Wildfire Management Plan
Planning today for a safer tomorrow.
The Wildland Fire Management Plan guides UBC Okanagan’s approach to minimizing wildfire risk and enhancing campus resilience. It outlines strategies for forest management, FireSmart design and the protection of trees and native plants, supporting a proactive and informed approach to wildfire preparedness.
Key goals
- How we build
- How we landscape
- How we plan
- How we engage
Official documents and resources
Integration with other plans
- UBC Okanagan Campus Plan
- Campus Plan Design Guidelines
- Climate Resilient Building Standards
- Climate Adaptation, Resilience, & Biodiversity Strategy (UBCO CARB)
- 2023 Ecological Analysis Update
- UBCO Multi-Hazard Assessment
- Landscape Maintenance Program
- Tree Inventory and Management Plan
- Facilities Plans
- FireSmart Neighbourhood Recognition Program
FireSmart principles
FireSmart principles guide the Wildland Fire Management Plan across key focus areas—ranging from construction and vegetation management to emergency planning and interagency cooperation.
Each discipline supports a comprehensive, proactive approach to reducing wildfire risk and enhancing campus resilience.
Education is an important tool for wildfire prevention, with strategies aimed at raising awareness among campus residents, visitors and decision-makers.
The updated plan will focus on delivering targeted educational initiatives that reflect the specific needs and context of the UBCO community.
Vegetation management remains a key component of UBCO’s wildfire risk reduction strategy, focusing on fuel reduction through targeted actions like debris removal, pruning and addressing pine beetle damage.
The updated plan will apply risk-informed treatments that consider ecological values, such as wildlife tree preservation, while complementing—not replacing—fire-resilient building standards.
The Wildland Fire Management Plan includes strategies to enhance UBCO’s emergency preparedness, such as evaluating equipment needs, staffing capacity and designated evacuation or refuge areas.
While more focused than municipal plans, these measures are tailored to the unique context of the campus.
The Wildland Fire Management Plan will support training initiatives to strengthen UBCO’s wildfire response capacity. This may include recommending S-100 or Incident Command System training for key staff, with policy guidance on appropriate training levels.
Effective wildfire management at UBCO relies on strong partnerships with the City of Kelowna, BC Wildfire Service and Indigenous communities.
The updated plan will continue to support coordinated efforts in fire prevention, emergency response and explore opportunities for traditional land management practices, such as prescribed burning.
The Wildland Fire Management Plan will align with local policies and UBCO-specific guidelines to support wildfire prevention and preparedness. It incorporates best practices through coordinated planning, contract standards and landscape maintenance programs tailored to the campus and surrounding community.
The updated Wildland Fire Management Plan will promote climate-resilient, FireSmart construction standards that align with national guidance for Wildland Urban Interface areas.
New building projects will be expected to incorporate fire-resistant materials, drought-tolerant landscaping and design features that reduce wildfire risk.