 Extreme hot and dry weather has left B.C. scrambling to fight more than 202 active fires across the province.B.C. has burned through its entire wildfire budget of $63 million for the year, already dipping into contingency funds to cover the over $100 million spent so far.
“The budget for forest fires is set at the beginning of the year, but when we need more money, we supply that money. Our first job is to make sure people are safe, our forests are protected and that homes are protected. Hopefully the forest fire season will cool down.” said Premier Clark, at a recent press conference in Pemberton – fire base for the raging, 20,000 hectare Elaho wildfire.
Last year the Province spent a total of $297.3 million on fighting wildfires. |
B.C. MLAs return to Victoria Monday for a brief session of business in a rare summer Legislative Session. Leading into the Session, B.C. Finance Minister Hon. Michael de Jong has publicly released the Province’s first LNG Project Development Agreement (PDA) for the proposed Pacific Northwest LNG plant at Lelu Island near Prince Rupert. The PDA for the proposed US$36 billion project – the largest private sector investment in the province’s history – will be debated and scrutinized when the Legislative Session begins on Monday.The first of its kind in B.C., the PDA sets out the project’s ratification for the proponent and the government, identifying milestones for the project’s Final Investment Decision. The PDA provides the proponent certainty that the LNG Income Tax, Natural Gas Tax Credit, Carbon Tax (specific to liquefy natural gas at the LNG facility), and key features of greenhouse gas emissions regulations at the LNG facility will not be raised over the term of the agreement.
