AWA attends Wildfire Risk Workshop organized by Swan River First Nation

May 12, 2026

• •
• •
• •

• Boreal Forest
• Forests
• Land Use

---

On May 5 and 6, AWA had the opportunity to attend a Wildfire Risk Workshop hosted by Swan River First Nation (SRFN) in Kinuso, Alberta. The workshop brought together community members, consultants, industry, and organizations to share knowledge, discuss wildfire risk, Indigenous fire stewardship, and the development of a new web-based wildfire risk assessment tool being led by SRFN and funded by Natural Resources Canada.

What stood out immediately is how engaged the community was in the process. More than 50 community members attended, and throughout the day people spoke passionately about forests, water, wildlife, medicines, and culturally important areas they want protected for future generations. The conversations were rooted in people’s relationships with the land and the understanding that everything on the landscape is connected.

The workshop focused on a new tool being developed to help the community better understand wildfire risk and support land stewardship decisions. We explored how this tool could potentially be used to identify high-risk areas, assess the impacts of industrial development on wildfire behaviour, and evaluate mitigation strategies, including cultural burnings.

SRFN is currently at the forefront of developing a cloud-based wildfire risk assessment and scenario exploration tool, working with Natural Resources Canada, Apex RMS and Apropos Information Systems. The tool, SyncroSim by Apex RMS, is a web-based platform for geospatial data management and forecasting. It enables users to perform analysis on their data using a series of packages. These packages run open science models (e.g.,BurnP3+, ST-Sim, and Omniscape), using publicly available datasets to forecast wildfire hazards (BurnP3+), landscape changes over time (St-Sim), and habitat connectivity in the region (Omniscape), helping answer wildfire questions in the community and treaty 8 region. The workshop’s focus was to build a case-study within SRFN for these new tools.

One of the strongest themes throughout the workshop was the role of fire in Indigenous stewardship. Fire was discussed not only as a natural disturbance, but also as a tool Indigenous peoples have used since time immemorial to care for the land. We also talked about cultural burning practices and how fire has historically been used to manage landscapes, replenish food sources, support medicines, reduce hazards, and maintain healthy ecosystems. It was an important reminder that wildfire is not always simply viewed as a destructive force. In many cases, fire is also part of maintaining healthy landscapes and relationships with the land.

We also heard presentations about the impacts of high-severity fires on soils and aquatic systems. One discussion that particularly stood out focused on how intense fires can damage soil structure and reduce the soil’s ability to absorb water. This increases runoff into streams and rivers, leading to erosion, sedimentation, and impacts on fish habitat and water quality. Presenters also talked about hydrophobic soils —soils that become water repellent after very hot fires— and how these conditions can make post-fire flooding and erosion even worse.

These presentations helped highlight that wildfire impacts extend far beyond burned trees. They also reinforced the importance of mitigation and planning efforts that reduce the likelihood of high-severity fires and their long-term ecological impacts. The wildfire risk assessment tool being developed could help identify areas vulnerable to severe burns and support better-informed decisions around mitigation and restoration.

One message that came through very clearly from community members was the importance of protecting old-growth forests. Several community members expressed that they would rather see old-growth forests burn naturally than be logged by industry. Old-growth forests were repeatedly described as sacred places with deep cultural importance, and many people emphasized that once these forests are logged, they are effectively gone forever; this is why areas such as Traditional use preserves are so important.

Both days we worked in groups to discuss what values on the landscape the community most wanted protected and what questions they hoped the tool could help answer. People spoke about protecting homes and infrastructure, but also wildlife, medicines, forests, water, and culturally important areas. And the discussions consistently returned to the idea that protecting the land also means protecting the communities and species that depend on it.

We also discussed potential questions the project could help answer, including:

• Where and when could cultural burning help reduce wildfire risk?
• How much do industrial activities like logging and oil and gas development influence wildfire risk?
• Which areas are most vulnerable to severe fires?
• How could this tool eventually be adapted so that other communities across Alberta could use it too?
• How does the landscape changes over time, and how does this impact fire probability and movement throughout the region?
• How can these tools help inform a regional fire safety plan? Eg. FireSmarting, evacuation plans, and fuel management within the community.

One thing that really stayed with us after the workshop was the level of care people showed for the land. Throughout the day, community members shared stories, concerns, and hopes for the future of the forests and waters around them. There was a strong sense that protecting these places is not only about reducing wildfire risk, but also about protecting culture, relationships, and ways of life.

Attending events like this is incredibly valuable for the work we do at AWA. It gives us an opportunity to learn directly from communities, deepen our understanding of wildfire and land stewardship, and build relationships with people doing important conservation work across the province.

Most of all, the workshop was a reminder that many communities are actively working toward thoughtful and collaborative approaches to protecting the landscapes they care about. At the end of the day, the conversations consistently came back to the same thing: protecting the land, the water, the forests, and the species that depend on them.