2023 Air Quality and Campfire Smoke
Requesting Jurisdiction: Parks Canada
Description: Parks Canada is interested in air quality due to campfire smoke across the country. To this end, we would like to know what data are collected and what various provincial and territorial measures have been implemented in your jurisdiction to ensure and measure air quality, as well as those put in place to mitigate adverse effects, if applicable. Finally, we are interested in the various initiatives put in place to disseminate this information with the public.
Questions asked:
Do you have camping areas where it is forbidden to light campfires? If so, what motivated your decision? Is it for security, logistical, health or other reasons?
Alberta Parks manages where campfires may be lit within Alberta Parks and Protected Areas. No person shall set, light or maintain a fire in a provincial park or recreation area except in an area with a fireplace, firepit or other facility that is installed by AB Parks. This is the normal situation for campfires, and if the hazard dictates, a total fire ban may be implemented preventing any fires from being lit. This is done for safety considerations when fire hazard is high to extreme, and fire bans are usually implemented at a local or regional level, but in exceptional circumstances may be implemented at a provincial level. Open fires are also prohibited in ecological reserves and wilderness areas.
No. Save for fire bans and restrictions due to environmental conditions and otherwise having to be in a designated area.
The NWT only has as and when fire bans due to dry forest conditions and risk of wildfire, the fire bans are not motivated by air quality.
Do you assess the level of fine particles in the air in camping areas? If so, how often and do you take special measures if the level is too high? What are these measures?
No.
There are campfire bans governed by very hot or very dry conditions. Do you have other types of prohibitions to minimize the amount of fine particles in campfire smoke?
There are no other provisions for fine particles in campfire smoke, nor does Alberta Parks have any specific restrictions against burning certain types or quality of campfire wood. The Alberta Environmental Protection and Enhancement act prohibits open burning of prohibited debris such as animal manure, waste material from construction sites, rubber, wood containing wood preservatives, oil, etc. Issues with visitors attempting to burn these types of debris at campgrounds is not a regular occurrence.
No, we do not have other particulate prohibitions at this time.
No, but we are looking to define what can be burnt in NWT parks but this is motivated by litter from some burning materials in the fire pits rather than air quality.
Have you evaluated or will you evaluate mitigation measures to reduce the level of fine particles in the air?
In the past smoke levels in campgrounds was an issue when certain conditions existed (e.g., temperature inversions, still conditions). After Alberta Parks implemented a fee for fire wood, this issue reduced significantly (as campers were more judicious in their burning of wood they had to pay for or the limited supply they brought with them). There are no current plans to evaluate mitigation measures for fine particles in the air by Alberta Parks caused by campfires. Wildfire smoke in Alberta is recognized as a macro scale phenomena which impacts across jurisdictional boundaries and impacts according to the prevailing atmospheric and wildfire conditions. Wildfire smoke in a localized area can easily result from a major wildfire event several hundreds or thousands of kilometers away.
No; the PurpleAir monitors will be a first step to discovering whether measures are even required.
We do not have plans to at the present time.
Please share any questions or issues that you feel may relate to this jurisdictional scan:
Alberta Parks does not experience localized issues from campfire smoke at this time. It would seem that the most prudent actions related to wildfire smoke is information supports to allow visitors to make informed activity decisions (such as the Air Quality Health Index) and taking mitigation actions for internal buildings at Parks locations where there is a reasonable ability to affect air quality.
Aside from campfire smoke and possibly more pressing is vehicle use. We have anti-idle policies across government, but enforcement could be enhanced. Another plug for the PurpleAir monitor – I’m fairly certain I was able to pinpoint the timing of a delivery vehicle at our park entrance building due to a sudden spike and fall of the PM 2.5 levels. https://map.purpleair.com/
N/A