Sask. Public Safety Agency and 2 tribal councils sign MOU on wildfire co

Sask. Public Safety Agency and 2 tribal councils sign MOU on wildfire co-ordination

Agreement intends to improve wildfire preparedness, prevention, response and recovery

The Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency (SPSA), Prince Albert Grand Council (PAGC) and Meadow Lake Tribal Council (MLTC) have signed an agreement for collaboration on fighting wildfires.

The memorandum of understanding (MOU) is designed to formalize the partnerships between the SPSA and jurisdictions where wildfires break out.

"All our communities have one or two crews each, and to have that ability to send them out right away when the fire is small, I think that could be a game-changer," MLTC Chief Jeremy Norman said at the signing.

"We're working together to find a better way to fight fire, find a better way to utilize our people to work together, so, I feel we're on the right step."

The province put out a news release saying the MOU also includes Indigenous Services Canada and the Canadian Forest Service, bringing federal participation into discussions.

"One of the outcomes that we're hoping out of the MOU and that we've been working on in the offseason and throughout this year is around enhanced communication," said SPSA President Marlo Pritchard. "That will be probably a never ending cycle of improvements, because we know communication was one of the first things that broke down last year."

The First Nations Wildfire Strategy Working Group is also included in the agreement, and the province says it will provide a forum to share local and traditional knowledge and lessons learned from previous wildfire events.

"We want recommendations to lead to action, and I'm also glad to see our federal partners involved," said PAGC Grand Chief Brian Hardlotte.

"At the end of the day, a wildfire doesn't care who's jurisdiction it's in. When a fire threatens a First Nation, our people want to know there's a plan."