Ottawa tops up fund for humanitarian groups as climate disasters take their toll

Kate McKenna · CBC News

· Posted: Jul 11, 2023 2:16 PM EDT | Last Updated: 4 hours ago

The federal government is setting aside $82 million over three years to top up a fund for humanitarian groups that respond to climate-related disasters.

Minister of Emergency Preparedness Bill Blair said the government has been relying on the work of non-governmental organizations that deliver humanitarian aid in climate-related emergencies.

The government says the additional $82 million will go toward helping organizations such as the Red Cross, the Salvation Army and St. John Ambulance recruit and train personnel, buy supplies and cover other operational needs. 

The fund was established during the pandemic for non-governmental organizations involved in Canadian response efforts.

“It is a stark reminder that the frequency and severity of climate-related disasters are growing each year,” Blair said. “The humanitarian organizations here today play a key role in that response.”

It also reflects a shift in how humanitarian non-governmental organizations operate in Canada, said Canadian Red Cross president and CEO Conrad Sauvé.

“When I look back a decade ago, the work of the Canadian Red Cross responding to large-scale disasters and emergencies was largely overseas,” he said.

“Large events in Canada were seen as the exception … Then things rapidly changed.”

Sauvé said the vast majority of Canadian Red Cross operations are now domestic — responses to floods, fires and other disasters from coast to coast.

In recent months, the Red Cross has been asked to administer programs delivering cash payments to Nova Scotians and Prince Edward Islanders affected by wildfires and post-tropical storm Fiona.

Sauvé said his organization is open to such requests for assistance, which began with the 2016 Fort McMurray wildfires.

Blair said this year has already been the worst for wildfires in recorded Canadian history. Roughly 900 fires are burning now and an area roughly the size of Newfoundland has been consumed so far this year.

Other countries, such as Germany, maintain federal agencies of volunteers to help with disaster response.

Blair didn’t rule out the creation of a similar program but said organizations eligible for this funding may be better suited to fill that role.

“We’re looking at what everyone is doing in response because we’ve seen globally an increase in the frequency and severity of these events,” he said.

“But it’s also important, I think, to look very carefully at the Canadian context and look at the organizations that already exist in this country, and how we can build up capacity within those.”