The Regional District of Nanaimo and Snaw-Naw-As First Nation will be better prepared for disasters after grants of about $150,000 each from the B.C. government.
The RDN and Snaw-Naw-As received $150,000 and $148,000, respectively, through the province’s community emergency preparedness fund, according to a press release. The money is intended to assist communities with better preparing for climate-related emergencies such as atmospheric rivers and heat domes.
The RDN will use its allotment for a geohazard risk prioritization study, while Snaw-Naw-As will use its grant for a sea level rise and flood inundation integrated assessment and adaptation plan, a separate press release noted.
Sheila Malcolmson, Nanaimo MLA, and Adam Walker, Parksville-Qualicum MLA, were pleased their government could provide the grant money to communities in their areas.
“People need to feel safe in the event of a natural disaster or emergency,” Malcolmson said in a press release. “By funding these local initiatives and solutions in the Regional District of Nanaimo, we’re making sure people are safer and B.C. is more resilient in these events.”
Walker said being prepared is necessary.
“Natural disasters can happen at any time, but the more we prepare, the safer we all will be,” he said in the press release. “This funding for emergency management and mitigation will help ensure that our communities have plans in place to keep people safe.”
In all, the province granted more than $23 million of community emergency preparedness fund money to communities across the province. The money is administered via the Union of B.C. Municipalities, the press release said.
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karl.yu@nanaimobulletin.com
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