Environment Committee on Sept. 25th, 2024

[Steven Guilbeault, Liberal, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

Okay.

[The Chair, Liberal, Francis Scarpaleggia]

Ms. McPherson, you have the floor.

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Thank you very much.

Thank you for being here, Minister.

I have to say that when we heard about what was happening in Jasper, those of us in Alberta were heartbroken. I know I couldn't sleep that night.

I texted my colleague—the MP for that area—that night. For many of us, Jasper holds an incredibly special place in our hearts. I was married in Jasper. In fact, I was in Jasper in May, celebrating my 23rd wedding anniversary in one of the cabins that has now burned down. So many of us taught our kids how to ski there. We learned how to camp there. We hike, we canoe and we cherish those Rocky Mountains probably more than anywhere else in our province.

I'm glad I get to be here and ask you some questions.

While this tragedy was unfolding and Albertans were watching and so worried about what was happening to our beloved Rocky Mountains and the people who live and work there, there was a lot of confusion about who was in charge and what was happening. There was a lot of blame going around. Danielle Smith and the UCP were very clearly blaming the federal government. There was blame going both ways. Albertans didn't have a clear view of what was happening or why it was happening the way it was, and whether everything had been done properly.

I'm aware that Premier Danielle Smith cut the wildfire management budget by $30 million. I am aware that the NDP and my colleague Richard Cannings have been asking, for some time, to have a national wildfire force.

Minister, what do you say to us, the people of Alberta, who watched as we lost a third of our cherished Jasper townsite? Think about places like Lake Louise and Banff. Think about other national parks. How do we know the challenges we saw in Jasper aren't going to be repeated in future in other beloved cities and towns in our province?

[Steven Guilbeault, Liberal, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

I've been talking to the mayor of Jasper on a regular basis, but I was talking to him the day before. At that point, some of the fire had started, but it was under control. Most people thought we could manage it. Then the winds started picking up. We went from winds that were about 30 kilometres an hour to winds that went between 120 and 150 kilometres an hour, I believe. The conditions changed very rapidly.

You talked about lives being impacted in Jasper. Mr. Shepherd, how many Parks Canada employees live in Jasper? How many of them have been affected?

[Andrew Campbell, Senior Vice-President, Operations, Parks Canada Agency]

We have 500 employees who live in Jasper, along with their families. Two hundred of those have lost their homes or accommodations.

[Steven Guilbeault, Liberal, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

They care deeply and we care deeply about what happens. I talked about a buffer zone of 1,700 hectares that was created over the years around Jasper. I believe it's about 2,000 hectares around Banff. Because of climate change, we will have to re-evaluate those and probably create larger buffer zones.

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

A national firefighting force, perhaps....

[Steven Guilbeault, Liberal, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

You've heard the Prime Minister say, “Well, we have Parks Canada. That is a federal forest firefighting force.” Could we do more? We've invested a lot, since the budget last year, in more forest firefighting capability, federally. I spoke about the investment we've made specifically around Jasper in the last few years, which is close to $90 million—

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

I will interrupt you. Sorry. I do know that you have already given us some of those numbers. I don't want to make you repeat yourself.

[Steven Guilbeault, Liberal, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

Yes.

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

I guess for the people living in Alberta, we're wondering if this will be sufficient, considering that climate change means that this will happen more and more regularly. Will we be able to respond to this as fast as we need to? I think most people would say that although the budget happened in the spring, the forest fire happened in the summer and it didn't seem to help the people of Jasper. I would just reiterate that for you as well.

[Steven Guilbeault, Liberal, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

I don't think—

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

I have one other question that I just really quickly wanted to—

[Steven Guilbeault, Liberal, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

There are no magic solutions—

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Just one second—

[Steven Guilbeault, Liberal, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

—to adapting to climate change.

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

I understand that.

[Steven Guilbeault, Liberal, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

You understand that. Okay. Good.

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

I'm not saying that we aren't going to have forest fires, but I do think that the response to those forest fires has to be stronger, to be honest. I do think that the collaboration between the provincial government and the federal government was wanting. Those looking in saw confusion and fights.

[Steven Guilbeault, Liberal, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

I disagree with that.

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Whether that was just on the news is one thing, but that's what Albertans saw.

[Steven Guilbeault, Liberal, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

It's one thing for what Premier Smith said. If you talk to the forest firefighters who were on the ground, whether you were a Jasper firefighter or with the Alberta government or with Parks Canada, they weren't like that. Mr. Shepherd could talk about that.

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

The communication was not strong for those in Alberta. It was a very difficult time for many of us.

I have one really quick question that I want to get in before my time runs out.

One of the challenges we have is that Jasper is a tourism city, of course. A lot of people make their living off tourism. We know that many of them were not able to have sufficient hours to access the EI system. This is a real challenge for workers who, by no fault of their own, are no longer able to work.

My colleague Blake Desjarlais and I have written to your government. We have not received a response. Is there any chance or any attempt being made to ensure that those people who have been affected by the fire in Jasper will be able to access EI?

[The Chair, Liberal, Francis Scarpaleggia]

This will have to be very brief. We're at six minutes. You can take 10 or 15 seconds or maybe answer that in another round.

[Steven Guilbeault, Liberal, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

I'm the Minister of Environment and Climate Change. I will certainly raise your point with Minister Boissonnault, who's responsible for EI.