For over ten years, the city of Kimberley has been working on fire risk mitigation within its boundaries, and Mayor Don McCormick says an amazing amount of progress has been made.
It is ongoing work and grants are applied for each year to fund it. This year the province is accepting grant applications under the 2021 FireSmart Economic Recovery Fund for smaller projects within communities.
The Kimberley Fire Department, with the support of Council, is applying for $150,000 in funding to treat a number of city-owned lots. These lots were identified as priority in the latest Community Wildland Fire Protection Plan. The lots range in size from less than a hectare to tens
of hectares, it was explained in a report to council by Asst. Fire Chief Will Booth. Some are on the fringe of town while others are embedded in subdivisions and surrounded by homes and businesses in many cases these lots contain an abundance of surface and aerial fuels that could result in a local conflagration if ignited under adverse conditions. Treating these areas would serve several purposes: a) they would be mitigating a known hazard, and, b) they would serve as a useful
demonstrations at the local subdivision level.
Lands to be treated include the wooded areas along the hill to Townsite, two pieces on and around Swan Avenue, Taylor Slough South, along Knighton Road and along Highway 95A within city limits.
