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Jasper National Park of Canada

Jasper National Park E-News • November 2008

If droppings could talk, what a story they would tell…

Many people are concerned that collaring caribou is an unkind thing to do to a threatened animal. It is stressful when the caribou are captured. And the caribou have to lug a big collar around for a long time. The stress caused by collaring is also a concern for Parks Canada. So why do we do it? We do it because collars give us valuable information about caribou that we desperately need to manage this threatened species.

For example collars tell us how many caribou are dying, because they have a mortality sensor (if we get to the collar in time, we can also tell how the caribou died.) Collars also tell us how many young the caribou have each year – by locating the mother using her radio signal, we can check to see if she has a calf. We can learn about caribou movements and habitat use - both by finding the animal by using its radio signal, and by retrieving the locations stored onboard GPS collars. The can even tell us how good our caribou counts are - if we know 10 caribou have collars, but during a count we see only 5 collared caribou, then we know that we only saw half the caribou. Even still, we would like nothing better than to find ways to research caribou without the stress of a radio collar.

©Mark Bradley, Parks Canada

Recently, we have been testing a new technique that doesn’t require collaring. Dr. Micheline Manseau of the Parks Canada Winnipeg Service Centre has been pioneering the technique of identifying caribou by analyzing DNA taken from their droppings. From the DNA we can identify each individual caribou. Because we can identify each caribou, the DNA sampling can tell us how many caribou are in the population. We are also researching the possibility that hormone levels in the droppings can tell us how many calves the caribou are having - calves have different hormone levels than adults, and pregnant females have different hormone levels that non-pregnant females. If we do many years of consecutive dropping collections, we can even tell how many caribou are dying as we can calculate how many individuals go missing from one year to the next.

©Mark Bradley, Parks Canada

The genetic technique of identifying individuals from their droppings is in its infancy, and we are also still learning the best way to find and collect the droppings. So we will still have to collar caribou for a while longer. Also, there are some things that droppings cannot tell us, like fine scale habitat use. If all goes well, however, we hope to be able to stop or at least greatly reduce our collaring of caribou in the future.

Community Planning

The Municipality of Jasper and Parks Canada aer engaging the public in a joint planning process for the development of a Jasper Community Sustainability Plan, which will be a successor to the Jasper Community Land Use Plan of 2001. The new plan will reflect contemporary planning practices and current views of community sustainability, with a focus on social, cultural, economic, environmental and governance factors.

Under the direction of the Jasper Community Plan Steering Committee, a nine-member Jasper Community Working Group provides community-based leadership in plan development, and has initiated a public consultation process with local residents and stakeholders. The views of Jasper residents, and all Canadians are essential to the development of the Plan.

Consultation sessions started October 15th with a kick-off session identifying community education and issues, followed by a community workshop on sustainable tourism led by Ted Manning. Other events have included a vision workshop and two Pecha Kucha evening gatherings. More events to involve the public will be coming up in the new year. All consultation processes are expected to be complete by June 30, 2009, and a final report completed by October 2009. Parks Canada will consult with aboriginal stakeholders and other Canadians during this process.

For additional information on the planning process and upcoming events please go to the following English only website http://jasperplan.wordpress.com/ or contact Verne Balding (780) 852-4724 or Neil MacDonald (403) 292-6619.

Ice Rescue Training

©Garth Lemke, Parks Canada

Parks Canada Public Safety specialists were out tuning up their thin ice rescue skills as the lake skating season is upon us. We tested some new gear, found the leaks in our dry suits (even the smallest of leaks become painfully obvious at -15) and reacquainted ourselves with the challenges of full immersion in winter conditions.

Here's some of the things to keep in mind when venturing out on the lake this fall . . .

Cold-water wicks away body heat 32 times faster than cold air. If you fall into the water, do all you can to get out of the water as fast as possible.

Prevention is the key. . . At 0° C your ability to effectively use your hands is lost in about 2 minutes and unconsciousness takes less than 15 minutes. Your expected survival time is less than 45 minutes. For perspective, when you calculate the time it would take for a rescue team to gather the required equipment then drive to the scene of an accident, it makes most lakes in the area too far away for effective organized rescue response within this 45-minute window. If in doubt, don’t go.

