Authored by: Nick Leeson, Associate Counsel and Alexys Santos, Lawyer
The Growing Wildfire Crisis in Canada
NationTalk: Woodward and Company – Canada faces an escalating wildfire crisis. Year after year, uncontrolled flames consume vast landscapes and jeopardize the livelihoods of countless people and their communities. In 2023, 2.84 million hectares of forest and land burned in British Columbia alone—the worst in the province’s recorded history.[1] This growing threat stands in stark contrast to the period before colonial disruption, when Indigenous peoples expertly managed the land through cultural burning. These deliberate, small-scale fires effectively cleared underbrush, nurtured biodiversity and ultimately fortified ecosystems against larger, more destructive wildfires.
In this context, fire was not an enemy to be feared but an effective stewardship tool. Indeed, the Tsilhqot’in word for fire translates to “lightening the load off the land.” Yet, as colonialism tightened its grip over the Nation, cultural burning was not only disrupted but systematically dismantled, severing a relationship with fire that had successfully sustained the ecosystem for thousands of years. Worse still, studies predict a dramatic increase in forest fires for First Nation communities by the end of the 21st century, with major consequences such as structural and cultural losses, land alterations, and inherent social disruption.[2]
As we stand at the intersection of our dark past and daunting future, it is time to reconsider our fire management strategy and recognize that Indigenous knowledge is key to avoiding a worsening fire crisis.
Historical Disruption: From Indigenous Cultural Burns to Colonial Fire Suppression
The arrival of European settlers to North America marked a radical shift in land management practices. Rather than understanding fire as a tool to maintain ecological balance, settlers viewed it as a destructive force, fearing its potential to destroy timber supplies and threaten expanding settlements.[3] This led to the criminalization of Indigenous burning practices, such as through the Bush Fire Act of 1874, stripping Indigenous groups of their fire stewardship rights through fines and intimidation.[4]*
Moreover, annuities promised to Indigenous communities were withheld as a punishment for burning, and rewards were issued for tips on cultural burns, resulting in several convictions.[5] Decades of fire suppression followed, causing an accumulation of flammable materials prone to ignite quickly and violently. Rather than reconsider these policies, Crown governments doubled down. For instance, the Ministry of Forests Act of 1912 declared that controlling fires and keeping them out of forests was the “supreme need” of the government.[6]Budgets were allocated to building infrastructure, equipment and systems focused solely on fire detection and suppression, neglecting the negative long-term ecological impacts. [7]
By the 1970s, the mounting wildfire risk showed that suppression strategies were inadequate. Fire was eventually reintroduced as a management tool through prescribed burning: an intentionally lit fire used to reduce fire hazards by decreasing fuel loads.[8] While prescribed burning is valuable, its narrow focus on risk reduction fails to capture the broader ecological, cultural, and spiritual dimensions inherent to cultural burning. As wildfires continue to grow more catastrophic each year, it is clear that a more holistic approach rooted in Indigenous stewardship is necessary.
Fighting Fire with Fire: Australia’s Revival of Indigenous-Led Fire Management
Australia’s recent revival of Indigenous fire management provides valuable insights for integrating similar practices across Canada. Over the past two decades, an Indigenous-led movement for the reintroduction of cultural burning has grown steadily, its importance amplified by the cataclysmic wildfires of 2019-2020.[9] Dozens of decentralized, collaborative efforts between Indigenous peoples and state land and fire agencies have emerged,[10] reducing wildfire risk and improving land health across Australia.
As of 2021, 32 Indigenous-owned and operated savanna fire projects are underway across 17.9 million hectares.[11] Cultural burning programs in Australia have cut the frequency of destructive wildfires in half and reduced greenhouse gas emissions from fires in the northern part of the country by 40%.[12] The Kimberley Land Council’s fire management program alone has led to a 42% decrease in fire frequency and fewer biodiversity-declining late-season fires.[13]
These programs help bridge historical divides between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples. Joe Morrison, a pioneer of fire-prevention initiatives in northern Australia, noted: “Aboriginal peoples who have been through very difficult times are seeing their language, customs, and traditional knowledge being reinvigorated and celebrated using Western science.”[14] By embracing and re-integrating Indigenous knowledge, Canada can similarly forge new pathways in intercultural land management.
Barriers to Indigenous-Led Fire Stewardship in Canada
To integrate Indigenous-led fire stewardship into contemporary wildfire management, Indigenous knowledge must be recognized and respected as a time-tested and deeply rooted practice that has sustainably managed lands for millennia. While showing promise, the current landscape of intercultural fire management continues to face bureaucratic obstacles. For example, Indigenous Nations wishing to conduct burns on “Crown land” are often required to submit prescriptive burn plans entrenched in colonial regulatory frameworks that prioritize fire suppression, escape, and liability over the holistic, long-term ecological benefits of cultural burning.[15]
Nevertheless, progress is being made. In 2017, the Tsilhqot’in Nation made history by exercising its governance during a wildfire emergency. Despite evacuation orders, they stayed and successfully defended the homes of 250 Yunesit’in community members from the fire.[16] This prompted the creation of the Collaborative Emergency Agreement between federal, provincial, and Tsilhqot’in governments to improve emergency management.[17]
Another successful example occurred during the 2023 wildfire season when the K’ahsho Got’ıne Foundation guardians in Fort Good Hope, NWT, stepped up during a critical time. Their preparedness and resilience allowed them to join firefighting efforts, evacuate their community and help protect their land.[18] Such examples prove that Indigenous leadership in fire management is not just a theoretical solution but an effective, tangible approach to safeguarding communities.
