The Cariboo Regional District(CRD) is planning a series of open houses for six electoral areas in the Cariboo.
The CRD is developing six Community Wildfire Resiliency Plans for Electoral Areas D, E, F, G, H, and L.
“The community Wildfire residency plans are wildfire risk plans for each community,” says Irene Israel, Manager of Emergency Programs for the CRD. “They help us identify the wildfire risks and give us recommendations and community-specific actions to reduce that risk.”
Israel adds that there will be a Community Wildfire Resiliency Plan for all twelve Electoral Areas, but the CRD is focusing on six right now due to funding.
The CRD is using $192,000 of grant funding from the UBCM Community Resiliency Investment Program. The funding will cover all the costs for developing the six plans.
The CRD is planning open houses in each electoral area. As these Resiliency Plans assess wildfire hazards on crown lands and impacts from wildfires near and in these communities, Israel says community and First Nations feedback is vital when drafting these plans.
“We believe that residents know their lands best. Their[residents’] insight is very important as we’re identifying and recording areas of high hazard and wildfire urban interfaces. We’re also hoping to learn and understand the existing barriers that residents know, and what the priorities and concerns are from them as we draft these plans.”
While these plans are still in the early stages of development, the CRD is working with Forsite Consulting Ltd. to have the plans drafted by early Fall 2025. Forsite Consulting recommended and the CRD is also going to draw up a five-year to monitor and implement these plans based on priority.
The CRD will post information on the dates, times, and locations of the open houses on their website and social media pages.
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