About FireWard & our certifications
Owner and Operator Kurt Baldwin founded FireWard with the vision of helping homeowners and landowners better prepare for wildfire risks. As fire danger in Southern Alberta continues to rise, home insurance providers are increasingly focused on the risk status of the properties they insure. Several companies now offer incentives for properties with mitigated wildfire risks, and FireWard addresses this growing demand by assisting property owners with their comprehensive mitigation needs.
Qualifications & Industry Alignment
FireSmart™ Certified:
Kurt has completed the FireSmart™ 101 and FireSmart™ Ambassador programs and actively applies their principles, along with FireSmart's™ guides for landscape and vegetation management.
Local Collaboration
He works closely with local Fire Department FireSmart™ HIZ (Home Ignition Zone) Assessors to carry out recommended property treatments accurately and effectively.
Experience & Core Services
Hazardous Tree Removal & Firewood Production
20 years of active experience specializing in dead and hazardous tree removal, woody debris handling, and firewood production.
Commercial Landscaping
Extensive professional commercial landscape experience, allowing for a seamless integration of wildfire mitigation with aesthetic property design.
Holistic Property Treatments
Combining these core skills sets the stage for a holistic, clean, and thorough treatment for every property, including vegetation management, clearing, and complete before-and-after property transformations.
Frequently Asked Questions
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FireSmart™ is a process developed using many hard lessons learned from previous wildfires involving the Wildland-Urban Interface. It can help guide homeowners through the different risks found around their property.
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A FireSmart™ HIZ Assessment will give you a clearer picture of how your property can be vulnerable to wildfire, or a neighbouring structure fire, that can use the vegetation to travel. A qualified member of your local Fire Department can provide a proper FireSmart assessment free of charge. Post assessment is where FireWard comes in and can complete the work required.
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Properties with large amounts of highly flammable coniferous vegetation are particularly vulnerable and would benefit from an assessment. A quick call with FireWard can help establish if a treatment is viable. We can use satellite imagery to describe your property and approximate tree density coverage.
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This is where FireWard comes in. After your FireSmart™ assessment, you will be given a list of deficiencies complete with photos and descriptions; FireWard is here to provide the mitigation services, completing the work needed or recommended. Any structural work required or desired would be contracted to trusted companies to complete, eg. deck alterations, siding install, etc.
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Fire mitigation concentrates on the area starting from the edge of your house, to 40 meters out, creating a buffer zone of protection.
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A proper FireSmart assessment can be provided, free of charge, by a qualified member of your local Fire Department, and will vary in length depending on the situation.
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Early Spring through to early Winter are great times to have an assessment completed. Heavy snow can hide ground features such as low lying juniper shrubs, bark mulch flower beds, etc.