Forest Change Data Catalogue

Fire

Fire season length (Boulanger, Y., Carr R.)

The fire season is the period(s) of the year during which fires are likely to start, spread and do enough damage to justify organized fire suppression. The length of fire season is the difference between the start and end of fire season dates. The start of the fire season occurs when a location has been snow-free for 3 consecutive days, with noon temperatures of at least 12°C. For locations that do not report significant snow cover during the winter, fire season start occurs when the mean daily temperature has been 5°C or higher for 3 consecutive days. The fire season ends with the onset of winter, generally following 3 consecutive days of snow cover. If there is no snow data, the fire season end date occurs following 3 consecutive days with noon temperatures lower than or equal to 5°C.

Data provided by: Yan Boulanger

Reference: Boulanger, Y., Gauthier, S., et al. 2014. A refinement of models projecting future Canadian fire regimes using homogeneous fire regime zones. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 44, 365-376.