The Regional District of Nanaimo has completed new community wildfire resiliency plans for each of its seven electoral areas.
The plans assess the risk and impact of wildfires and make recommendations within the seven FireSmart disciplines to reduce the wildfire hazard. The plans cost $156,931 to develop and were fully funded by a Community Resiliency Investment FireSmart grant from the Government of British Columbia.
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“The new community wildfire resiliency plans are a great asset to the RDN,” said Vanessa Craig, RDN vice chair and fire services advisory committee chair. “The plans provide a clearer picture of wildfire risk including anticipated changes due to climate change, and outlines the tools and resources needed to mitigate and respond to increased fire risks across our region over the long term.”
Multiple community stakeholder groups were reached out to while developing the plans, including First Nations communities, municipal partners, electoral area fire departments, BC Wildfire, Islands Trust and others. This collaboration ensured that the plans reflect local knowledge and expertise and include achievable actions that can be implemented under a common vision to reduce the intensity and impacts of wildfires and increase community resiliency.
For more information on the plans and FireSmart activities in the RDN, visit getinvolved.rdn.ca/rdn-firesmart and rdn.bc.ca/fire-services. For an interactive map of the Fire Protection Service Areas, visit rdn.bc.ca/gis-mapping.
— NEWS Staff
