Ryan MacDonald is a senior editor at The Globe heading the climate, energy and environment team
Wildfires illustrate the implications of climate change with dramatic visual impact. This wildfire season, perhaps more than in recent memory, is showcasing something else: Just how close to the woods we’ve built our communities.The wildland-urban interface encompasses areas where homes and other structures meet, or are interspersed with, forests and grasslands. It’s estimated that more than 12 per cent of Canadians live within it, as well as nearly one-third of First Nations living on reserves.
These data gaps impede our ability to reduce risk for communities by making crucial planning decisions. If WUI growth continues unchecked, wildfire problems will likely get worse. But the question of how to limit expansion into WUI areas is a prickly one, with growing populations and people’s desire to live close to wooded areas bumping up against wildfire threats., and prolonged periods of smoke exposure. We need more data and a national strategy to protect our vulnerable communities.