Parks Canada left more than half a million acres of dead pine trees standing in Jasper National Park despite knowing they posed a major fire risk, months before a wildfire destroyed part of the town in July 2024, according to internal documents obtained through Access To Information.Blacklock's Reporter says the agency confirmed it did not carry out a single prescribed burn in beetle-infested areas of the park in 2023. From 2020 to the time of the fire, only 1,529 acres out of 577,431 were cleared or burned — less than 1% of the hazardous forest. Parks Canada acknowledged the dead trees were a known danger but did not explain the lack of preventative measures..Back in 2020, Darlene Upton, a Parks Canada vice-president, told MPs the agency was increasing its efforts. “Obviously one of the big concerns is the dead trees and the fuel load,” she testified before the Commons environment committee.The Jasper wildfire on July 24, 2024, caused $1.2 billion in damage, destroying 358 buildings — about one-third of the town. Despite internal concerns about forest conditions, cabinet ministers pointed to climate change as the main cause..Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault said at the time that “rising average temperatures which create drier conditions and more intense forest fires are one demonstration of the impact of climate change.” Emergency Preparedness Minister Harjit Sajjan echoed the sentiment, calling Jasper “a victim” of the broader climate crisis.However, internal Parks Canada emails released by Conservative MP Dan Mazier show staff raised concerns not only about fire conditions but also about optics..“As more and more media articles raise public concern over drought conditions, public and political perception may become more important than actual prescription windows,” read one February 21, 2024 message. Another email questioned whether it was time to cancel prescribed burns altogether due to concerns over public backlash.Despite government claims that the town had become one of Canada’s most fire-resilient communities after years of work with the municipality and indigenous partners, the lack of action on known hazards suggests fire prevention efforts fell short.
