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WILLIAMS LAKE – Forest workers are reducing the risk of wildfires around the Cariboo as a result of $192,500 from the Community Development Trust’s Job Opportunities Program, Community Development Minister Kevin Krueger and Forests and Range Minister Pat Bell announced.
“The Community Development Trust is one of our key tools to assist forest workers and their families through this difficult time,” said Krueger. “This funding will keep 10 people at work, improving fire safety in several critical areas covering 50 hectares of land.”
The workers will remove small, dying or dead trees from several sites that pose a widespread and significant fire hazard. The sites are all within the Williams Lake and Area Interface Fire Plan, which includes the area from Deep Creek Reserve to Chimney Valley, and east to 150 Mile House.
“The
Job Opportunities Program is employing forest workers in the Cariboo to make
the community and surrounding forests safer,” said
“These
funds will allow fuel reduction treatments to take place in areas
identified as high risk to homes and structures,” said the
Fraser Basin Council’s Mike Simpson, on behalf of the Williams Lake and Area
Interface Fire Plan Secretariat.
The Fraser Basin Council
supports the secretariat, which is composed of representatives from the City of
Williams Lake, Cariboo Regional District, the Williams Lake and Soda Creek
Indian Bands, West Fraser Mills Ltd., Tolko Industries Ltd. and the Ministry of
Forests and Range. The secretariat is responsible for implementing the
recommendations of the
The
$26.25-million Job Opportunities Program helps reduce the impact of current
layoffs on workers employed in the forest industry, retain skilled forest
workers for the anticipated future upturn, and preserve the characteristics of
the labour force in forest-dependent communities.
A forest-dependent community or organization and forest licensees or forest contractors working in cooperation with a forest-dependent community are eligible to submit a project proposal to the Job Opportunities Program. To date, the program has approved $10.7 million to support 65 projects that will employ more than 525 forest workers in communities across the province.
The
Job Opportunities Program is one component of the Community Development Trust,
announced in May 2008. B.C.’s share of
the federal trust is $129 million over three years, with funds also directed to
a Tuition Assistance Program and Transition Assistance for Older Workers
Program.
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Media Contacts: |
Jennifer McLarty Public Affairs Officer Ministry of Forests and Range 250 387-4592 Mike Simpson 250 392-1400 |
Leanne Ritchie Public Affairs Officer Ministry of Community Development 250 356-0979 |
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