Photo credit: Sarah Bradley
SASKATOON — From October 20 to 24, the Canadian Prairies Prescribed Fire Exchange (CPPFE), in partnership with the Meewasin Valley Authority and other organizations, will host Saskatchewan’s fourth Prescribed Fire Training Exchange (TREX) across multiple sites in the Saskatoon region. This year’s TREX is the largest in CPPFE history, with 60 participants from 27 agencies across Canada and the United States.
TREX brings together a diverse group of fire practitioners, including land managers, ranchers, conservationists, academics, firefighters and volunteer fire departments, to develop leadership and hands-on skills in conducting prescribed fires on prairie grasslands. The event also fosters interagency collaboration, helping practitioners apply what they learn to strengthen prescribed fire programs across North America.
“This TREX represents an exciting step forward in rebuilding prescribed fire capacity across the prairies,” said Renny W. Grilz, manager of conservation at Meewasin and incident commander for the event. “By bringing together more participants and partners from across sectors and borders, we’re building the next generation of fire practitioners and strengthening the network needed to safely reintroduce fire back into prairie ecosystems.”
Prescribed fires are carefully planned, intentionally set burns carried out under precise weather and environmental conditions. They serve key ecological and land management goals, such as enhancing biodiversity, restoring prairie ecosystems, reducing woody plant encroachment, lowering wildfire risk, and protecting critical habitat for endangered species.
Every burn follows a detailed prescribed fire prescription, outlining temperature, wind, humidity, and fuel moisture requirements. If conditions fall outside this prescription, the burn does not proceed. Months, or even years, of preparation go into each burn to ensure the safety of participants and the surrounding communities.
This year’s TREX will take place at Meewasin-managed conservation areas, community pastures, partner agency lands, and urban parks.
For updates on daily burn locations, follow Meewasin or CPPFE on social media throughout the week.
In addition to Meewasin, partner agencies for this year’s TREX include the Aberdeen Community Pasture, Brightwater Centre (Saskatoon Public Schools), Canadian Wildlife Service (ECCC), the City of Saskatoon’s Naturalized Parks Program, the Nature Conservancy of Canada - Saskatchewan region, Saskatchewan Provincial Parks, the University of Saskatchewan’s Plant Sciences Department and Wanuskewin Heritage Park.
This event is made possible thanks to generous support from the Weston Family Prairie Grasslands Initiative, which is helping to build capacity and partnerships to protect and restore Canada’s threatened prairie ecosystems.
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About Canadian Prairies Prescribed Fire Exchange
The Canadian Prairies Prescribed Fire Exchange is an inter-agency collective established to increase capacity for knowledge sharing and training surrounding the use of prescribed fire as a management tool in Canadian prairie and parkland ecosystems.
The CPPFE does not conduct prescribed fires, but instead provides learning and training opportunities, facilitates equipment and resource sharing, and acts as a hub for current fire science and grassland fire knowledge. We’re here to help fire practitioners of all backgrounds, from landowners, to communities, to conservation groups and even experienced firefighters.
Our community of agencies and practitioners is driven by the urgent need to build capacity and share knowledge on the use of prescribed fire. Our partners include notable experts with many decades of experience planning, leading, and assisting with prescribed fires.
Collectively, our group manages millions of hectares of grasslands and parklands across western Canada. We understand that fire is an essential component of those ecosystems and that more fire is needed to address the accelerating decline of biodiversity occurring in our prairie. To learn more visit grasslandfire.ca
About Meewasin Valley Authority
The Meewasin Valley Authority exists to ensure a healthy and vibrant river valley, with a balance between human use and conservation by:
Providing leadership in the management of its resources;
Promoting understanding, conservation and beneficial use of the Valley; and
Undertaking programs and projects in river valley development and conservation, for the benefit of present and future generations.
There are 67 square kilometers of land and 108km of established trail, which has seen up to 2.365 million trail visits per year, in the Meewasin Valley. The area also features sites that help people to connect to nature through experiences such as Beaver Creek Conservation Area, the Meewasin Northeast Swale, Saskatoon Natural Grasslands, the River Landing Spray Area, and the Cameco Meewasin Skating Rink @Nutrien Plaza. Meewasin is a non-profit organization that relies on donations and volunteers for sustainability.
For Information Contact:
Cat Zens
Prescribed Fire Communications Officer
czens@meewasin.com