Peat Bog Fire Erupts Near Vancouver

[hatrack]

DELTA, B.C. (CP) _ Fire breaks failed to keep a raging wildfire from growing in an environmentally significant peat bog on Monday as smoke, which could be smelled in downtown Vancouver, drifted over the Lower Mainland.

Fire chief Gordon Freeborn said the fire in Burns Bog was about one kilometre wide and two kilometres long as crews tried to get control of the blaze at its edges. ``We just need to slow it down on the fringes,'' he added. ``It's going well. We've got ground crews in and hopefully by the end of the day we'll have established our perimeters again. It's looking good at this point. Very favourable.''

The bog is about 25 kilometres southwest of downtown Vancouver and borders the south arm of the Fraser River. Conservationists say the bog, which covers more than 4,000 hectares, is the largest undeveloped urban land mass in North America. Smoke from blazing peat hung in the air over Vancouver on Monday, but officials said there's no reason to panic about air quality.

"There's a slight elevation of particulate in the air in areas west of the fire,'' said Ken Stubbs, a division manager with the air quality monitoring and assessment department of the Greater Vancouver Regional District.

EDIT

http://www.canada.com/vancouver/story.html?id=74106071-9244-4c1f-98dd-e2e9eaf3e9ca

[whistle]

1. Aren't dry peat bogs a good source of fuel material?

[hatrack]

2. Indeed - as Vancouver residents are finding out

:evilgrin: