Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, every summer, a community somewhere experiences a devastating wildfire that threatens lives, homes, and important infrastructure.
Mr. Speaker, Fort McPherson's Wildland Fire Protection Plan was finalized in 2012. It recommended improving the community's fuelbreaks and helping people reduce fire hazards on their properties by getting rid of dead brush and controlling the vegetation growing around their homes.
Mr. Speaker, Fort McPherson's fuelbreaks were established in the 1980s and are overgrown and ineffective.
Mr. Speaker, in 2014 the community was ready to do work necessary to improve the firebreaks, but then forest fires broke out in the southern part of the Northwest Territories, and in the record-breaking season that followed the Fort McPherson plans were put on hold, Mr. Speaker.
Again in 2015, efforts were focused on the southern part of the Northwest Territories. Again, Fort McPherson has had to wait. The fire hazard for the main part of the community itself is relatively low, except for the southwest corner. The east cabins outside the community, along the Dempster Highway, are at an extreme risk. The wooden structures are surrounded by dense spruce forest.
Mr. Speaker, we saw in 2014 and 2015 forest fires can be virtually unstoppable. The fire in Fort McMurray this past year showed how a large, well-resourced community can be destroyed in just a short time. Mr. Speaker, Fort McPherson is in a remote forested area of the Delta. It is still in a lot of danger if a wildfire was nearby. Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement. Thank you.
---Unanimous consent granted
Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and thank you colleagues. Mr. Speaker, community wildland fire protection plans are becoming a national standard for responsible wildland fire management. This critical first step will only reduce homeowners' and communities' risks if they take the next step. A plan is no good if it is not put into action. Climate change is leading to more and more severe forest fires, as well as longer fire seasons.
Mr. Speaker, it may be cold out now, but spring is just around the corner. Now is the time to commit to do the work required to protect Fort McPherson and other communities from the threat of the coming fire season. Mr. Speaker, when it comes to forest fires, no one should be able to tell us we did too little too late. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I will have questions later today.
Masi. Members' statements. Member for Hay River North.
