Canada is burning. There are hundreds of wildfires burning today, many of them out of control. There have been more than 5,000 so far this summer.

Thousands have had to flee their homes. The smoke has drifted as far south as New York City.

In this record fire season many people are concerned about climate change, and understandably so. If this happens every summer then the damage is beyond serious.

Really though, the first discussion shouldn’t be climate change. Fire prevention and fire suppression are more important.

Some of the wildfires are caused by humans, set both deliberately and accidentally. Most are caused by lightning strikes. Maybe there have been more of those than normal this summer.

What i have been wondering though is why we aren’t better at preventing the spread of wildfires. Why are so many managing to get out of control?

Teh Canadian wilderness is vast, and many of this summer’s fires have started far from human habitation. Where there are no roads you can’t just pull up in a fire truck, attach a hose to the nearest hydrant and put the fire out. In all probability you are going to need water bombers.

Does Canada have enough firefighting planes and pilots? I don’t know. What I have observed is that frequently it seems the call to control the fires comes after they have already reached a certain size. Wouldn’t it be better to put the fires out before they spread?

Maybe I don’t have a sufficient grasp of available technology, but shouldn’t it be possible to spot fires as they start using satellite thermal imaging technology? Could we extinguish them before they become a problem? Should we have a nationwide fleet of water bombers that spends the summer putting out fires before they spread?

If you are spotting a fire when it is still small, the resources necessary to extinguish it should be relatively minimal. I know fire spreads quickly, especially in dry weather, but from my layman’s perspective this seems like something we should be able to handle. Somebody correct me if I am wrong please – I have no done any research, these are my random thoughts.

The firefighting teams from across Canada (and indeed some coming from around the world) have done an incredible job. There has been a lot of property damage but very little loss of life. (Possibly more firefighters have died than residents of the areas they have been protecting.) But there should be a way to prevent wildfires (forest fires we used to call them) from raging out of control.

I don’t have much hope in our politicians ability to do anything meaningful about climate change. It is too big a think for any one country, and while there is unanimity the world stage of the need for emissions reduction, actions speak louder than words.

Figuring out how to use technology to avoid another wildfire season like we have had in 2023 should be easier. I hope so anyway.