September 11, 2005. The fire broke out near the south eastern edge of the bog. Smoke and ash covered the entire Lower Mainland and spread all the way to Nanaimo on Vancouver Island. The fire expanded to hectares after three days. Large-scale fighting methods were used to combat the blaze. This included firebreaks being bulldozed and dikes to raise the water level in the hopes of extinguishing any of the fire burning underground. BC Fire Service's Air Tanker Centre dispatched a fleet of air tankers to assist in putting out the blaze. This included four Firecats, two Convair 580s and the Martin Mars water bombers, which are the world's largest air tankers. Eight days after the fire first set blaze, Delta municipality announced that the fire was in "mop-up" stages. On July 3, 2016, another fire broke out and grew to over the next three days. More than 100 firefighters battled the blaze using helicopters and air tankers, with additional crew. Conservation The Delta community and environmental organizations such as the Burns Bog Conservation Society rallied for the bog's conservation since development plans were first proposed in 1988. Burns Bog was first requested to be designated an ecological reserve came in 1991. The proposal was rejected by most of Delta Council, with plans for reconsideration at the City's Official Community Plan. By 1999, hundreds of letters were sent by the community to Delta Council asking them to save Burns Bog. In 2004, four levels of government came together to purchase of land for $73 million. The four levels of government were the federal government, the provincial government, Metro Vancouver, and The Corporation of Delta. Burns Bog was officially designated as an Ecological Conservancy Area in 2005. Priority of the area was conservation and not public use. A special permit issued by Metro Vancouver is required to enter the conservancy area. On September 22, 2012, the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands announced designation of Burns Bog as a Ramsar Wetland of International Significance. The bog was listed as part of the Fraser River Delta Ramsar site No. 243, along with South Arm Marshes, Sturgeon Bank, Boundary Bay, Serpentine, and Alaksen. Burns Bog is listed under the Fraser River Delta Ramsar Site as a wetland of international significance because it is a major migratory bird stopover on the Pacific Flyway. It also provides feeding and roosting for approximately 250,000 migratory and wintering waterfowl,