The Village of Burns Lake wants the provincial government to take more financial responsibility in measures to prevent future wildfires from threatening structures and infrastructure.
And it’s doing so through a resolution to be considered next month at the annual Union of BC Municipalities (UBCM) convention.
At issue is a provincial program called the Strategic Wildfire Prevention Initiative which is managed by the UBCM.
Through the initiative, local governments can receive money to clear away trees which, if they caught fire, could threaten structures, encourage residents to clean up their properties of fuels, train local personnel, develop efficient communications and emergency plans by local governments and generally make residents more aware of wildfire dangers.
But in its resolution, the village points out the result is “the cost, responsibility and expertise of wildfire mitigation on Crown land, areas surrounding local governments and land inside local government boundaries, being shifted onto local governments which is creating significant additional pressure on local government finances and staff resources.”
The village wants the UBCM to “lobby the provincial and federal governments to discontinue downloading wildfire mitigation costs and responsibilities onto local governments and First Nations ….. and take responsibility for wildfire mitigation costs on Crown land and areas surrounding local governments.”