UBC Okanagan (UBCO) is part of a pilot program using AI and SpaceX technology to better predict wildfires in B.C.

Rogers Communications is investing in satellite-connected sensors, with SpaceX鈥檚 low-bandwidth Swarm service, and Pano AI cameras on the company鈥檚 5G network that detect smoke up to a 20-kilometre range.

鈥淭he way we understand and model fire risk is really based on weather stations,鈥� said Dr. Mathieu Bourbonnais, lead assistant professor, department of earth, environmental and geographic sciences, UBCO.

The BC Wildfire Service (BCWS) maintains a network of approximately 250 such stations across the province.

Over the past two years, Bourbonnais has been working with Rogers on developing a low-cost weather station.

鈥淭hey monitor all the weather parameters that influence fire and fuel conditions in real-time. They鈥檝e been working phenomenally well.鈥�

The stations can be put out in high numbers, including approximately 80 in the Okanagan, however, 14 of those units were lost in the McDougall Creek wildfire.

鈥淭hose devices were actually transmitting right up until the last second before they burned.鈥�

The next step in the pilot is adding the AI cameras and integrating them with satellites.

鈥淥nce you do that you can put them absolutely anywhere,鈥� said Bourbonnais, noting a similar system is used in California.

鈥淚t gives fire suppression organizations, such as BCWS, eyes on the fire, or it might help them detect a fire earlier or maybe somewhere remote where detection systems are sparse.鈥�

Bourbonnais, a former wildland firefighter, cautioned that challenges are to be expected in using AI cameras to detect wildfires.

鈥淎 fire doesn鈥檛 often start out as much, it鈥檚 often that wispy plume of smoke. It鈥檚 easy to mistake that for other things, a truck spouting exhaust from the air can look like a fire.鈥�

Initially, AI cameras will be located on wireless towers near Fort St. James, Smithers, and Chetwynd.

鈥淓arly detection of wildfires is critical in preventing their spread to help protect communities and our forests,鈥� said Sonia Kastner, CEO, Pano AI.

The technology builds on ongoing 5G research by Rogers, UBC, and the BC Wildfire Service (BCWS) to enable better detection and help first responders manage devastating events.

鈥淐limate change is a global issue that requires urgent action,鈥� said Tony Staffieri, president and CEO, Rogers. 鈥淐ommunities across the country are facing the effects of unprecedented wildfires.鈥�

The company is also donating satellite phones to the B.C. Search and Rescue Association (BCSRA) to support first responders.

鈥淐ommunications are critical in search and rescue operations for the safety of everyone involved,鈥� said Dwight Yochim, CEO.

The donation of satellite phones will have a direct impact

on the safety of 3,400 search and rescue members across the province, Yochim added.

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