Coastal campfire ban starts at noon today
A campfire ban is due to begin at noon today for most of Vancouver Island, considerably earlier than last summer, when it didn’t come into effect until mid-August.
B.C. Wildfire Service officials imposed the ban in the Coastal fire zone after a period of prolonged hot, dry weather, with no end in sight.
Debra Page, whose family plans to camp at Goldstream Provincial Park until Friday, said she has seen more campers equipped with propane devices, which are unaffected by the ban. Still, a campfire is a special part of the camping experience, she said.
“I think it’s just a nice thing in the evening, just to sit around the campfire,” she said. “You’ve got that smell.”
Her daughter, Ashley Olive, said the ban is odd, given wet weather this spring. “I felt like all we had was rain.” The 10-year average for wildfires in the Coastal Fire Centre from April 1 to July 1 is 60.
Coastal Fire Centre spokeswoman Marg Drysdale said there have been 44 wildfires in the jurisdiction since April 1, all of them human-caused — although lightning strikes tend to be more of a factor during the summer. In an average year, 30 to 40 per cent of wildfires in B.C. are caused by people.
Environment Canada meteorologist Cindy Yu said there has been little precipitation in the capital region since June 18.
“According to the long-range model, we have a pretty good chance of having a warmer-than-normal summer.”
The campfire ban covers Crown land, private land and B.C. parks, and will run through Oct. 17 if conditions remain the same. The Coastal fire zone includes Vancouver Island, a portion of the southeast mainland and Haida Gwaii, although Haida Gwaii and Vancouver Island’s “fog zone” are not affected by the ban.
The fog zone is a two-kilometre-wide strip along the Island’s west coast, from Owen Point near Port Renfrew in the south to the boundary of the District of Port Hardy.
Drysdale said the B.C. Wildfire Service’s technicians, who look at weather trends, don’t see any precipitation in the forecast. “Our forecaster is telling us it’s going to continue to be like this, and getting hotter by Friday.
“It looks like we’ll be into the high 20s, maybe into the 30s by the weekend.”
The length of campfire bans can vary considerably from year to year, depending on conditions, Drysdale said. Last year’s ban ran from Aug. 17 to Sept. 1, ending after a bout of rain.
Fines for violating a campfire ban can range from $1,150 (formerly $345) for not complying with a wildfire restriction to $100,000 for a campfire that spreads. Drysdale said people can also be charged for the entire cost of fighting a wildfire in certain circumstances.
The ban includes not only campfires but other types of open fires and the burning of woody debris in outdoor stoves. Fireworks, firecrackers and the use of burning barrels are also prohibited.
B.C. Wildfire Service crews will continue to work at a blaze on Mount Manuel Quimper today, a few kilometres from Sooke.
“We’re still going to be supporting them with our water tender and manning a few pumps,” said Sooke Fire Chief Ken Mount.
He said the fire, which remains partially contained, is believed to be human-caused.
The goal is to be in the “mopping-up” phase by the end of the week, Mount said. “I think it’s just a surface fire now.”
He said the fire grew slightly overnight Tuesday to about 1.2 hectares. “They’re stretching hose lines and water right around it the best they can now.”