Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So my questions are to MACA, to MACA Minister.
So readiness and preparedness -- I'm going to say it again, readiness and preparedness are critical to wildfire management; however, the evacuations that occurred this summer suggest that the government's wildfire operation are still too reactive in nature. What specific step is the department taking to improve early detection and response measures, so communities are not forced to evacuate at the last minute? Thank you.
Thank you. Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Emergencies happen anytime, anywhere, not just with wildfires. It is important that the territorial government supports local governments in being prepared for emergencies. MACA supports communities in emergency management and developing their community emergency management plans to ensure that they're prepared when an emergency strikes. If there's a flood and they need to evacuate, we need to have those preparedness documents prepared well in advance so that there isn't that instant reaction and place -- things are in place in order to assist a community when they're being evacuated. So this isn't a one-time thing. This is an ongoing thing. We need to make sure communities' emergency plans are up to date and that they're practiced so that when an emergency strikes, we know exactly what to do. And municipal and community affairs is there to support communities every step of the way. The communities are the ones that know their communities, and MACA will be there to support them. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. With climate change, wildfire is an issue, and for many of us in small communities and the water level low is a major concern. With that in mind, Mr. Speaker, when the decisions are made that lead to a community evacuation, it seems communities and their residents are caught off guard in most cases. Is the government contemplating changes to wildfire management that allows for more proactive communications to both communities and our residents so that they are more aware of threats of wildfire and the potential for community evacuation? Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I will speak only to the wildfire -- or sorry, the emergency evacuation line of the questioning there. And essentially what the goal is to make sure that communities are prepared and the resources that are provided by the GNWT to the communities in order to make sure that they're prepared to evacuate include educated people in ICS, people trained in the management for community emergencies, and the ability to work and -- the ability to assess the emergencies and the hazards and make those decisions with the community, not the community telling the -- sorry, not the government telling the community they have to evacuate. So all agencies are working together, all levels of government in order to make that decision, not just one government. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs. Oral questions. Member from the Deh Cho.
