Just like the Jasper townsite, Lake Edith and Whistlers campground, the Jasper Tramway is now protected from wildfire.

Over the last two weeks, Jasper National Park (JNP) FireSmart-ForestWise crews have been working with the popular tourist attraction to clear up wildfire fuel around the tramway’s structure and gondola, according to JNP fire specialist Alan Westhaver.

The tramway has been working on protecting the facility from a wildfire over the last several seasons, primarily working on the area on the leased land.

Now, a FireSmart crew has completed work on the park land adjacent to the building structure so it becomes defendable in the event of a wildfire.

“They have responsibilities for the structures and for their own land, and we have some responsibility outside and around the buildings here, particularly below the building on the steep slopes on park lands. And that’s the same situation exactly as the town site or other lands, residential areas, or Lake Edith or other businesses,” said Westhaver.

Parks Canada has given the tramway recommendations on wildfire precautions, particularly because of the steep slope below the structure and the dense vegetation below. The tramway has also worked with the park, providing staff and running water when burning tree piles, but also continue to improve their fire prevention tactics on site.

The tramway has a tin roof, which was installed several years ago and plans to add tin siding around the deck and structure of the building to prevent sparks and flames from igniting the building.

“There were a lot of recommendations coming from that FireSmart program, and it was things that not everybody can just jump on, but we were fortunate over the years to budget accordingly, and that was one of the things we’ve done. We had cedar shakes on the top of the roof forever, and we had those removed a few years back, and we replaced them with the tin roof. We are going to try and get the sides of the building done with the tin as well,” said Todd Noble, manager of the Jasper Tramway, about the parks recommendations.

Noble said they have certain procedures and protocol during operating season that all staff are trained for, including the awareness of the unique location of the tramway.

“There are a good couple of solid weeks of training staff in terms of the safety of everything involving fire and  procedures involved with all sorts of potential events. The staff are fully trained and aware of the safety precautions required in such a unique location,” Noble said.

The business falls into the aerial ski lift industry, and Noble said they work with their insurance company as far as protocol goes.

Westhaver said the tramway has done a significant amount of work on their land, but he realized that work had to be continued onto park land to create a 20 to 30 metre wide buffer zone. What Westhaver anticipates is that if there was a fire in the valley it would sweep uphill fast, likely coming from the west or north.

He said a lot of people need to take responsibility for wildfire safety, and that includes Parks Canada, homeowners and business owners.

“It’s not just what Parks Canada can do, or the volunteer fire brigade can do. All of us have to take responsibility. And this is a great example of that actually happening. It’s a great partnership, and as a result, when more and more of these facilities are covered off, when that day does come, we’ll be much better prepared and able to cope with it,” he said.

“If we don’t have to send scarce resources – fire trucks – to a place like this, we’ve got precious few of those to share around. It’s not that we’re going to be able to defend ourselves, it’s how much preparation we do in advance.”