March 2022 Update from the Lac Le Jeune FireSmart Committee

Province of British Columbia Fuel Management Demo CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 

The Lac Le Jeune area now has a FireSmart Committee with 11 members who represent all areas of our community. This should assist us in accessing government funding and assistance to prepare for any future wildfire events in our area. The Committee includes Bill Miller, Colleen Kennedy, Brian Gordon, Glen Sparrow, Clay Govett, Jim Philips, Rod Faust, Scott Alan, Bruce Mitchell, Chris Murray, and Brad Smith. Tim Cole, a LLJ resident who is also a Professional Forester, has agreed to participate in an advisory role. 

So far we have had two organizational meetings and we have gathered important information to get us started toward being a FireSmart community. Activities completed or initiated so far include:

• Recruiting of committee members from most neighbourhoods of the Lac Le Jeune community. Our Committee includes members with fire suppression and fuel management experience.
• Checking in with the LLJ Resort owners to see what level of involvement they would like to have with our FireSmart initiatives.
• Planning regular FireSmart informational updates to share with Lac Le Jeune residents.  These articles will describe how we can all make our properties more FireSmart and, therefore, more likely to survive a wildfire event. The first of these bulletins was shared on the Community Facebook page in February, 2022.
• Reviewing Forest Ministry maps of our area to see where timber removal and fuel management activities are planned on Crown and private lands near our properties.
• Visiting with Doug Wilson, the Chief of the Logan Lake Fire Department to get advice on how to become a designated FireSmart community, as well as what is the best fire suppression equipment for our residents, as well as for the community at large, to have on hand in case of a wildfire.
• Checking in with Ronaye Elliot, our area representative on the TNRD, to access what funding available to assist us in educating our members, purchasing supplies or renting necessary equipment. We are currently putting together a budget to submit to the TNRD so that funds can be provided to us.

The FireSmart committee are now looking for a Forestry Professional who can assist us in developing a FireSmart Community Action Plan that will guide us toward becoming a designated FireSmart community.  The Forester will survey our entire community and assist us in getting maximum protections with focused fuel management activities and astute equipment acquisitions.

Please watch the Lac Le Jeune Community blog, the Lac Le Jeune Conservation Association Facebook page, and the neighbourhood bulletin board (by the mailboxes) for more FireSmart suggestions. If you would like more information on FireSmart, check out www.firesmartcanada.ca. If you would like to assist with future projects, or have expertise to share with our Committee, please contact Bruce Mitchell at brucej53@telus.net or call me at 778-257-0855.