Question Period Note: Mitigating Disaster Risks

• Climate-change driven hazards are increasing in both frequency and costs, and are a mounting threat to the safety and economic viability of Canadian businesses and communities.
• Disaster mitigation measures aim to reduce impacts before emergencies occur, enhancing resilience and safety across society.

• Climate-change hazards are increasingly threatening Canadians, and disaster mitigation is the most effective means of reducing the costs and impacts of these disasters.

• Canada’s Federal, Provincial and Territorial Emergency Management Strategy outlines a coordinated approach, focused on proactive measures to prevent and mitigate the impacts of disasters before they occur.

• The Government of Canada is committed to building resilience to these hazards. This is why the Government of Canada launched the National Adaptation Strategy, aimed to support a shared vision for a resilient Canada.

• As flooding is Canada’s costliest and most frequent disaster, the government is advancing initiatives to increase flood resilience across Canada.

• These initiatives will ensure the Government of Canada is able to better support impacted people and communities, and rebuild with greater resilience to future risk.

Emergency Management Strategy for Canada
• In January 2019, Federal, Provincial and Territorial (FPT) Ministers Responsible for Emergency Management approved Canada’s first-ever FPT Emergency Management Strategy for Canada (EM Strategy).
• Increasing the focus on whole-of-society disaster prevention and mitigation activities is one the Strategy’s key priorities.
Residential Flood Insurance, Flood Mapping and Risk Awareness
• December 2021’s mandate letter for the Minister for Emergency Preparedness committed to flood preparedness and recovery, including a low-cost national flood insurance program.
• A task force was set up in January 2021, leading to the August 2022 report “Adapting to Rising Flood Risk: An Analysis of Insurance Solutions for Canada”.
• Budgets 2023 and 2024 announced the Government of Canada’s intention to deliver flood insurance through a reinsurance entity and engagement with Provincial and Territorial counterparts toward a separate affordability subsidy program and risk reduction initiatives.
• The FPT Working Group on Flood Insurance began meeting under Senior Officials Responsible for Emergency Management (SOREM) in January 2025 to finalize program design for an April 2026 launch.
• Public Safety Canada (PS) collaborates with Natural Resources Canada and Environment and Climate Change Canada to advance flood mapping.
Disaster Financial Assistance Arrangements
• The Disaster Financial Assistance Arrangements (DFAA) program provides financial assistance to provincial and territorial governments for response and recovery costs from large-scale disasters caused by natural hazards.
• The modernized DFAA provides more flexibility for the kinds of costs that can be covered, more efficient program administration, faster payments, and significantly improved data collection on disaster recovery to better inform future policy development.
Wildfires Mitigation Investments
• Through Budget 2022, the Government of Canada committed to investing over $500 million to provide support to provinces, territories, and Indigenous communities in wildfire management.

 
Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) Data Strategy
• An interdepartmental working group led by Public Safety Canada was convened in 2023 to produce a DRR Data Strategy. The Strategy will serve as the foundation for future work that enhances the federal government’s capabilities in the realm of data- and model-driven insights for assessing, and taking actions to reduce disaster risks.
• The Strategy is at an advanced draft stage and is expected to be published in 2025.

If Pressed
Q1- Flood mitigation
• Flooding is the most frequent and costly natural disaster in Canada. This is why the Government of Canada is taking steps to prioritize flood risk reduction, prevention and mitigation to ensure that Canadians are better protected and better able to recover from flood events. Key initiatives include:
o Developing a low-cost flood insurance program.
o Creating a flood risk information portal.
o Identifying high-risk flood areas and modernizing the Disaster Financial Assistance Arrangements (DFAA) program.
• These efforts are supported by Federal, Provincial, Territorial, and Indigenous partners, aligning with the Emergency Management Strategy for Canada.
Q2- Flood insurance
• The Government of Canada is committed to collaborating with provincial, territorial, municipal, Indigenous, and private sector partners towards a flood insurance solution.
• Budget 2023 confirmed the intention to stand up a low-cost flood-insurance program; Budget 2024 designated a Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation subsidiary to act as a federal reinsurer, and a Working Group on Flood Insurance was launched under Senior Officials Responsible for Emergency Management in January 2025. The program is targeted to be operational by April 2026.
Q3- Federal Disaster Financial Assistance Arrangements (DFAA) in cases of flood
• The federal DFAA will continue to remain available to Provinces and Territories, and provide support where insurance is not readily available.
• The Government of Canada has implemented a modernized DFAA program which incentivizes mitigation efforts, and ensures that there is a sustainable source of support for provinces and territories in the face of rising disaster risks. The new program launched on April 1, 2025.
Q4- Wildfires mitigation
• The Government of Canada is committed to working with provinces, territories and whole-of-society partners to prevent, prepare for, respond to, and recover from wildfire events.