In addition to being an effective strategy, Indigenous fire guardianship is a cost-effective solution. The cost to train and equip one Indigenous guardian is just $7,000, compared to the $23,000 spent per retardant drop by aerial firefighting planes.[19] These programs, by leveraging local expertise and land knowledge, not only reduce fire suppression costs but also strengthen community resilience in the face of increasing climate-driven wildfires.
Vision for the Future: Embracing Indigenous Knowledge
Canada must now act by investing in and expanding Indigenous fire guardian programs. These programs offer immediate, effective solutions for wildfire management, blending traditional knowledge with modern science to create a sustainable future for land stewardship.
Indigenous peoples hold profound and evolving knowledge of land and fire management. Re-imagining our current wildfire strategies demands that governments at all levels recognize and respect this expertise, incorporating it into contemporary practices. This is not just about legal reform or closing the funding gap; it is about embracing a future where Indigenous knowledge leads the way in protecting and healing the land. More, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) affirms Indigenous peoples’ right to manage their traditional lands and resources, including cultural practices like fire stewardship. Aligning with UNDRIP’s rights offers Canada a way to open new, positive paths for Crown-Indigenous relations and intercultural land management.
To move forward, we must shift from long-held and outdated colonial mindsets and embrace fire as Indigenous peoples have for millennia—as a force for renewal, not destruction. The time to act is now, before future crises deepen. Reintegration and revitalization of Indigenous fire stewardship are essential for building societal resilience in the face of climate impacts, not only for the environment but for all who depend on this land.
Woodward & Company Lawyers LLP has assisted several Indigenous Nations in asserting their rights to manage lands and resources, including in the area of Indigenous fire stewardship. If your Nation is interested in pursuing initiatives in Indigenous-led fire management or facing related legal challenges, we invite you to contact the authors or another member of our experienced Indigenous law team.
Disclaimer: This article provides general information only. It is not meant for use as legal advice for specific legal issues or problems. We provide this for educational purposes only. If you need legal help, please contact us directly at nleeson@woodwardandcompany.com or 867.447.0605.
[1] British Columbia, “Wildfire Season Summary” (modified 16 September 2024) https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/safety/wildfire-status/about-bcws/wildfire-history/wildfire-season-summary
[2] S. Erni et. al, “Exposure of the Canadian Wildland-Human Interface and Population to Wildland Fire, under Current and Future Climate Conditions” (2021) 51:9 Canadian Journal of Forest Research.
[3] A. Christianson, “Social Science Research on Indigenous Wildfire Management in the 21st Century and Future Research Needs” (2015) 24:2 International Journal of Wildland Fire.
[4] F.A. MacDonald “A Historical Review of Forest Protection in British Columbia” (1929) 5:4 The Forestry Chronicle.
*For example, people caught burning were subject to a $100 fine (equivalent to $2,200 today) or three months in prison.
[5] K. Boutsalis, “The Art of Fire: Reviving the Indigenous Craft of Cultural Burning” The Narwhal (20 September 2020) https://thenarwhal.ca/indigenous-cultural-burning/
[6] British Columbia, Royal Commission of Inquiry on Timber and Forestry, Final Report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry on Timber and Forestry, 1909-1910 (1910) at p 60.
[7] J. Beck et. al, “Fire Ecology and Management” in S.B Watts & L. Tolland, eds, Forestry Handbook for British Columbia, 5th ed (University of British Columbia, 2005) at p 495.
[8] Government of British Columbia, “Prescribed Burns Reduce Wildfire Risk” (12 August 2019) https://news.gov.bc.ca/factsheets/prescribed-burns-reduce-wildfire-risks
[9] W. Smith, T. Neale & J.K. Weir, “Persuasion Without Policies: The Work of Reviving Indigenous Peoples’ Fire Management in Southern Australia” (2021) 120 Geoforum p 83.
[10] Ibid.
[11] The Nature Conservancy, “Bringing Indigenous Fire Back to Northern Australia” (2021) https://www.nature.org/en-us/about-us/where-we-work/asia-pacific/australia/stories-in-australia/bringing-indigenous-fire-back-to-northern-australia/
[12] T. Fuller, “Reducing Fire, and Cutting Carbon Emissions, the Aboriginal Way” The New York Times (16 January 2020) https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/16/world/australia/aboriginal-fire-management.html
[13] Ibid.
[14] Supra, note 12.
[15] K.M. Hoffman et. al, “The Right to Burn: Barriers and Opportunities for Indigenous-led Fire Stewardship in Canada” (2022) 7 Facets.
[16] Supra, note 5.
[17] Ibid.
[18] A.C. Christianson “Indigenous Guardians Hold the Key to Reducing Wildfires and Their Costs” The Globe and Mail (9 October 2024) https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/article-indigenous-guardians-hold-the-key-to-reducing-wildfires-and-their/
[19] Ibid.