A resolution session at SUMA’s 2016 conference. Photo courtesy @SUMA_amplify on Twitter.
Northern Saskatchewan municipalities got some commitments and a lot of support for their concerns at the annual SUMA convention in Regina.
Last summer’s wildfires are still a hot button issue and so is policing.
The CEO of New North, which represents all municipalities in Northern Saskatchewan, was pleased to see fellow SUMA delegates support a resolution calling for the construction of fire guards around high risk communities in the north.
The issue hit home last summer during the worst wildfire season on record. Al Loke says efforts are being made to avoid a repeat.
“Because it looks like it is going to be another dry year this year as it was last year and the fire guards would not necessarily prevent the fires but it would assist in slowing them down,” he says.
Loke says government ministers have also told him there will be more firefighters hired and trained in the event of another bad fire season.
The province’s director of emergency management, Duane McKay, says with little snow cover this winter it is already not looking that good.
Last year, it cost about $100 million to fight forest fires and accommodate up to 14,000 evacuees.
Another big issue for northern communities is the level of policing. Loke says most RCMP detachments have very few members, and when one of them takes a maternity leave the position is left vacant. He says that policy needs to change.
“It’s making a lot of these detachments short because they are entitled to it (maternity leave) through federal law and I think the RCMP has to take a lot closer look at trying to deal with that issue and keep the complement of RCMP officers up in all these detachments, especially in the wake of increasing crime.”
Loke says the premier also assured him there would be a slight increase in revenue sharing for the north, despite a major decline in government revenues.
A bear pit session with the premier and cabinet ministers was held this morning.
The convention wrapped up on Wednesday.