Proactively Managing Forests to Mitigate Wildfire Risk
Climate change is increasing the likelihood of wildfires in Canada. Prolonged periods of drought and extreme heat, among other factors, are creating more favourable conditions. You may be wondering how forest fire risk applies locally.
Conditions in southern Ontario limit the risk of fire—from prevention and suppression to forest fragmentation and naturally wetter forest conditions. While wildfires in the Credit River Watershed are historically rare, it’s still important to manage forests proactively to reduce future risk as the climate changes.
Forests in the Credit River Watershed
Since 1955, CVC has worked with private landowners to plant over seven million trees to strengthen forests. Through the Credit Valley Conservation Sustainable Forest Management Plan, we’re also managing forests on CVC properties and offering services to private landowners, a need underscored by a recent study revealing that the vast majority of older plantation forests in the watershed were unmanaged.
Managing Plantation Forests
We reforest large areas by creating plantations to jumpstart forest regeneration. Management is essential for keeping plantations healthy and for helping them grow into mature forests. As trees grow, they become crowded and stressed, which makes them more susceptible to insect infestation and disease. Trees can also become frail and prone to wind and ice damage. Management reduces competition, improves tree health and increases species diversity.
Unmanaged plantations can pose a greater risk of fire compared to other habitats. Proper management of plantations includes activities like thinning every 10 to 20 years. Thinning is the process of cutting select trees to allow more sunlight to reach the forest floor and encourage the growth of native trees and plants. Thinning creates more growing space and gives remaining trees more access to resources while felling those that are diseased and unhealthy. This practice makes forests more resilient to stressors and helps reduce future fire risks by decreasing coniferous tree density and creating more space between trees.
We’re Here to Help
We’re here to help you care for your plantation through planting and management projects. If you own or manage a plantation, learn about our Sustainable Forest Management service and funding opportunities.
Our services include:
- Free site visits
- Customized sustainable forest plans
- Small-scale plantation thinning
- Assistance with qualifying for Ontario’s Managed Forest Tax Incentive Program
Spaces for spring plantings are also available. We offer full-service tree and shrub planting and cover up to 100 per cent of the costs.