3 – Mature Jack or Lodgepole Pine
Part 2 (PDF, 2.9MB) C3-9 - C3-16 1 - 15 Fuel Type C-3 – Mature Jack or Lodgepole Pine (cont'd)
  Blank - C4-5 16 - 26 Fuel Type C-4 – Immature Jack or Lodgepole Pine
  Blank - C7-3 27 - 34 Fuel Type C-7 – Ponderosa Pine – Douglas fir
Part 3 (PDF, 4.2MB) C7-4 - C7-20 1 - 34 Fuel Type C-7 – Ponderosa Pine – Douglas fir (cont’d)
Part 4 (PDF, 5.6MB) C7-21 - C7-28 1 - 15 Fuel Type C-7 – Ponderosa Pine – Douglas fir (cont’d)
  Blank - M2-24 16 - 64 Fuel Type M-2 – Spruce Balsam
  Blank - O1-1 65 - 67 Fuel Type O-1 – Open Range - Sagebrush

Photo guide for quantifying forest stands in British Columbia photo guide #502 – modified forest stands

Part Page number (as it appears in document) PDF document page number Description
Part 1 (PDF, 2.5MB) i 2 Table of Contents
  ii 3 Acknowledgements
  iii 4 Abstract
  iv 5 Trees - Latin, Common Names and Abbreviations
  Blank 6 Blank Page
  v 7 Brush and Shrubs - Latin and Common Name
  vi 8 Herbs - Latin and Common Name
  vii 9 Definition of Fuel Types
  viii 10 Key Words
  Blank - C3-4 11 - 19 Fuel Type C-3 – Mature Jack or Lodgepole Pine
  Blank - C4-6 20 - 33 Fuel Type C-4 – Immature Jack or Lodgepole Pine
Part 2 (PDF, 2.7MB) C4-7 - C4-21 1 - 29 Fuel Type C-4 – Immature Jack or Lodgepole Pine (cont'd)
Part 3 (PDF, 5.5MB) Blank - C7-21 1 - 44 Fuel Type C-7 – Ponderosa Pine – Douglas fir
Part 4 (PDF, 2.6MB) C7-22 - C7-36 1 - 29 Fuel Type C-7 – Ponderosa Pine – Douglas fir (cont'd)
  Blank 30 - 31 Fuel Type M-2 – Spruce Balsam
Part 5 (PDF, 2.8MB) M2-1 - M2-3 1 - 5 Fuel Type M-2 – Spruce Balsam (cont’d)
  Blank - S1-7 6 - 20 Fuel Type S-1 – Jack or Lodgepole Pine Slash
  Blank - S1-7 21 - 36 Fuel Type S-2 – Spruce Balsam Slash
Part 6 (PDF, 3.1MB) S2-8 - S2-24 1 - 33 Fuel Type S-2 – Spruce Balsam Slash (cont’d)
  Blank - S3-2 34 - 39 Fuel Type S-3 – Coastal Cedar – Hemlock – Douglas fir Slash
Part 7 (PDF, 2.MB) S3-3 - S3-17 1 - 39 Fuel Type S-3 – Coastal Cedar – Hemlock – Douglas fir Slash (cont’d)

Disclaimer

Warranty disclaimer

This information is provided as a public service by the Government of British Columbia, Box 9502, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada V8W 9C1.

This guidance document, two versions of the risk map and all of the information it contains are provided "as is" without warranty of any kind, whether express or implied. All implied warranties, including, without limitation, implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement, are hereby expressly disclaimed. Links and references to any other websites are provided for information only and listing shall not be taken as endorsement of any kind. The Government of British Columbia is not responsible for the content or reliability of the linked websites, including Google Earth, and does not endorse the content, products, services or views expressed within them.

Limitation of liabilities

Under no circumstances will the Government of British Columbia be liable to any person or business entity for any direct, indirect, special, incidental, consequential, or other damages based on any use of this website or any other website to which this site is linked, including, without limitation, any lost profits, business interruption, or loss of programs or information, even if the Government of British Columbia has been specifically advised of the possibility of such damages.