Canada’s wildfire season: Feds give update on what to expect this summer

we’re hearing from several cabinet ministers this morning updating the forecast for this year’s Wildfire season also complicate firefighting efforts now I continue to urge all Canadians to be prepared when it comes to welfare it’s important uh part of their prevention education so I encourage all Canadians to check out the firesmart program online uh it can help you to protect your home and also your community for additional information Canadians can also check out the wildfires page on ca.ca for updates and access uh to the government services if you do not already have an emergency kit visit the get prepared. CA to find out what you need to build one and to create uh your own household plan now once again I wish to urge all Canadians to continue to look out for one another follow the local directions and be uh and remain Vigilant finally i’ would like to thank all the firefighters uh emergency personnel and many volunteers Who Remain dedicated to helping us fight wildfires and keeping Canadians safe uh we’re all tremendously grateful for their efforts thank you thank you very much and now I’ll pass it off to minister haidu well hello everybody it’s a joy to be with you here uh on the on the territory of lonin and shic people and of course as we’ve said before many First Nations are affected by climate change in fact disproportionately so 80% of communities are in areas of uh risk of wildfire uh and it’s frustrating for those communities to hear uh conversations from largely conservative politicians denying their reality of the risk of Wildfire denying the reality of climate change in fact uh First Nations people frequently speak to me about the devastating impact of climate change in their communities uh as they uh work to keep each other safe in fact since April 1st and as of June 5th 2024 wildfires have affected 31 First Nations communities across the country some of these communities include wabanaki Fort Nelson First Nation do first nation and these fires have resulted in the evacuation of members from six first Nations communities with one ongoing partial evacuation in Catan May promises to be a difficult summer but we’re working with the communities to fight these fires without preparation we have good preparation we’ll have good results trying to save structures and buildings nations of White River for example 14 after being evacuated they were able to return home and uh begin the process of restoration being made possible by Emergency Management coordinators on top of government teams ready to support First Nations there are now 255th 255 filled coordination positions on the ground funded by the federal government in White Fish Lake First Nations number 128 reny H has been volunteering to help manage wildfires in her community and thanks to new federal Investments the first nation has been able to hire her full-time so that they can be prepared and react if wildfires threaten their Community as we speak all First Nations in Alberta and now Manitoba have emergency coordinators and this is part of the plan to transition to the self-determined approach because First Nations have always known what best they need for example in s Saskatchewan Meadow Lake Tribal Council uh they have received prepar and mitigation funding following severe wildfires and this is enabling community members to better prepare for evacuations and to reduce their dependence on outside organizations in Manitoba a Pine Creek first nation has enhanced their capacity with fire smart funding following a wildfire in May 2020 so with that money they were able to do Wildfire training for members purchase equipment manage vegetation raise awareness and Lead fire prevention information sessions for their community members I know that many people are very anxious because of wildfires it will be probably a very difficult season and we will have to revert to evacuations have been before during and after wildfires and we will do this in a way that respects self-determination indigenous leadership and wisdom Mig Mery good morning all a number of times when we’ve actually been together we certainly talk a lot about climate change these days the planet is burning up and climate change is indeed a significant factor as folks know very well last summer Canadians experienced the most destructive forest fire season in Canadian history federal government has been working and is working aggressively to ensure that Canadians are prepared to respond to wildfires this season and into the future news but this challenge has also allowed us to draw a number of lessons on how what we can do to better prepare to confront these fires which are becoming more frequent and more intense experts led a wildfire forecasting briefing to share what data is telling us this Wildfire season may look like unfortunately this forecasting continues what has become an alarming but an all too predictable trend climate forecasts indicate that the coming summer months will likely be warmer than normal in most of Canada with parts of the country seeing less rainfall than normal the intense activity of force fires will continue in those areas be under stress in particularly particular Northwest of Alberta Northeast BC and the coastal area of the Northwest issued in May the expected area of highest fire risk has shifted from British Columbia to the Prairie Provinces and most of the Northwest Territories for June there is a higher likelihood of above normal fire activity across much of Canada stretching from the edge of British Columbia across Canada to Western Labrador New Brunswick and Southern Nova Scotia in July 2024 fire activity is possible from Yukon and Eastern British Columbia across to Western Quebec most intense region is likely to be from Northeastern British Columbia across the Northwest Territories and the Prairie Provinces this uh forecast underscores the importance of wildfire mitigation and of course of climate adaptation this government has made significant and long-term Investments since 2015 and just a few highlights last year we announced and then fast-tracked agreements with provinces and territories to deliver $250 million of equipment which is supporting the procurement of life-saving equipment and personnel for this 2024 season we currently have agreements signed with Manitoba British Columbia and the Northwest Territories to access their entire allocation of funding through this program and work is well Advanced to conclude agreements with all other eligible jurisdictions in the coming weeks we also announced $28 million to fund the training of additional firefighters and are on track to train a thousand additional firefighters by the end of this year which is 3 years ahead of schedule and I was pleased to announce an 800 $1,000 increase in funding for the International Association of firefighters to bolster their successful program that trains Municipal firefighters to fight fires in the municipal Wildland interface within the uh 2024 budget framework we’re going to double the amount from 3,000 to $6,000 Canadian Council of forest ministers meeting in Cranbrook British Columbia and along side my provincial and territorial colleagues we discussed all of government approaches to the 2024 Wildfire season in Canada we are working together to prepare for whatever the next few months have in store we also came together to collectively launch the Canadian Wildland Fire Prevention and mitigation strategy which recognizes the importance of mobilizing whole of society actions towards Wildland fire resilience the strategy will identify activities and allows us to proactively and collectively plan and prepare for Wildland fires recognizing that contributions and implementation will vary across Canada based on existing programs and diverse needs this will not be a static program or initi initiative but it will evolve uh in so far as a situation changes and that we progress and that the partners of all within the entire group and Society will identify their priorities mobilized to obtain new support improve integration and horizontal collaboration so that this strategy is effective and achieves its goals this is not just words the strategy includes specific targets and measures of progress to ensure that the federal government and our provincial and territorial partners are taking the action needed we’re getting an update from ministers this morning on Canada’s Fire season

Ministers Harjit Sajjan, Patty Hajdu and Jonathan Wilkinson discuss the upcoming wildfire outlook for the 2024 season.

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