WILDFIRE UPDATE: OCTOBER 2026

WILDFIRE season in Alberta officially came to a close with the end of October and thankfully for the province’s firefighters it was a less eventful one than in recent years.

In March, Power Wood Energy published a wildfire update as the season opened and highlighted three wildfires in the Peace River Forest Area, near to the locations of its planned black pellet production facilities.

At that time, concerns were growing for the residents of La Crête and High Level as early-spring fires seated in areas close to each town.

However, Alberta Fire’s rapid response teams contained these wildfires before they resulted in evacuations or property losses.

While Alberta experienced one of its quietest and mildest fire seasons in five years, with active periods dropping low enough for the province to have points with no active wildfires, on June 24 a significant lightning storm did ignite 40 new wildfire blazes across northern zones.

Forest areas close to High Level, Peace River and Fort McMurray were set alight. These wildfires posed no threat to local communities as crews, helicopters and air tankers suppressed each one until it was extinguished.

Local fire bans and permit requirements (active from March 1 to October 31) contributed to Alberta’s less severe wildfire season however, heavy record-breaking summer rainfall contributed to the total area burned across key provincial northern forest zones being exceptionally low.

Province-wide, a total of 177.2 square kilometers were scorched during the active season in Alberta. [1]

While the province of Alberta experienced one of its quietest wildfire seasons on record, the Peace River Forest Area and the High Level forest Area - where Power Wood Energy plans to build two black pellet production facilities respectively - were the location of wildfires which burned a combined 137.9 square kilometers of woodland.

The majority of them were in the High Level Forest Area, which saw 137.2 square kilometers (13,724 hectares) burned across 150 total wildfires.

Elsewhere, only 0.7 square kilometers (70 hectares) burned across 71 wildfires in the Peace River Forest Area and less than 0.1 square kilometres (10 hectares) succumbed to 44 small blazes in the Fort McMurray Forest Area. [2] [3] Further south in Alberta, in Wood Buffalo National Park, a wildfire complex in Bear Creek burned approximately 488 square kilometers. [4]

This year Ontario, and to some extent British Columbia, bore the brunt of Canada’s wildfires – in a season with substantially less area burned than the historical average in Alberta.

British Columbia saw 1,380 fires scorch about 4,750 square kilometers (475,000 hectares) of the province’s land [5], while in Ontario more than 7,300 square kilometers (730,000 hectares) of forest went up in flames [6].

Historically, Alberta’s 10-year average for burned area sits at approximately 5,190 square kilometers (519,000 hectares) per season [7]. The total number of wildfires province-wide (789 blazes) was though down roughly 35 percent, compared to the historical average – signalling that while lightning strikes sparked fires, precipitation helped to limit their spread [8]. 

At the time of writing, there are currently no active wildfires burning in Alberta.

Alberta Wildfire Public Information Officer Ashley Weave confirmed: “It was a very different-looking season. It was definitely a very wet summer and because of that our crews were focusing on preparedness, which included a lot of hands-on training out in the field.”

Alberta’s forestry minister Todd Loewen revealed the province spent only approximately one third of its wildfire budget this year. 

“When it comes to wildfires, boring is good,” he added. “Some of the staff in the last three years haven’t had a day off from the start of fire season to the end. We really appreciate having those experienced staff.” 

Power Wood Energy will harvest stranded wildfire deadwood from northern Alberta’s landscapes to turn the waste stream material into energy-dense, steam-treated black pellets.

Power Wood’s Executive Chairman David Peters reflected on the contrast of this year’s wildfire activity.

He said: “After particularly destructive wildfire seasons in 2023 and 2025, and the Jasper wildfire incident in 2024, this year’s season has provided welcome respite for Alberta’s firefighting crews and the province’s communities.

“Forest areas close to the sites of our proposed pellet facilities were affected but thankfully these wildfires were extinguished before they could trouble town residents in High Level and La Crête.”

“As Alberta’s official wildfire season draws to a close everyone in the region is able to relax a little more.”

“Nevertheless, our gratitude remains for Alberta’s firefighting crews and their vigilance, preparedness and swift actions which continue to keep the province’s populations safe.”

Although Alberta experienced considerably less wildfire activity in 2026 than in recent years, the season remains a reminder of the importance of continued wildfire preparedness and responsible forest management.

For northern Alberta communities, including those surrounding Power Wood Energy's planned facilities in La Crête and High Level, these efforts remain essential to the region's long-term resilience.  

[1] CP24. (2028, August 18) Alberta reports zero active wildfires in August for first time in 40 years.

https://www.cp24.com/news/canada/2026/08/18/alberta-reports-zero-active-wildfires-in-wake-of-record-rainfall-in-parts-of-province/

[2] Alberta Government (2026, October 20). Wildfire Update. https://www.alberta.ca/peace-river-forest-area-october-20-2026

[3] Alberta Government (2026, July 20). Wildfire Update. https://www.alberta.ca/fort-mcmurray-forest-area-july-20-2026

[4] Play 1037 (2026, July 15). High wildfire danger returns to Fort McMurray while Bear Creek fire in national park continues. https://www.play1037.ca/2026/07/15/high-wildfire-danger-returns-to-fort-mcmurray-while-bear-creek-fire-in-national-park-continues/

[5] CTV News. (2026, September 10). B.C. wildfire season winding down with lower burned area, but high structural loss. https://www.ctvnews.ca/vancouver/article/bc-wildfire-season-winding-down-with-lower-burned-area-but-high-structural-loss/

[6] CBA News. (2026, August 6) Ontario wildfires accounted for highest area burned in recent history, says U.K. study of Canadian weather. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/thunder-bay/wildfires-climate-change-study-9.7297447

[7] CBC News (2026, May 28). Wildfire activity low so far — but a hot and dry summer could change that, officials warn. https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/wildfire-forcast-slow-start-still-risks-9.7215220

[8] CTV News. (2026, October 27). ‘Boring is good’: Alberta sees mild fire season, first in 5 years. https://www.ctvnews.ca/edmonton/article/boring-is-good-alberta-sees-mild-fire-season-first-in-5-years/