As a guideline, 10 cm of smooth, clear ice is considered safe for skating.

Ice is unpredictable over moving water such as near rivers or creeks. Avoid these areas.

The Jasper Trails Project Draft Trail Plan Unveiling

Please join us for…
(1) An Evening of Information Sharing
Thursday, December 4th
6:30-9:00pm
Activity Centre Curling Lounge (upstairs)

Over the past two years, the Jasper Trails Project Working Group has dedicated many hours to the redesign of our current trail network. This is your opportunity to view the draft trail plan and see first hand the process that led to the proposed changes. Please drop in!

Once this information is shared with the community, we would like to hear your thoughts on the new trail plan.

(2) Trail Plan Feedback Session
Saturday, December 6th
10:00am- 12:00pm
Activity Centre Curling Lounge (upstairs)
Tell us what you think! This session will be facilitated to consider your input on the draft trail plan.

Refreshments and prizes.
For further information please contact the Jasper Trails Project Office at 780-852-9467

In the meantime, why not go out and enjoy the work that has been completed by this project. One of the many trails that have been finished is the Pyramid Trail (signage is coming soon.) Here are some Pyramid Trail facts:

meanders along side the road (from town) all the way to Pyramid resort
Considered one of our Easy Trails however it does have a gradual slope all the way to the resort.
Will form "the spine" of the Jasper trail network along the bench (as proposed in the Three Valley Confluence Draft Trail Network Plan)
Approximately 5km from town to the Pyramid Lake Resort

Enjoy and see you at the sessions above.

Are you interested in Jasper National Park?

Jasper National Park is working on updating our list of Canadians interested in receiving regular Parks Canada information. If you would like to be on our list, please click the link below and fill out our survey to be added. Starting in February, we will only be sending out information to people who have added their name to the list by completing the linked survey.

Jasper National Park Information Distribution

Thanks for your continued support of Jasper National Park.

We’re FireSmarting the Forest near YOU

Winter work on the Pyramid Bench/Cabin Creek

Winter work crews and contractors will resume forest-thinning work along the Pyramid benchlands and additional areas near the town on December 1. The bench lands site includes the section of steep slopes beginning at the RCMP station and moving west to the water reservoir. This part of the work is expected to take eight weeks and will “firesmart” another 2.5 km section of forest critical to Jasper’s community fire protection.

Forest restoration and fuel reduction work on steep slopes like Pyramid Bench is more difficult because of fragile vegetation, loose soils, and the proximity to houses. This kind of work needs careful planning, special training and specialized equipment.

What will you see? November to end of January

Parks Canada personnel have begun flagging trees along the bench for removal;
Residents in the 1100 block of Cabin Creek Drive and 900 block of Pyramid Lake Road will observe safety fences being set up on the slopes above their homes. This is an extra precaution to ensure debris from the work above stays there!
Trail restrictions and area closures will be implemented to ensure public safety;
An expert tree faller will move across the bench and begin falling flagged trees;
Douglas-fir infested with Douglas-fir beetles will also be felled. (This insect is closely associated with overcrowded, unhealthy forests and is causing widespread tree mortality on the steep slopes above town).
A special piece of equipment called a Spyder Hoe will make vertical passes up and down the slope to pick up and pile debris in locations that will not harm adjacent trees when they are burned;
Special ground crews will follow the equipment picking up remaining surface debris and burning the piles as efficiently and cleanly as possible;
Parks Canada Surveillance Officers will be on site to ensure all appropriate safety and environmental protection measures are in place during the project.

If you have a concerns or questions, please call Alan Westhaver at 780-852-6169.

“Thousands flee as California wildfires rage on”,Los Angeles Times, November 17, 2008.

We’re not trying to scare you but we are trying to bring home the real risk we face as a community. The good news is that two FireWise communities (the US equivalent of FireSmart) were completely spared during last year’s California wildfires.

Smoke

There will be times when people see and smell smoke from burning debris but crews are trained to burn when conditions will vent the smoke away from residences. If we wait for debris piles to dry over the winter and burn them later when they will create less smoke, it exposes the community to a brief but significant (and unacceptable) fire hazard. Please be patient. The rewards in terms of restoring our forests and reducing our fire risk are worth it!

Why we do what we do

Think of it as a “win win” for the community and the surrounding forest! Jasper’s FireSmart-ForestWise project is renowned for combining the two goals of reducing the risk of a catastrophic wildfire and restoring a more natural forest. Trees are removed to enlarge the spaces between tree crowns (the tops) so that an advancing, uncontrollable "crown" fire will lose intensity, drop to the ground, and be easily suppressed. At the same time, this cuts down on the excessive amounts of surface fuel that have accumulated in the absence of periodic fires. The increased spacing between the trees also reduces competition between trees, increasing forest health and making the forest more resistant and resilient to attacks by disease and insects. Many key wildlife habitat features are preserved or created during this process too.

BACKGROUNDER

Environmental Protection on Steep Slopes

The highly specialized methods applied on the steep slopes (i.e. cutting and burning the excessive trees on site, versus salvaging the trees and dragging them to the bottom or top of the slopes) were chosen to minimize environmental impacts to this sensitive terrain, long-term erosion potential,and disruption to the residents of Jasper.

Timing

It’s tricky. Project start-up dates are determined by the onset of environmental conditions that create the smallest risks to the soils, slope instability and fire escapes from the burn piles. Primarily we are waiting for frost to solidify the surface soil making it resistant to compaction by the Spyder Hoe.

The Spyder Hoe

Imagine a piece of equipment that is a cross between a backhoe and a cherry picker and has the dexterity of a tarantula and you have the Spyder Hoe! The Sypder Hoe is a highly specialized piece of equipment built for working on extreme slopes and other locations where environmental considerations are the first priority.

Purpose-built in Europe, specifically for forest restoration and low-impact work in streams and rivers, the Spyder "walks" supported on four independent legs—two with pads, and two with low pressure balloon wheels that are motor-driven. It uses its jointed boom to provide added stability when moving up or down a steep slope (in the same way we use a walking stick).

The Spyder Hoe is powerful, allowing it to lift whole trees or parts of them, rather than dragging them across the forest floor damaging the soil and uprooting native vegetation and shrubs. Evaluation of last year’s work shows that (as expected) the Spyder Hoe, as expected, is capable of working on these steep, dry slopes with little or no adverse impacts.

Work in other areas this winter

A second Parks Canada surveillance officer will oversee burning and forest-thinning work in a number of other key locations outside the town this winter. Watch for crews and/or contractors operating in the following areas:

Burning debris piles remaining from last winter in areas furthest from the townsite (Cabin Lake, Lake Edith and between the Jasper Park Lodge and Old Fort Point beyond west of Trail 7a);
Forest thinning/restoration work will continue on more level areas surrounding major developments in the Athabasca valley and in the areas of the Trefoil Lakes, Lake Annette, Jasper Park Lodge main road, Lake Edith and immediately west of the Community Fire Guard near trail #3.

*Unlike past years, trees will not be processed into saw logs. Instead, timber removed will be made into firewood and sold to commercial and private consumers.

Project wrap: Summer 2009

The final phase of Jasper’s FireSmart-ForestWise project will occur next spring and summer when a crew will follow up to restore trail conditions, trim the tree stumps, and conduct rehabilitation work to restore vegetation in areas where minor impacts did occur.

Aside from restoring historical ecological conditions and protecting the community from wildfire, this project is also setting up Parks Canada for larger scale ecosystem restoration and the safe use of prescribed burns in the Athabasca watershed in the long term.

Spotlight on Jasper’s project

As a result of the environmental innovations and ecological benefits being implemented through this project, Jasper continues to receive interest and positive attention from other communities across Canada, USA, and Australia who share our ecosystem values. In October we were visited by a delegation of top fire agency officials from Mexico, United States and Canada.