By Roy L Hales
Cortes and Quadra Islands will receive a significant chunk of the $394,000 FireSmart Economic Recovery Grant the Strathcona Regional District (SRD) just received.
The Union of BC Municipalities grant will fund wildfire risk reduction activities.
“So for Cortes Island this is about $180,000 of wildfire risk reduction,” Shaun Koopman, SRD protective services coordinator, said in an interview with CKTZ.
The money will be used for renovations at the following locations:
- The Linnaea Farm Education Centre and Gorge Hall, which serve as emergency support service facilities in the advent of an evacuation.
- The Whaletown Fire Hall
- A 4-hectare Wildfire Fuel Treatment on Cortes Island that will include activities such as pruning, thinning and removing ladder fuels to reduce both the amount and continuity of burnable vegetation.
About $60,000 is being allocated to renovations at Camp Homewood’s residential quarters and Quadra Island Bible Church — both of which are designated as evacuation centres, should the need arise.
Full community assessment reports are to be prepared for the Klahoose and We Wai Kai First Nations.
“We will be looking at all their critical infrastructure and community buildings. There is a template that you fill out for them and then submit that template to the province for further funding,” said Koopman.
The rest of the grant funding goes to the Villages of Gold River, Tahsis and Zeballos as well as Ehattesaht/Chinehkint, Ka:’yu:’k’t’h’/Che:k:tles7et’h’ and Mowachaht/Muchalaht First Nations.
A map showing Cortes and Quadra Island the locations that will be receiving renovations through the grant funding. Google Maps screenshot adapted by Roy L Hales.
Koopman described the renovations that will be carried out at each Cortes and Quadra location:
- Camp Homewood: The cedar shake roof will be replaced with a metal roof
- Gorge Hall: The gaps on the building on the building will be fixed; fireproof siding will be put up in the lower part of the building; multi-pane windows will be installed; and a fire proof partition will be put up around the generator
- Linnaea Farm Educational Building: The wooden deck and stairs will be replaced with a metal deck and stairs and a fireproof base will be installed along the structure of the building.
- Quadra Island Bible Church: The sides of the building will be closed with fire resistant materials
- Whaletown Fire Hall: Some of the outbuildings and a mobile trailor will be removed.
He said that the SRD has a "Memorandum of Understandings" in place with each of these Cortes and Quadra non-profit owned facilities to support Emergency Support Services during a disaster.
”For many years, these organizations have been incredible supporters of our regional emergency program through hosting training sessions and engaging in numerous emergency planning conversations," Koopman explained. "It feels great to be able to provide them with meaningful funding to decrease the wildfire vulnerability of their facilities.”
The shed attached to Gorge Hall that will be renovated with the grant. Photo courtesy of the SRD.