Between the 2003-04 and 2014-15 forest fire seasons, B.C. had only two years where the spending for forest firefighting has been less than forecast (three times if you count the expanded budget in 2009-10).
The average annual expenditure has been $177 million over those 12 seasons, yet for the past five years, including this one, the fire service has been allocated only $63 million to fight fires, necessitating emergency funding by the province.
Perhaps it’s time to budget a more realistic amount instead of this annual scramble when things don’t go as the bean-counters planned.
Cam Bailey
Victoria
