Wildfire Information

FIRESMARTING - WILDFIRE MITIGATION

City of Yellowknife Fuel Reduction Strategy

The City of Yellowknife is moving ahead with the Yellowknife Community Wildfire Protection Plan which has identified specific high risk areas around the City that would benefit from vegetation reduction measures to lower the threat of forest fires impacting the city. 

The 2019 Community Wildfire Protection Plan outlines areas in the City that will be targeted for the fuel reduction strategy. 

In 2012, a consultation was done with Montane Forest Management Ltd. to review the Community Wildfire Protection Plan. The plan, which was updated in 2019, outlined priority areas for fuel reduction in Yellowknife. The City is following through, following FireSmarting principles, to reduce the fuel loads and thereby reducing the threat of wildfire impingement on the wildland/urban interface. The Government of the Northwest Territories (GNWT), Department of Environment and Natural Resources (ENR) was consulted concerning wildlife habitat to ensure that all regulations, protocols, and procedures are being followed.

 Firesmarting Strategies:

• Thin coniferous trees (spruce and pine) to achieve 2 – 3 meter crown spacing;
• Remove deciduous shrub understory;
• Remove all dead standing;
• Remove all dead & down coniferous and deciduous trees and shrubs;
• Retain all live deciduous overstory stems;
• Prune limbs to 2 meters above the ground level;
• Remove resulting debris; a 2-inch layer of chipping/mulching and spreading is acceptable;
• The trees/brush to be cut to within a couple of inches from the terrain/ground level;
• An all-terrain vehicle may be used to remove trees and debris from the site but environmental impacts to the surrounding area, terrain and ground must be kept to a minimum;
• Any area the City determines has been significantly altered by the use of an all-terrain vehicle will be remediated to a standard deemed acceptable by the City;

Firesmarting In Your Backyard

The City of Yellowknife is encouraging Yellowknifers to FireSmart their properties this spring.  Now is the perfect time to clean up your yard after the winter - dead standing, deadfall, dead branches, and debris from gutters, under/on decks, and around the house.   For more information on FireSmarting, visit firesmartcanada.ca. To help debris removal, the City is providing “Debris Pick-Up Days” on Monday, May 9, 16, 30, and Tuesday, May 24, 2022.

To be part of this event, please fill out the Debris Pick-up form. Collected debris should be tied together with rope/twine, or placed in a compostable bag (no longer than 2-metres or 6-feet in length), and placed at the curb before 8 a.m. on pick-up days.  Residents are encouraged to include before and after pictures of their yard at the bottom of this form!

PLEASE NOTE: LEAVES, GRASS CLIPPINGS, AND ANY OTHER ITEMS FOR COMPOSTING WILL NOT BE INCLUDED IN THE PICKUP.

Additional Resources

• FireSmarting Homeowner Checklist
• Homeowner’s FireSmart Manual – FireSmart Begins at Home 
• FireSmarting Begins at Home App