$2.5 million announced for wildfire resiliency initiative through Columbia Basin

New funding through the Columbia Basin Trust and the BC Government will help local communities prepare for and reduce the risk of wildfires.

The two parties have partnered to provide $2.5 million throughout the Columbia Basin, including hundreds of thousands of dollars in funding for projects in Cranbrook, Golden, Invermere, Kimberley, Wasa and Wycliffe.

The largest grant will invest $200,000 into implementing a wildfire fuel management treatment at Wycliffe and Tie Lake Regional Parks and promote FireSmart principles to community members.

Cranbrook will also receive over $362,500 for two wildfire fuel reduction projects, one covering 25 hectares of land near Canadian Rockies International Airport and the other focusing on land around Gold Creek and Joseph Creek.

A full list of projects benefitting from this funding can be found here.

Pictured:  The Columbia Shuswap Regional District is adding staff in Golden and Revelstoke to reduce the risk of wildfire, with support from the Columbia Basin Trust.