$20 million committed to B.C. wildfire AgriRecovery program

Federal Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay and his provincial counterpart from B.C., Lana Popham, are committing up to $20 million through an AgriRecovery program to help ranchers and farmers affected by wildfires.

The 2017 Canada-British Columbia Wildfires Recovery Initiative will assist producers with the extraordinary costs incurred to recover , and will be cost-shared 60:40 between the federal and provincial governments.

According to Public Safety Canada, the AgriRecovery assistance will cover:

• Up to 70 per cent of extraordinary feed costs, including transportation to feed livestock through the recovery period;
• Up to $80 per head to re-establish safe winter feeding facilities and general cleanup;
• Up to 70 per cent of the veterinary, mustering, transportation and rental of temporary production facilities;
• Up to 70 per cent of the market value of breeding animals for mortality;
• Up to 70 per cent of extraordinary costs incurred by an industry organization and not paid by another agency or government department; and
• Up to 70 per cent of the extraordinary costs required to return to normal crop production, including:
  • Critical infrastructure not covered by insurance.
  • Labour costs to repair private fences.
  • Reseeding/re-establishment of tame forage and other perennials damaged by fires.

“In times of emergency, we must come together and do whatever we can to support those affected. The AgriRecovery response program is the result of listening to the needs of B.C’.s farmers and ranchers and supporting them as they start rebuilding their lives and recovering from the significant losses brought on by this summer’s wildfires,” said Popham, following a meeting between federal and provincial officials, First Nations community leaders and representatives from the Canadian Red Cross in Vancouver on Tuesday.

For more information about the AgriRecovery program, Public Safety suggests calling 1-888-332-3352.

Related: CCA urges federal response for ranchers affected by B.C. wildfires