CFA Wildfire Workshop 2019 Presentation – Rob Ballinger

Salvage Operations and Log Values
Rob Ballinger – Planning Superintendent, West Fraser, 100-Mile House

ABSTRACT: The economics of fire salvage operations are complex. The ‘mega’ fires of 2017 and 2018 were
disastrous in their own right, compound that with existing MPB impacted landscapes; mix in marginal wood,
short shelf life and elevated public, First Nations, and stakeholder concerns and you have a significantly
challenging salvage environment.
This presentation focuses on West Frasers’s approach to salvage operations and log values in relation to
the Elephant Hill fire. It will briefly present some of the overview guidance and approach that drove the
salvage operations. It will discuss stand and tree conditions and assessment; and explain the planning and
operational conditions that elevate the log costs of fire salvage. Lastly, it will briefly discuss the
manufacturing challenges associated with a diet of burnt logs.