Funding supports essential capacity of Parks Canada's National Fire Management Program

OTTAWA, ON, May 28, 2026 /CNW/ - Parks Canada's National Fire Management Program helps protect people, communities, treasured national parks and national historic sites from the growing risks of wildfire while maintaining healthy, resilient ecosystems.

Today, the Honourable Julie Dabrusin, Minister of the Environment, Climate Change and Nature, announced that the Government of Canada is investing $47.8 million over five years, to support wildfire preparedness, response, and risk reduction in places administered by Parks Canada. This investment will renew essential capacity under Parks Canada's National Fire Management Program.

Funded through Budget 2025, this investment will support the operational readiness of Parks Canada wildfire response personnel, nationally deployable equipment, and proactive wildfire risk‑reduction measures such as prescribed fire and vegetation management to reduce the build up of flammable material. It builds on previous investments to ensure Parks Canada can continue to prepare for, respond to, and reduce wildfire risks across the country.

Wildfires are becoming more frequent, intense, and unpredictable due to climate change. As a result, wildfires are an increasing risk to the safety and security of Canadians, threatening critical infrastructure, and disrupting economic activity. Through this funding, Parks Canada will continue to work closely with provinces, territories, Indigenous partners, local communities and other federal partners to reduce wildfire risk, protect the public, and maintain ecological integrity.

Quotes

"Climate change is intensifying wildfire seasons across Canada, putting communities, ecosystems, and our economy at greater risk. By investing $47.8 million in Parks Canada's National Fire Management Program, our government is ensuring that we have the expertise, tools, and capacity needed to respond to wildfires and proactively reduce risk. This funding will help protect people and infrastructure, strengthen the resilience of our national parks and historic sites, and support partners at home and abroad as we confront this growing challenge together."

The Honourable Julie Dabrusin,
Minister of the Environment, Climate Change, and Nature

"Wildfires are becoming more frequent and more intense, and we need to be ready to protect our communities, including national parks and national historic sites. This investment by our new government ensures Parks Canada has the resources it needs to reduce wildfire risk, strengthen preparedness, and respond when it matters most—while working closely with key partners, including provinces and territories, and Indigenous and local communities to keep our country strong and resilient for generations to come."

The Honourable Eleanor Olszewski
Minister of Emergency Management and Community Resilience and Minister responsible for Prairies Economic Development Canada

Quick Facts

• Parks Canada is the only federal organization that responds directly to wildfires on the ground, with similar roles and capabilities as provincial-territorial wildfire agencies. Parks Canada has been building its capacity and expertise in wildfire management for over a century, and the National Fire Management Program has supported emergency response to other types of incidents including Hurricane Fiona (2022). 
• Parks Canada is responsible for wildland fire management across 350,000 km2 of federal Crown lands (approximately the size of Germany or six times the land mass of Nova Scotia). This includes areas that are home to critical infrastructure such as the Trans-Canada Highway.
• Parks Canada responds to wildfires in a way to protects people and communities, while also recognizing the important role fire plays in healthy ecosystems. In the last five years, Parks Canada has managed 505 wildfires within national parks and national historic sites.
• Parks Canada uses a variety of tools and strategies, including prescribed fire, forest thinning, the creation of community fire guards, and the application of FireSmart^™ Canada guidelines, to reduce the impacts of wildfires and protect the public, communities, and infrastructure. In the last five years, Parks Canada has conducted more than 142 wildfire risk-reduction initiatives in 28 national parks and national historic sites across the country.
• As a member of the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre (CIFFC), Parks Canada collaborates with other Canadian fire management agencies to provide equipment and highly trained personnel to support wildfire response across the country and internationally when additional assistance is requested through CIFFC. In the last five years, Parks Canada has responded to 50 requests for assistance by deploying wildfire management specialists and equipment to support provincial, territorial, and international wildfire incidents, including the Semo Wildfire Complex in Alberta, the Weyakwin Wildfire Complex in Saskatchewan, the Annapolis Valley Fire in Nova Scotia, and the Red Rock Fire in Idaho.
• The Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre Inc. (CIFFC) is a not-for-profit corporation owned and operated by federal, provincial, and territorial governments.
• CIFFC coordinates the sharing of firefighting resources for wildland fire management agencies in Canada. These resources include personnel, equipment, aircraft, information, and expertise.

Related Links

• Parks Canada Fire Management
• Parks Canada - Facebook

SOURCE Parks Canada (HQ)