As Alberta enters wildfire season, many areas of the province are at increased risk of wildfires.
Budget 2024 will invest an additional $151 million over the next three years for wildfire preparedness, prevention, response, and mitigation. This additional funding will increase wildfire resources, including personnel, aircraft, drones, artificial intelligence (AI), and night vision technology, to strengthen wildland firefighting capabilities.
Aviation is essential to fighting fires, and the increased funding will allow the state to secure two long-term contracts for helicopters, two new air tanker contracts, and additional contracts for drones for aerial wildfire monitoring. The 2024 budget will also support contract renewals for 130 helicopters by April 1.
“We live in an era where we have access to incredible technology, and last year we were recognized for some great successes from various fire technology testing programs. Helicopters with night vision capabilities We can confidently say that the addition of drones and drones will make a huge difference to wildfire mitigation and response efforts this year,” said Bernie Schmidt, Alberta Wildfire Executive Director.
Alberta Wildfire is developing new technologies in wildfire prevention, mitigation, smoke detection and suppression to assess how innovative technologies can support rapid response and help extinguish wildfires. We will continue to explore, research and test the development. Best practices for wildfire management are constantly evolving.
In preparation for future wildfire seasons, the province is considering options to potentially expand Alberta’s air tanker fleet and pilot newer firefighting technologies.