The Town of Whitecourt will be moving forward with the construction of a community fire guard as the second phase of the Community Fireguard Program.
At the regular meeting of council on Tuesday, Nov. 12, Lee Hardman, director of community safety, noted that Whitecourt had been awarded $1,534,180 from the Forest Resource Improvement Association of Alberta (FRIAA) to proceed with the second phase of the Community Fireguard Program.
Hardman says phase two involves the construction of a 100-metre-wide fireguard by removing vegetation, and then conducting mulching, stumping, grading and FireSmart-approved seeding. This fireguard is set to be constructed on the east side of town, as outlined in green on the map above.
Mayor Tom Pickard says he is glad to see this progress being made.
“This is a long-term, growing commitment. Our community has shown for over 10 years a commitment to the FireSmart principles and to working with FRIAA,” says Pickard.
“I know in my conversations with Minister Loewen, the Forestry Minister, and our local MLA, that they are impressed with the work that our community does — that when we get funds, we actually use them immediately. It’s a reflection of the work that our administration, that you do and that all the FireSmart people before us have done.”
Work on phase two is set to begin in December or January and is expected to be completed by September 2025.
