Determined to go ahead with our Wildfire Preparedness Day despite COVID-19, we carefully prepared!  Our theme and lure for our volunteers...PPE - Pizza, Pop and Eclairs!
We encouraged family groups to sign up, it was an RSVP required event so that we could plan for distancing and social bubbles.  With 24 volunteers, it was a smashing success and the results were incredible.  

This year we focused on removing dead fall from along our island trails.  The teams were fantastic and so much debris was removed and chipped.  Everyone involved saw the huge benefit of increasing our safe zones in the forest in the event of a wildfire.  We also saw how much work is left to be done and everyone is game for more work when restrictions ease off.  

#IAMFireSmart #FireSmartBC #FireSmartCanada  #PiersIsland
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As you are raking up all those fall leaves, rather than burning, why not add them to a lasagna garden!  By doing it now, you'll have a great new garden bed or amended bed for spring planting and you'll be helping to #FireSmart your yard by keeping on top of dry leaves.  It's also a good time to get those gutters cleaned out too. 

We found this short little video on how to make a lasagna garden.  

#IAMFireSmart #lasagnegardening #leafmulch #goodgardening #compost #FireSmartBC

We wanted to share this great little video from FireSmartBC.  As summer is wrapping up and cooler temperatures arrive, those leaves will start falling.  Fire ratings are still high to extreme in many places, so make sure to keep the deadfall away from your home.  Enjoy the video!  #IAMFIRESMART

Kudos to Grant Warrington who singlehandedly contacted, arranged and took to completion an Island wide offering of chimney cleaning.  Grant made arrangements to have WETT certified chimney cleaner Chris Worthing of Flamesmart Heating Ltd. come to Piers Island.  Over 2 days a total of 22 chimneys were cleaned and inspected.  Owners paid for the services that they chose, whether it be cleaning, inspection and even gutter cleaning.  Arranging a neighbourhood event with a reputable cleaner is a good way to add to the FireSmart level an area. 
#IAMFireSmart #FireSmartBC #FireSmartCanada 

Yes Piers Island, it's time for Wildfire Preparedness Day on Saturday May 4th, 2019.  Meet us at the Firehall.  We've got a great presentation for you that will start at 10 am, but come early because our Piers Island Emergency Program volunteers will be there to help you get signed up for PANS.  Hope to see you out.  Refreshments will be served. :)

The winds that bowled through the Gulf Islands on December 20th, 2018 left their mark on Piers with downed power lines, service lines to properties and trees down all over the island.  It's estimated that over 100 trees came down in the storm, 2 onto houses, but luckily no loss of life or injury.  
Piers Island is most grateful for the work of BC Hydro crews doing their best and restoring power to the island in 2 days.  Still lots of work to be done by some homeowners to have individual lines restored, but the bulk have power again.

A request to Islanders to gather debris from the road and their properties in piles roadside, with the reward of the debris being chipped without cost, garnered a good turnout.  Once again, it is the volunteers on Piers that make things run.  Huge thanks to those that did the piling and the volunteers that spent a total of 43.5 hours doing the chipping work.  At least 20 properties where involved in the advance cleanup work.  
Kudos to Islanders for this storm clean up #FireSmart work.

#IAMFIRESMART   #BCWindstorm  #BCHydro

This particular area was difficult for the FC's and MMC's to work on.  It use to have healthy red cedars, but they are dying due to summer drought conditions.  FC's tagged according to the Land Policies guidelines, which left some very dead trees standing.  We will attempt to bring in an outside expert to give advice on these situations as there are more and more areas like this on Piers.  

The FC's are marking areas in advance of the Monday Morning work parties.  Here's our before and after pics from Area 2.  We found an old hummingbird nest, which was carefully preserved by the MMC.  Interestingly, hummingbirds do not re-use their nest, but will go back to obtain old materials for their new nest. :)

After the adoption of the PIA Land Policies in September 2018 and the appointment of Forest Caretakers in November, the Forest Caretakers (FC's) have been marking treatment areas for work by the Monday Morning Crew (MMC) volunteers.  Working together, we can identify areas requiring treatment for not only FireSmart and invasive species removal, but also for forest enhancement.  We'll be posting before and after photos so you can see the benefits.   

Keep your eyes peeled as we work towards removing fuel loads and enhancing the forest to allow arbutus and Garry Oak a better chance of survival in our changing climate.  
We sent the May 2018 photo to Patrick Daigle (retired RPF) for his thoughts and suggestions.  He sent along this information: 

ID TREATMENT AREAS - To help you ID areas for combining fuel removal with eco-restoration, watch for places where there are arbutus and/or Garry oak. These two tree spp ‘tend’ to prefer dry and/or well-drained sites, and S and W (so-called high-energy) aspects. Over decades of fire exclusion, it’s common for Douglas fir to establish and crowd the oak/arbutus trees and compete for light (especially), as well as nutrients and moisture. 
In these dry-ish situations, retain the arbutus/oak. Remove Douglas-fir saplings to 1) reduce fuels AND 2) restore sites for the retained oak/arbutus AND 3) initiate understory native plant germination. There is a good chance understory plants will bounce-back because of existing seed bank in the duff/soil. If you encounter large Doug-fir (e.g., >16” diameter), consider leaving them, and pruning any (unlikely) low branches.

We'll continue to add photos to the slideshow as our volunteers work to both FireSmart the area and enhance the forest. :)