Letter to Minister Sohi re: National Threat of Pine Beetle

In a letter to Minister of Natural Resources Canada, Hon. Amarjeet Sohi, the Canadian Chamber of Commerce  has urged the Department of Natural Resources to recognize Pine Beetle as a national issue and make funds immediately available to Alberta, in order for them to contain this threat to the benefit of all Canadians. 

This letter stems from one of the resolutions passed at our 2018 Annual General Meeting. Core to this resolution was the recommendation that the federal government reinstate the Federal Mountain Pine Beetle Program with funds equivalent in scale to the $200 million allocated during the 2007-2010 program period.

Funds from this program will:

• Support provinces that are already infested with Mountain Pine Beetle on community and regional safety programs or initiatives, including additional funding for FireSmart program.
• Provide resources for community and economic diversification and resiliency to communities affected by Mountain Pine Beetle.
• Support mitigation efforts outlined in the CCFM’s report, A Strategic Approach to Slow the Spread of Mountain Pine Beetle Across Canada.

In the spirit of this recommendation, we urge the Government of Canada to provide the Government of Alberta with $100 million dollars to support the province’s Pine Beetle mitigation strategies.