Preventive measures related to forest fires

IMPORTANT NOTES:

• The official description of the territory targeted by preventive measures in connection with forest fires remains the one defined in the decision of the Ministry of Internal Security (MSI) __ and published on the __Québec.ca website (https://www.quebec.ca/securite-situations-urgence/urgences-sinistres-risques-naturels/quoi-faire-avant-pendant-apres-urgence-sinistre/feu-de-foret/decisions-concernant-les-interdictions-de-feux-a-ciel-ouvert-ou-dacces-au-territoire-en-cas-de-feux-de-foret)

• The data published on this page is a cartographic representation of the official territory identified in the ministerial order to facilitate visualization and cannot be used for other purposes.

• If no measurements are in place, no polygons will be displayed on the interactive map or present in the downloaded data.

Preventive measures may be ordered by the Minister of Homeland Security (MSP) under article 150.9 of the Fire Safety Act (chapter S-3.4), resulting from the sanction of draft Law 50 (An Act to enact the Civil Security Act to promote disaster resilience and to modify various provisions relating in particular to emergency communications centers and forest fire protection) in May 2024.

These measures are implemented when a forest fire or the risk of such a fire so requires. The ultimate objective is to ensure public safety. The measures in place must be respected from the date they come into force, until they are withdrawn or amended.

The two most frequently applied measures are the ban on open fires in or near the forest (IFCO) and the ban on driving and accessing the forest (ICAF). Other measures could also be issued by the minister, depending on the extent of the situation. SOPFEU also issues a notice of restriction or cessation of forest work (RTF) to its members. The following paragraphs detail each of the measures.

__Prohibition of open fires in or near the forest (IFCO) __

This measure aims to reduce the incidence of human-caused fires by prohibiting open fires in a given territory. An open fire is defined as any outdoor fire that burns freely or that could spread into a forest area, such as a campfire or fireplace, a pyrotechnic element, a flame, or a spark produced by an object. The following activities are allowed:

• a solid fuel fireplace, stove or barbecue fire, ignited in an installation provided for this purpose and equipped with a spark arrester whose openings have a maximum dimension of 1 cm;

• a stove or barbecue that runs on gas, ethanol, or other non-solid fuel.

__Prohibition of movement and access in the forest (ICAF) __

This measure aims to ensure public safety by prohibiting the population from all forest travel on a territory determined by the minister. Only persons involved in firefighting, public safety or authorized by a representative of the Minister, and only as part of an ongoing operation, can access the forest. This measure may or may not be accompanied by an evacuation order.

__Forest work restriction (RTF) __

This measure is issued by SOPFEU to its members and constitutes a recommendation to completely suspend (24 hours a day), or to restrict to certain periods of the day (12 p.m. to 8 p.m. or 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.), forest work as well as forest management activities. It is being deployed in accordance with the implementation of a ban on open fires in forests (IFCO).

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