A complete avalanche forecasting program in the White Pass and Wheaton Valley will return for the 2019-20 winter season.

Avalanche Canada and the Yukon Avalanche Association made the announcement Tuesday.

Weekly avalanche forecasts will begin in early January 2020 and continue through April.

A professional field team of three avalanche technicians will work to restore the program to its previous service levels, the organizations said.

Recreational users will benefit from a stronger and more regular avalanche safety product to support informed decision-making in the backcountry, the groups said.

“When the Government of Canada announced a $25-million endowment for Avalanche Canada last year to expand public avalanche safety services, we were all excited about what it could mean for us in the North,” said Chris Sheaden, the association’s president.

“Combined with the ongoing support of the Government of Yukon, the program is back to its original form. We look forward to continue working with Avalanche Canada as we evolve the program together.”

Since 2016, budget constraints have meant that the Yukon’s public avalanche advisory was produced in a way that relied heavily on field observations and information from local recreational users.

The professional field team could only spend one day in the White Pass each week – which was insufficient for producing a complete avalanche forecast.

Now, with renewed funding, the field team will be able to spend several days each week in the White Pass evaluating conditions and collecting the data required to produce regular forecasts.

“We are very happy to once again provide the essential safety service of a regular forecast to backcountry users in Yukon,” said Karl Klassen, Avalanche Canada’s warning service manager.

“We’re looking forward to a safe and successful season.”

Members of the local forecasting field team will be at a season kick-off event and fundraiser set for 5 p.m. Thursday at the Yukon Beringia Interpretive Centre.