The cost of federal disaster relief has surged in recent years, with payments of $400 million or more now considered routine, according to newly released figures from the Department of Public Safety. The department says the growing price tag is forcing a rethink of Canada’s main emergency assistance program.Blacklock's Reporter said in a submission to the Senate national finance committee, officials listed the largest payments ever made through the Disaster Financial Assistance Arrangements program. While federal aid averaged just $10 million annually in the 1970s, it climbed to $360 million a year by the 2010s. The most expensive disasters have all occurred within the past decade..The top federal payout to date was $2.5 billion for the 2021 storms in British Columbia. Other major payments included $1.3 billion for Alberta’s 2013 floods, $978 million for 2011 flooding in Saskatchewan and Manitoba, $661 million for the 1998 Ontario-Québec ice storm, and $460 million for 2020 floods in British Columbia.Additional large claims include $431 million for 2022 floods in Manitoba, $401 million for 2019 flooding in Québec, $371 million for the 2016 Fort McMurray wildfires, and $247 million for 2022’s Hurricane Fiona.A 2024 report by the federal Expert Advisory Panel on disaster relief pointed to risky development practices by municipalities as a key driver of costs. .The report said many local governments allow construction in high-risk zones or skip insurance for public infrastructure, assuming federal relief will cover the losses.“Municipalities may be disincentivized to provide adequate risk information to property owners or developers,” said the report Adapting To Rising Flood Risk, warning that high-value waterfront properties are particularly vulnerable.Officials first raised concerns years ago. In 2017, Public Safety’s then-assistant deputy minister Lori MacDonald told the Commons environment committee it was time to revisit the program. “We have to really rethink how we approach this,” she said.“It was created in 1970. Our life has changed since 1970 when we’re talking about severe weather and climate change,” said MacDonald.
