Rare Plants and Rare Plant Communities in Alberta Face an Uncertain Future

Wild Lands Advocate article, December 2012, by Dr. Kevin Timoney. Timoney presents a case study of a prescribed burn near Saskatchewan River Crossing, and looks at the rare plant communities in the area, comparing the health and threats to those communities both before (in 2007) and after (in 2009 and 2011) the burn. He finishes by making recommendations to the government regarding the future of the prescribed burn program.

“The Alberta government and Parks Canada need to do a better job of incorporating science into their decision-making; they need to change policy that has proven ineffective, outdated, or detrimental. Plans to burn other parts of the upper North Saskatchewan area should be postponed. Prior to any future prescribed burns, monitoring the effects of the 2009 burn should continue over the next decade in order to determine if the burn is achieving ecologically defensible objectives. If it is not, then prescribed burns should cease.”