Perceptions to land use planning to mitigate wildfire risk

Survey of municipal land use planning for wildfire risk mitigation in Alberta – May 2021

 

University of Alberta (Human Dimensions of Hazards Research Group)

A 2020 survey of over half of municipalities across Alberta sought to:

1. Determine how many Alberta municipalities are using land use planning to manage wildfire risk.
2. Understand the perceptions of a land use approach to wildfire risk mitigation.

Researchers from the University of Alberta surveyed 114 municipalities and determined:

• 36% of municipalities had completed at least one FireSmart Community Plan documents.
• Municipalities with wildfire or evacuation experience were more likely to have completed a FireSmart Community Plan document (but almost half of municipalities that have experienced wildfire exposure have not completed a risk assessment).

The survey collected 23 recommendations for land use planning that can contribute to wildfire risk mitigation. See the full research paper for all recommendations and results.