Report: Forest Restoration After Wildfire
Since 2023, communities across Canada and around the world have been dealing with record-breaking wildfires and working to help restore forested landscapes in their aftermath – but the best practices behind forest recovery in the wake of extreme wildfires aren’t clearly known.
To better understand the decisions and approaches for post-wildfire forest restoration in Canada, Forests Canada surveyed and interviewed forest managers and tree planting practitioners with findings presented in our new report - Forest Restoration After Wildfire: Knowledge Gaps and Future Needs Analysis - that is now free and available to download below.
Authored by Forests Canada Partnerships Manager Amber Brant, Natural Resources Canada Senior Research Scientist Dr. Nelson Thiffault, and consultant Dr. Season Snyder, the aim of our report is to identify how the decision-making processes for post-fire recovery are changing in the wake of the increasing severity of wildfires and to highlight the collected inputs of 80 survey respondents and another eight experts interviewed for their insights.
The outcomes of this study culminate in the following seven key knowledge gaps:
1) The prioritization of reforestation efforts (page 8)
2) Shifts in species selection (page 12)
3) Strategic review of tree planting standards (page 14)
4) Site preparation and salvage logging (page 17)
5) Understanding the true cost of artificial regeneration (page 20)
6) Occupational health and safety (page 21)
7) Indigenous stewardship pathways (page 29)
To learn more, view and download the free report below.
The demand for post-fire restoration has grown significantly and is expected to continue rising. It is for this reason that Forests Canada has also established a National Working Group on Post-Fire Forest Recovery Practices to lead coordinated national action, knowledge exchange, and the development of best practices for forest resilience in the wake of wildfires. Stay tuned for information on Working Group developments and more.