Vegetation Management - Wabamun Lake Provincial Park

PROJECT BACKGROUND: Parkland County has communicated concern regarding wildfire risk from the Park to the department on several occasions. The county conducted two FireSmart Wildfire Hazard Assessments (2023); one for the hamlet of Wabamun, one for the community of Lakeview, both of which border the Park. The recommendations of the hazard assessments include fuels management in the interface area between the communities and the provincial park. Park’s Basic Wildfire Risk Assessment deems Wabamun Lake Provincial Park to be at moderate risk to wildfire, driven primarily by the adjacency of Parks’ forest fuels to neighboring communities. This prescription is designed to limit the identified wildfire risk to the park and the adjacent communities and is aligned with the County’s Hazard Assessments and FireSmart principles. PROJECT OBJECTIVE: Reduce overall surface fuel loading to decrease the intensity, rate of spread and potential for crown fire of any wildfire occurring in the identified area of the park. The treatment is designed to reduce potential fire behavior and increase successful suppression opportunities in a forested area of the park directly adjacent (east and north) to homes and properties. The treatments will decrease fuel loading along the Park’s emergency egress route to improve user safety and provide alternative access to first responders if necessary. The project is most suited to small, specialized equipment (i.e., narrow-tracked skid steers) and hand-thinning and pruning (utilizing chainsaws, brush saws, poles saws, etc.). Refer to the RFQ document for additional information and complete scope of work.