{"id":3950,"date":"2019-11-22T14:37:40","date_gmt":"2019-11-22T19:37:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.porticomagazine.ca\/?p=3950"},"modified":"2020-10-28T14:40:04","modified_gmt":"2020-10-28T18:40:04","slug":"the-physics-of-wildfire-grad-leads-fire-attack-in-b-c","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/porticomagazine.ca\/2019\/11\/the-physics-of-wildfire-grad-leads-fire-attack-in-b-c\/","title":{"rendered":"The Physics of Wildfire: Grad Leads Fire Attack in B.C."},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"
A wildfire in southern British Columbia seen from a helicopter.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

A University\nof Guelph grad leading the fight against wildfires in southern British Columbia\nis finding that his physics degree has come in handy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In recent\nyears, Bryce Moreira\u2019s job as aviation specialist with the Kamloops Fire Centre\nhas been intensely demanding, given the highly combustible conditions in B.C.\u2019s\nforests. But Moreira, 29, says he is able to keep his cool in part because of\nthe practical skills he learned studying physics at U of G.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen I\nfinished my degree and moved back to B.C., I was unsure of my next step,\u201d said\nMoreira. \u201cBut because of my degree I was able to get a job with the BC Wildfire\nService in the winter, a job that was directly applicable to physics.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He oversees\ndeployment of helicopters for transporting firefighters or dumping water on\nfires.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
U of G physics grad Bryce Moreira puts his education toward fighting wildfires in B.C.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Depending on\nthe size of the fire, the response can involve anywhere from one to 30\nhelicopters. While Moreira is not a pilot himself, he sometimes finds himself\nin the co-pilot\u2019s seat hovering over a blaze.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Operation\nparameters change constantly. Pinpoint calculations are needed to ensure the\nbest possible response and outcome, he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Controlling\na fire is exhausting, he said, but the sense of accomplishment is huge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\ncertainly can be a lot of pressure, but we all accept that pressure as part of\nthe job we have,\u201d he said. \u201cI am looking for the best possible way to control\nand suppress the fire and to protect life and property. You have to take it one\ntask at a time.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

His U of G education\ngave him a good foundation for understanding physics and its varied\napplications. His job mostly involves analysis and organization of complex and\nurgent firefighting strategies. The more fires burning, the more involved the\nstrategy becomes. The skills in data analysis he learned at U of G have been\nindispensable in his work, he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 2017 and\n2018 fire seasons were the most extreme in the province\u2019s history, burning more\nforest and forcing more evacuations than ever before. This year, conditions\nimproved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Moreira said\nthe recent spike in the number and size of fires has been fuelled by climate\nchange. Dry conditions caused by a lack of snowfall in winter and extreme\ntemperatures in spring and summer are the major contributor, a perspective backed\nup in a recent study by Environment and Climate Change Canada.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Wildfire in southern B.C.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Extreme fire\nseasons are likely to become more common as global temperatures continue to\nrise, according to the study.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2018,\n2,117 fires covered more than 1.3 million hectares of land and cost the\nprovince $615 million to fight; in 2017, 1,500 fires covered more than 1.2\nmillion hectares and cost about $650-million to fight. On average, about 42 per\ncent of fires are caused by people and 57 per cent by lightning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere is so\nmuch math involved in a physics program, and math explains things in a very\ntechnical and rudimentary way,\u201d he said. \u201cIt helps explain the principles of\nhow things operate and gives you an appreciation for larger ideas based on\nthese simple principles.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Originally\nfrom British Columbia, Moreira completed his U of G degree in 2013. He spent\nsummers in Kamloops working for the BC Wildfire Service, a job that he began\nwhile in high school.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Kamloops Fire Centre crew with Moreira on the right.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

He gained\nhands-on experience fighting fires and landed a full-time job because of his\nability to analyze data and solve problems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBeing able\nto understand things from their basic principles and seeing the root cause\nhelped me to solve unique problems that come up day-to-day in my work,\u201d he\nsaid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a top\nhigh school volleyball player, Moreira competed for two years on the provincial\nteam. He was an assistant coach on the Gryphons women\u2019s volleyball team in\n2012-13.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTypically,\nI had a pretty good eye for technical skills,\u201d said Moreira, who now coaches\nvarsity volleyball in B.C. \u201cI was able to add technical expertise and to\nsupport the whole team.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With two\nrecord-breaking wildfire years in the province, recent fire seasons have been\ntough on crews and coordinators, he said. During time off, he gets rest and\nstays physically active to deal with the stress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Moreira said\nit is difficult to witness the destruction wreaked on B.C.\u2019s environment, but\nhe credits his U of G education for his ability to focus on minimizing the\ndamage.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A University of Guelph grad leading the fight against wildfires in southern British Columbia is finding that his physics degree has come in handy. In recent years, Bryce Moreira\u2019s job as aviation specialist with the Kamloops Fire Centre has been intensely demanding, given the highly combustible conditions in B.C.\u2019s forests. But Moreira, 29, says he<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":3953,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_FSMCFIC_featured_image_caption":"","_FSMCFIC_featured_image_nocaption":"","_FSMCFIC_featured_image_hide":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[562,357,563,565,560,561,564,372,376,559],"yoast_head":"\nThe Physics of Wildfire: Grad Leads Fire Attack in B.C. -<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/porticomagazine.ca\/2019\/11\/the-physics-of-wildfire-grad-leads-fire-attack-in-b-c\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Physics of Wildfire: Grad Leads Fire Attack in B.C. -\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A University of Guelph grad leading the fight against wildfires in southern British Columbia is finding that his physics degree has come in handy. In recent years, Bryce Moreira\u2019s job as aviation specialist with the Kamloops Fire Centre has been intensely demanding, given the highly combustible conditions in B.C.\u2019s forests. 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