Trudeau government inquiring on ways to 'federalize' firefighting

The Canadian Press / Sean Kilpatrick and The Canadian Press / Justin Tang

Federal cabinet is looking into whether it can federalize firefighting. The investigation follows the devastating Jasper wildfire made worse by bureaucratic negligence. 

Emergency Preparedness Minister Harjit Sajjan told reporters that a Canadian alternative to the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency is on the table, reported Blacklock’s Reporter.

"Eventually we have to look at what, for lack of a better word, our Federal Emergency Management Agency at the national level will look like," Sajjan told reporters. "We need to look not just at what the United States is doing."

"It works well for them," he said, "We are also talking to Australia, looking at their measures." Minister Sajjan is also expected to travel to Germany this fall to review their measures. 

"We’ve even started discussions with the French as well," he added.

Guilbeault says "years of forest management" paid off in Jasper.

30% of the town burned.

His own ministry's 2022 Jasper Park Mgmt Plan says not enough was done to clear pine beetle fuel load out of the park. Feds were warned in 2017 about potential for a catastrophe… pic.twitter.com/j7IrALmW5d

— Sheila Gunn Reid (@SheilaGunnReid) July 29, 2024

Parks Canada recently failed to perform prescribed burns in Jasper despite warning Environment and Climate Change Canada of the obvious fire risk two years ago. Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault learned the federal agency failed to act. 

He appeared to deflect blame from the federal agency at a recent media appearance.

"In 1930, Parks Canada staff called Jasper their home. Quite a number of them," Guilbeault said. "And to think that over those decades, we would not have deployed the resources necessary … to protect the town from a forest fire is simply not true."

"We were able to protect 70% of the town."

The 2022 Jasper National Park Management Plan mentioned no burns had taken place to restore the whitebark pine killed by a ruinous pine beetle infestation. No reason was given for failing to take precautions.

'It was a matter of time': Jasper-area locals react to federal mismanagement of wildfire

One woman expressed her frustration, saying, 'They should have had all that pine beetle and that forest fire deadwood gone a long time ago. It's BS.'https://t.co/3q2AbL55i8

— Rebel News Canada (@RebelNews_CA) July 31, 2024

Sajjan acknowledged provinces manage natural resources like forests, promoting complaints the army could not be used for standby service. "The impacts of climate change had us deploying the Canadian Armed Forces on such a frequent basis it was impacting them," he said.

Parks Canada has exclusive authority over Jasper’s zoning, development and all surrounding Crown lands under the Parks Act. 

The agency estimates that 30% of Jasper’s infrastructure was damaged by the out-of-control blaze.

Jasper National Park remains closed to the public and RCMP are not allowing unauthorized access to the town until Friday. 

"What are the chances of having something similar to the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency here in Canada?" asked a reporter. "I am glad you asked that question," replied Sajjan.

"Down the road, yes, I do see a federal response capability," said Sajjan. "It’s too early to tell what this will look like. We will take the best lessons from FEMA and some of our other international partners and incorporate it in what will work best for us."

WATCH: Wildfire destroys Alberta town of Jasper, fuels political division nationally

Shocking destruction of Canadian town sees thousands of Albertans in need of support while raising questions of accountability

MORE by @SydFizzard: https://t.co/TDDddNtMwY

— Rebel News (@RebelNewsOnline) July 26, 2024

Alberta Deputy Premier Mike Ellis told MPs: "As much as we love our armed forces, they have very basic training when it comes to firefighting."

"By no means at the same level as a structural firefighter," he testified to the Commons defence committee. Some 650 Canadian Armed Forces members were deployed to firefighting duties in Alberta last year. It is not yet known how many were deployed to fight the Jasper blaze.

"Making sure people are prepared is one thing," said Ellis. "We called in the military as a last resort."

"They were wonderful and they did what they needed to do," he contends. "However, all communities need to be prepared with emergency management."

"Do you see a national entity being able to work with the provinces?" asked Conservative MP Cheryl Gallant. "I think it is certainly worth exploring," replied Ellis.