Meant to protect the land from wildfires, fire retardant could be doing damage of its own

Throughout the summer months, airtankers and fire-crews spray fire retardant across the territory for protection. It's a substance that makes fuel less flammable and slows a fire's progress. But some N.W.T. residents worry that same tool that helps protect the land may also be harming it. 

Fred Andrew, president of the Tulı́t'a Renewable Resource Council, says he's seeing that harm first-hand.

"It [has] an impact on songbirds and insects and muskeg," he said. "It's not very healthy." 

It's something that was raised at a public listening session with the Sahtu Renewable Resource Board (SRRB) last winter. The session in Norman Wells, N.W.T., in February brought residents together to discuss how wildfires and climate change impact caribou. 

People who attended the session said they wanted more information about what's in the fire retardant sprayed in their communities and how it impacts the region's land and water.  

Studies show adverse affects on aquatic life

The N.W.T. uses two types of fire retardant, according to documents filed on the resource board's registry. 

Short-term retardant called FireFoam WD881-C is sprayed directly onto a flame or just ahead of a fire perimeter. Long-term retardant called Liquid Concentrate 95-AMV helps to create a perimeter between fire and fuel, like wood or brush. 

A memo from an environmental consultant tells the board that the long-term retardant had been found to hinder tadpole development and was in some cases lethal. It also cites a study from the U.S. Forest Service which found the product could cause "long-term adverse effects" in water ecosystems, while another study found that runoff or even accidental application into small waters could have significant ramifications on aquatic life.  

In an emailed response to questions from the SRRB in February 2024, an official with the territorial government said the fire retardant products used in the N.W.T. are made mostly of ammonium polyphosphates, chemicals used in agricultural fertilizers and "considered environmentally friendly and safe for use."

"While not considered an environmental threat, every effort is made to avoid having fire retardants dropped from airtanker aircraft into water bodies," the email, which is also filed on the SRRB's registry, reads.

Retardant doesn't contain toxic materials, says gov't

Mike Westwick, a manager of wildfire prevention and mitigation for the N.W.T. government, told CBC News in an email that along with those materials found in fertilizer, fire retardant is made up of at least 82 per cent water and that it contains no toxic raw materials. 

"Our air attack team always works to avoid dropping in waterways during wildfire operations, which works to prevent any kind of meaningful building up in the waters," he wrote. If there are "environmental effects," Westwick said the territory expects them to be short-lived and that natural processes like rain would dilute the retardant and spread it out into the environment.

He also said the territory has an extensive water monitoring network and that there haven't been concerns about elevated levels in the water of material that comes from fire retardant used in the N.W.T. 

Westwick also said the use of fire retardant in the N.W.T. is lower than in other jurisdictions, and that the territory is not leaning on it instead of using ground crews to fight fires. 

He said during the recent challenging fire seasons in 2023 and 2024, however, the territory did use more fire retardant because there were more fires to fight. 

Westwick also said when fire retardant is sprayed in commonly used areas, the territory advises local leaders that people should avoid harvesting from the land until the retardant has been "removed … through natural weathering, rain, or other environmental factors." 

Westwick said the government appreciates the concerns raised by Sahtu residents.

Land sprayed by retardant 'almost like a graveyard'

Researchers in the Dehcho region have also noticed how fire retardant might be impacting the land. 

At the Scotty Creek Research Station south of Fort Simpson, N.W.T., researchers recall a 2014 wildfire that burned about half the forested area.  

Over a decade later, most of that area is covered by Labrador tea, lichen and black spruce — even the land burned by the fire. But in the areas hit by fire retardant, the vegetation isn't growing back. 

"The ground is either bare or covered in dead roots and fallen branches and twigs from the trees, it almost looks like a graveyard," said Maude Auclair, the data manager for the research station. 

The bare ground is absorbing more heat without the cover of vegetation, which is something Auclair suspects is also impacting permafrost. She said it's something that merits more attention.

"[It's] definitely understudied and an important thing to understand, especially with the rate of wildfire activity increasing in the North … and how often we're using this stuff it would be super important to understand what the implications of this are."

Alternatives

A research organization in Ontario is looking at more ecological alternatives. 

Based out of Royal Military College in Kingston, the RMC Green Team acts as an internal advisor to the federal Department of National Defence for environmental infrastructure and energy solutions. 

Maria Skordaki, who leads the organization, says they're in the process of testing fire retardant and suppressant alternatives. 

What they're looking to avoid is a class of chemicals called perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, known as PFAS, which have "bonding" qualities that make it extremely effective at sticking to structures but that also make it extremely difficult to break down, Skordaki said. 

"It will stay there forever," Skordaki said. "Way beyond our lifetime."

She says concerns raised by Andrew and Sahtu residents are valid and that PFAS has made it into water sources, food and our bloodstreams.    

One product Skordaki and her team are testing is eco-gel — an Ontario-made fire suppressant and retardant the company touts as being entirely plant-based and biodegradable. 

She said it will still be years before that or any of the other products are widely used by the government. But, she said, the eco-gel is so far performing well in their tests. 

Westwick said the territory is keeping an eye on new fire retardant products, including eco-gel. But, he said, not all retardants work in different environments. "All options must be weighed carefully to meet the mission," he said.

Nearly a year after the 2024 listening session, the SRRB submitted a report about it to the territory's environment and climate change department on January 15. The department's minister now has 60 days to review that report and respond to it, before it's released to the public.