As wildfire season looms, N.W.T. businesses brace for another bad year

Tourism operators and other small businesses in the N.W.T. are bracing for the coming wildfire season, hoping it won't be a repeat of last year.

And whatever happens, some impacts are already being felt, with organizers of an upcoming conference in Yellowknife opting to play it safe and postpone, or possibly cancel, their June event.

"As a smaller organization ... we don't necessarily have the capacity to pivot very quickly," said Kimberly Fairman, president of the Canadian Society for Circumpolar Health. The non-profit was preparing to host its international congress for health researchers in the N.W.T. capital, with an estimated 300 to 350 people attending.

"We started thinking, well, you know, maybe we should be proactive and consider postponing at this point, until we have a better sense of how things are progressing in the early spring."

The organization's website says the postponement was prompted by "high risk of drought and wildfire in the Northwest Territories this spring." A new date has not been set.

Fairman said the international congress typically happens every three years, in a different country. It hasn't happened in almost five years, though, first because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and then because of the war in Ukraine (Russia had been slated to host).

That made it hard to postpone the event once again, but Fairman said the board of her organization was unanimous. They didn't want to risk planning a big event only to find that the host region is once again dealing with some major wildfires.

They were conscious of the toll last year's fires took on local communities and resources, she said.

"We don't want to add to that burden by ... being here at a time when the resources that are available are needed, for example, the hotel rooms or you know, plane seats and that sort of thing," Fairman said.

"We are an organization that's accountable to our membership, and we're accountable to the communities in the North. And so it felt like a responsible thing to do."

Dry conditions 'kind of scary,' says tourism camp owner

Bobby Drygeese has been taking summer bookings for his tourist camp near Dettah, N.W.T., but fewer than usual so far, he says.

"A lot of people are still worried about the fires and all that," he said.

He's also concerned himself because he says there wasn't much snow in the area this winter. That makes for potential drought conditions similar to last year.

"If there's not much snow, then it's going to be really dry ... it's kind of scary for us."

His business took a major hit last year, with cancelled bookings and then the weeks-long evacuation of the region in August. Business wasn't bad over the winter, he says, but he's still trying paying off bills left over from last year.

At the same time, he's looking to invest more money in water pumps, hoses and sprinklers this year.

"I want to make sure that my camp is safe for the future. So we're going to get some extra stuff like that this summer," he said.

Drygeese also wants to make sure that he's prepared in case things get serious again this year.

"Last year, everybody was all over the place and then like, when the fires did come, everybody scattered and nobody had a plan and it was kind of crazy," he recalled.

"So we've got to try to have a plan right away, and just see who's going to do what and when and how — and just to make sure there's a plan ready to go."

'Wake-up call,' says chamber of commerce

Adrian Bell, chair of the Yellowknife chamber of commerce, said it's up to local officials and leaders to get the word out about supporting the N.W.T. and encouraging people to visit.

"Obviously, the worst scenario for the small business community would be a repeat of last year. But second to that is not having a repeat of last year, but having the rest of Canada and the world assume that we are, and staying away," Bell said.

"So that's something that we need to get some messaging out about, and really shout it from the rooftops."

Heavy smoke from wildfires fill the air in Yellowknife last September. (Bill Braden/The Canadian Press)

Bell called the postponed Canadian Society for Circumpolar Health congress a sort of "wake-up call."

He recalled how many tourists last year opted to cancel trips to Hawaii in the wake of Maui's devastating wildfires, thinking they were helping but actually further devastating the local economy.

He said Yellowknife is becoming better known as a spectacular place to visit in summer, and it would be a shame to lose that momentum.

"One conference is certainly not going to destroy our local economy, but if this becomes a trend then yeah, that's really troubling," Bell said.

"We really want to tell conference organizers that, look, if what you're looking to do is support Yellowknife and support the North, the way to do that is by coming here — planning more trips, not fewer, more conferences, not fewer."