By Rebel News | Created at 2024-11-20 17:29:50 | Updated at 2024-11-24 17:24:12
4 days ago
Parks Canada’s executive team has ballooned by 18% while salaries have skyrocketed by 56%—yet critical wildfire prevention efforts were ignored. As wildfires ravaged Jasper National Park, private firefighters were sidelined, and experts’ warnings were missed, leaving 30% of the historic townsite razed and $2 billion in lost assets.
Data on the Parks Canada bloat was buried in a government response to an Order Paper question submitted by Conservative MP Scot Davidson (York—Simcoe).
Alberta's United Conservative Party government publicly criticized Ottawa for its lack of action during the wildfire crisis, accusing the federal government of leaving the province to handle the disaster alone. The federal government—notably Environment and Climate Change Canada—is responsible for forestry management within national parks.
Adding to the controversy, private firefighting crews who mobilized to protect Jasper were reportedly threatened with arrest if they intervened. Kris Liivam of Arctic Fire Safety testified before the Commons Environment Committee that he assembled 20 trucks and 50 highly trained firefighters to assist in saving the Jasper townsite. However, they were ordered to stand down or face arrest and escort out of the area.
Liivam also revealed that Parks Canada had installed fire hydrants in Jasper incompatible with municipal fire departments in Alberta and British Columbia, hindering effective firefighting efforts.
Forestry expert Ken Hodges, who warned Parks Canada officials in 2017 of an inevitable catastrophic fire in Jasper National Park, testified that the agency's efforts were "insignificant and poorly thought out." He questioned the allocation of funds, noting that partial logging and fuel management could be conducted at a fraction of the cost of the $80 million reportedly spent by the minister.
While taxpayers fund an increasingly bloated bureaucracy, on-the-ground actions to protect lives, property, and Canada's natural heritage are left undone.
Sheila Gunn Reid
Chief Reporter
Sheila Gunn Reid is the Alberta Bureau Chief for Rebel News and host of the weekly The Gunn Show with Sheila Gunn Reid. She's a mother of three, conservative activist, and the author of best-selling books including Stop Notley.
