The community of Priddis Greens has earned national kudos for wildfire prevention and awareness.
The Foothills County community earned FireSmart Neighbourhood Recognition from FireSmart Canada last month after several years of work. The FireSmart program aims to reduce wildfire risk where homes and communities meet undeveloped wildland.
“What we're trying to do is manage and reduce the risk of forest fire,” said FireSmart committee member and past co-chair John Robertson.
The idea to pursue FireSmart came out of a community clean-up in 2019. That first clean-up was aimed as much at beautification as it was FireSmart, Robertson said.
“But once we realized the benefits that the FireSmart program brings to us, that became the central focus of the annual clean-ups we were doing,” he added.
Since 2019, residents got together at least once every year to do community clean-ups to remove flammable material and reduce fire risk.
"It's astonishing how much stuff is being pulled out of the wooded areas. There's all manner of junk in there, and that is flammable and will act as fuel if a forest fire comes through,” Robertson said.
In 2021, the Priddis Greens Community Association formed a dedicated FireSmart committee.
Momentum built and the clean-ups grew to include pruning, tree thinning, landscaping and education.
The community is a mix of condo and single-family homes, and private property as well as common land was attended.
By Robertson's count, 104 condo owners and 12 single-family home owners got involved.
“We really started to get into FireSmart and started on our properties," he said. "Started trimming up trees, changing our landscaping practices, you know, all that sort of thing.”
He said the whole community is behind the effort.
Once the community gets started on an idea, everybody gets onboard, said Robertson, who has lived in the neighbourhood since 2018.
“It’s just been tremendous," he added. "The enthusiasm and volunteerism that has come to play in the neighbourhood.”
According to the historical record, Robertson said, it has been 120 years since there was a forest fire in the area.
“And for every year that we don't have a fire, apparently, the probability of having a fire goes up," he said.
Several criteria had to be met to get recognition from FireSmart, and volunteers and partners played a major role in the achievement. Grants from the Forest Resource Improvement Association of Alberta (FRIAA), administered by Foothills County, supported the community's efforts.
The County “really stepped up and helped us carry the ball,” he said.
The community celebrated its FireSmart Neighbourhood Recognition with a tent party at the Priddis Greens Golf Course on Sept. 24.
“It's been a real success story for the community,” Robertson said.
The committee plans to continue a partnership with the Hawk's Landing and Hawk's Nest areas, and the golf course, towards further FireSmart activities.
The bigger the area that is "fire-smarted," he said, the safer it is for all communities involved.
