The healing burn: How a Mi'kmaw practice helps protect the lands of Newfoundland

Wildfire season in Newfoundland and Labrador has started early this year, already claiming 12 homes in Adam's Cove and forcing the evacuation of its residents in early May.

But there's a way to prevent that, according to Joanne Miles, chief of the Flat Bay Band.

Miles told CBC News that people in her community have practiced low-intensity controlled burning for as long as she can remember. When done correctly, she says it can prevent devastating wildfires. The knowledge of how it's done has been passed down through generations. 

"Education is a big component to … the Mi'kmaq and the way we live," Miles said. "Hopefully we can … pass that awareness and that prevention on to our youth."  

Several factors are considered before starting a low-intensity controlled burn, Miles said. Elders in her area have learned the seasonal patterns, the moisture levels of the ground and plants and how to recognize wind changes. 

Miles said the practice is the reason why the Flat Bay area has hardly seen any major forest fires.  

Residents head out onto their land as soon as the snow melts for the annual activity. But, Miles said, they don't just start lighting random fires, and emergency preparedness is always kept in mind. 

"Traditionally, it's our land that we've been watching and taking care of it as stewards," Miles said.

Hillary Renick, president of the California Indian Land Institute, is a member of Sherwood Valley Band of Pomo Indians located in Northern California. She also protects cultural values at risk during wildfire events as a fire archeologist.

Renick recently travelled to St. John's to speak to students at Memorial University. She says fire is surprisingly helpful for many plant and tree species, and some are actually fire resistant. There are even trees with seeds that need a slow burning fire in order to germinate, she said.  She also said wildfires can clear an area of invasive species, allowing native plants to grow back.

"Fire is a natural system, it is not the enemy of the earth," Renick said. "It's part of a system that's tied to the soil health, to weather and climate. There's a rhythm."

Some tribal nations have retained knowledge of the burning connection they had with the Earth, Renick said. The knowledge of others was decimated through colonization, she said. 

Some tribes still have elements in their language or songs that refer to taking care of the land, but not everyone is able to use the knowledge they have, she said. 

"Especially with displacement, it's hard to do things when you don't have access to the land, when the land is owned by, you know, the federal government, or the Crown, or the state," Renick said. 

She said there needs to be a shift from looking into forests only for recourses, and start using Indigenous knowledge to help save them. 

"We're all part of this whole system," Renick said. "Fire is not inherently bad, it's just a different way of looking at the world."

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