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Ontario invests $20.5 million in wildland fire management

Oct. 12, 2023, Timmins, Ont. – The Ontario government strengthened wildland fire fighting efforts by investing $20.5 million in wildland fire management.

The funding is expected to be used over three years to enhance aerial fire suppression technologies, recruitment and training, enhancing skills development, promoting and maintaining safety, and building capacity to support Indigenous wildland fire management and community resilience.

Eligible FireRangers are expected to be reimbursed for expenses related to training and reviewing collective agreement entitlements, including stand-by and on-call pay.

The province said in a press release it also allocated some of the money to invest in science and risk assessment, including entering into collaborative research agreements with universities and other institutions to better understand the evolving science behind wildland fire management.

Furthermore, the government is working on several staffing improvements, including developing a psychological safety program to prevent and respond to mental stress and protect the overall psychological well-being of staff working in the wildland fire program.