FireSmart in the Bow Valley
The Bow Valley is naturally prone to wildfires. Climate change and the expansion of our communities into forested areas has dramatically increased wildfire risk to homes and infrastructure.
We believe that adopting FireSmart principles is essential to enhance our resilience and protect what we cherish, which is why we’ve added Community Wildfire Resilience to our strategic plan.
2025 Impact Snapshot
How We Supported FireSmart Action in 2025
Thanks to generous support from the G7, we partnered with the Town of Canmore to support residents and neighborhoods.
FireSmart Ambassador Program
As part of this project we launched a door knocking campaign that helped educate residents about reducing wildfire risk on their own properties. We shared information about the Neighborhood Recognition Program and encouraged residents to connect with their neighbors to see an even greater impact.
This program ran from August 21st to October 16th, 2025 and in that time we visited 520 homes in the Larch, Ridge, and Silvertip neighbourhoods!
Based on our conversations with residents we found that:
36% of residents had done Firesmarting on their property and another 32% were aware of Firesmarting principles.
82% of residents did not know about the Neighbourhood Recognition Program.
93% of residents we spoke to committed to taking action to reduce wildfire risk on their own property.
Supporting the Neighborhood Recognition Program
We are also offering support to any Canmore resident who would like to learn more about the FireSmart Neighborhood Recognition Program, wants to connect with their neighbors, or host a neighborhood event.
We are already working with several residents who have stepped up as Neighborhood Champions.
We are supporting these community members form FireSmart neighborhood committees and start working toward becoming a recognized FireSmart neighborhood.
If you have questions or want support starting a FireSmart Committee in your neighborhood, please connect with us!
We will subsequently engage with other Bow Valley municipalities, and are currently seeking funding to support the work.
