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The government will introduce a year-round B.C. The Wildfire Service is a full-time service that focuses on fire prevention, preparedness, response, and recovery.
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VICTORIA — B.C. Selina Robinson, Finance Minister, says Tuesday’s budget will focus on making sure communities have the resources necessary to address the effects of climate change.
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She said that the province was ravaged by climate change-driven forces over the past year. This included deadly heat waves and wildfires, storms that caused severe flooding in southern B.C., and dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic as well as an opioid overdose crisis.
“We’ve been through a lot together and I’m not just talking about the dual health emergencies that we continue to face,” Robinson said at a news conference. “The past few years have clearly demonstrated the destructive effects of climate change.”
According to her, heat waves that killed hundreds last summer, wildfires in Lytton and Monte Lake, floods and mudslides in the Fraser Valley that destroyed farms and cut off rail and highway transport to the Interior, are clear indicators that climate change is upon us.
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“And as government, we are committed to ensure people and communities have the resources that they need to face this challenge,” said Robinson.
She stated that the government will introduce a year-round B.C. The Wildfire Service is a full-time service that focuses on fire prevention, preparedness, response, and recovery.
“This is a fundamental change, a real shift that will deliver B.C. Wildfire Service from a reactive to a proactive approach by moving to a year-round workforce,” Robinson said.
The minister did not directly address estimates on the financial cost of last fall’s floods and mudslides in southern B.C. Other than to state that the budget will contain all details,
“We need to keep people and communities safe, and that’s what you are seeing, and you’ll see more of that tomorrow (Tuesday),” Robinson said.
Robinson foresees a budget deficit of $1.7B in 2021-22 fiscal year. This is down from the $9.7 billion projected last February.
