Persistent drought and months of above-average temperatures have escalated the risk of another record-breaking wildfire season, federal ministers said Wednesday as they warned about the urgent need to address climate change.
The 2023 fire season was Canada's worst on record, with more than 6,600 fires burning more than 15 million hectares, an area almost twice the size of Lake Superior. It forced more than 230,000 people from their homes - including the entire city of Yellowknife - and created unprecedented smoke conditions across much of the country and into the United States.
NDP MP Gord Johns, who has also long advocated for the credit to go to $10,000, agreed that the government's move was a good start but not enough. Johns said Canada has lost 30,000 volunteer firefighters and search and rescue personnel since 2016.
"We need to do everything we can to try to ensure that we support recruitment," he said.
Johns also said Canada needs to invest in a national firefighting team, with 400 personnel and a fleet of planes to support provinces.
With the coming fire season looking to be as bad as 2023, if not worse, "the federal government needs to step up their game," Johns said.