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OPERATIONSOF THE CANADIAN
AVALANCHECENTRE
The Training Schools
In winter there arethreeprincipaloperations: the Schools;
the Information Exchange; and the Public Safety Services.
The CanadianAvalancheAssociation Training Schools are
theessential buildingblockofthe othertwooperations.
NeithertheInformationExchange northePublicSafety
Services of the CanadianAvalancheCentre would be pos-
siblewithouttheSchools.Thisisthe25thyearofthe
Schools.Inallthoseyearstherehasbeenoneconstant
presence -- PeterSchaerer. His work,along with numer-
ousotherdedicated people,has ledtothecreationofa
high and consistent standard forCanada.
TheSchoolshaveatwolevelstructure.TheLevel 1
course teachesstudents to be good technicalobservers and
safe traveltechniques. This is a one weekcourse that grants
a certificate to successful participants. The Level 2 course
may be taken after 100 days of apprenticeship. The objec-
tive of the Level 2 course is to teach students to apply the
observationsofweather,avalanchesandsnowpackto
makingdecisionsaboutsnowstability.Coursesarede-
signedforthoseworkinginvarioustypesofavalanche
safety programs.These include highways operations,ski
areas,skiandmountainguiding,resource industryand
parkspersonnel.TheSchools attractabout 300students
each year. Course fees pay for the entire expenses of oper-
ating theSchools. Although there are nodirectgovernment
grantstotheSchools,theNationalSearchandRescue
Secretariatrecentlycontributedfundstodevelopnew
course materials.
The policy of the Schools isdecided by the Education
committee.There is a Schools coordinatorand a full-time
registrar who alsoworksonotherCACbusiness.Course
leaders and instructors are hired to work the courses and
regular instructor training programs are required to main-
tain the standard of the teaching staff.
The Information Exchange
The Information Exchange(InfoEx) mentioned earlier now
has fifty subscribing operations whichincludenearly every
avalanchesafety program in western Canada. For eachop-
erationtheInfoEx is avital part of their snowstability evalu-
ation and daily information gathering process.Ski areas,
highways,forestryoperations,parks,helicopterand
snowcatskiingoperationsallsubscribe.Each operation
submits a detailed report aboutweather,snowpack, ava-
lanchesandsnow stability to the AvalancheCentre by 1800
h. This information is then collated and a summary report
foralloperationsisavailablefordistributionby2000h.
Theinputandoutputarebyfax,Internetemailand
computer bulletinboard. Eachyear the collation of the sub-
mitted files becomes more automated.There is also over-
night remote weatherstation dataavailablein thevery early
morning hours. Snow profiles, field stability tests and most
avalancheobservationsarereportedfortheday.The
standardsestablishedbytheSchoolsensurethatthe
observations and decisions made at one operation are us-
ing the same methodology as all other subscribers. This is
an essential element to assist in making operational deci-
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sions at theirown operation.
Eachoperation must havea CAA member on staff andagree
to a confidentiality clause in the contract. This ensures an
open dialogueandeliminates the chancethatthe technical
nature oftheInfoExwillbe misinterpreted.AttheCAC
theInfoExrequiresonefulltimepersontomanagethe
service and troubleshoot for the clients with file transfers,
modemandcomputersupport.There isalsoanInfoEx
assistant who collates thereport for five eveningsper week.
TheremainingtwoeveningsaredonebytheInfoEx
manager.
Subscribers to the InfoEx pay an annual fee for the serv-
icewhichwhollysupportstheoperationalcostsofthe
InfoEx. Many of the InfoEx subscribers also buy a weather
forecastpackagefromtheCAC.TheAvalancheCentre
purchases the weather forecast and re-distributes it as an
added service.
The Public Safety Services
ThePublicSafetyServices(PSS)started withtheintro-
duction of avalanche bulletins forareas outside National
Parks.The Rocky Mountain National Parks (Banff,Jasper,
Kootenay,Yoho,Waterton),GlacierNationalParkand
Kananaskis CountryinAlbertahad been providingava-
lanche information formany years.A few large ski areas
alsoprovidedavalanche informationforoutsidetheski
area.Increasedactivityin areasoutsidethe Parks andpublic
andpoliticalattentiononceagainfocusedduetosome
senselesstragediescalledforademandforavalanche
information forareas outside the Parks.
In 1991 the NationalSearchandRescueSecretariat(NSS)
provided funding to start the Public Safety Services of the
CAC. This funding wasreceivedon the conditionthat after
threeyearsthePublicSafetyServiceswouldbecome
financially self reliant. Money would be received through
the sale of various services,such as the Public Avalanche
Bulletin.Anetworkofprovincialagencies in Albertaas
wellasParksand Forestryagencies in BritishColumbia
became involved. Snowmobilemanufacturers havebecome
apartofthisnetworkofcooperatorsinadditionto
numerous othercommercial,club and industry interests.
Tothem all we have a public safety service to sell, a return
on their advertising dollar and an opportunity for them to
fulfill an obligation in an areawherethey have a responsi-
bility.
At the same time the CAC opened there happened to
beadramaticincreaseinthenumberofaccidentsto
snowmobilers.Because the machines are now capable of
traveling in deep, steep powder snow, the amount of ava-
lancheterrainthatisavailableonagivendayisfar
greaterthanthat ofaskierorsnowboarder.Itequals,if
notsurpasses,theamountofterrain usedbyhelicopter
skiers.The period of exposure is high and the snowmo-
bilesgoupanddowntheterrainwhereas,obviously,
heli-skiersonlygoesdown.Thesnowmobilemanufac-
turers have become one of the important partners in mak-
ingthefinancialviabilityofthePSSpossible.Thetwo
westernCanadian provincialsnowmobileorganizations
havealsobecomeveryproactiveinavalanchesafety.
Fundraising andsellingoftheAvalanche Bulletinisa
continuous process.
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