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East Kootenay Highlights
Norma Blissett (Forest Educator)

Professional Development Day: “Fire Ecology and Ecosystem Restoration in the Rocky Mountain Trench”
October 22, 2004

A fire ecology and forest ecosystem restoration workshop was held in the East Kootenay. The workshop was a combined effort between the Columbia Basin Environmental Education Network and the forest company sponsored Forest Education Program. Seventeen people participated, representing school district #5 and #6, environmental educators and various interest groups of the Rocky Mountain Trench.

The day began with Don Gayton, a forest ecologist from Nelson giving a power point presentation on fire ecology and was followed by a field trip to nearby Lakit Lake. The field trip included stops at the False Hemlock Looper killed forest just outside of Cranbrook and at the forest harvesting area near Lakit Lake. Local foresters, Eric Pighin, Tembec, Scott Blissett, Interior Reforestation, and Dennis Petrysyshin, MOF spoke at the various tour stops. Mike Keefer, an ethnobotanist from the Ktunaxa Kinbasket Tribal Council as well as Don Gayton, FORREX also contributed to the discussion.

Activities for educators to use when teaching fire ecology and some of the numerous resources available for forest education were also presented. The weather cooperated and with the help of a warming campfire at lunch a good time was had by all.

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