Northern communities are creating a regional planning district to prepare for future wildfire events. (Image Credit: Facebook/Buckley Belanger)

By Derek Cornet

Wildfires

‘We can’t afford to be a sacrifice’: Northwest communities to create regional planning district

Mar 18, 2026 | 3:20 PM

Northwest communities in Saskatchewan have decided to form a regional planning district following last year’s unprecedented wildfire season. 

The decision to do so was reached earlier this week at a meeting in Beauval to plan and prepare for the upcoming wildfire season. It was attended by representatives from nearly two dozen communities, along with an official with the Sask. NDP and Desnethé-Missinippi-Churchill River MP Buckley Belanger.  

“We’re going to have monthly meetings to organize ourselves into a regional planning district for emergency planning,” said Beauval Mayor Rick Laliberte.    

“It’s a lot of work ahead of us, but the people [who were at the meeting] said it is about time we start taking care of ourselves.” 

Leaders at the meeting raised many concerns about how the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency (SPSA) responded to the 2025 wildfire season, which resulted in more than 10,000 northerners evacuated from their homes. Concerns were raised about internal policies, over-reliance on remote cameras and satellite imagery to spot fires for early detection, the lack of training opportunities for firefighters, the need for incorporating traditional firefighting techniques, and poor communication between the SPSA and northern communities. 

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“They (leaders) want to see more initial attack as opposed to value protection. Value protection is interpreted as let it burn. Letting the land burn and they are only protecting properties and identified values that they interrupt,” Laliberte explained. 

“Wildfires are a concern and the evacuation process that entails these wildfires is disconcerting on how recent and persistent the impacts are in our communities. People weren’t holding their words back in saying SPSA wildfire response is not what they expect.” 

Laliberte noted by creating a regional planning district, Northwest communities will have a better idea of what their responsibilities are, as well as the powers and opportunities available to them. It will also create partnerships between First Nations, Métis and municipal governments.  

Candyce Paul, the emergency management coordinator for English River First Nation also believes a regional planning district would be beneficial. She said wildfires are becoming larger and northerners are faced by their threat on a more year-to-year basis.  

“They (SPSA) let it get out of control and then these fires grow too big for them to manage manpower-wise, equipment-wise, they don’t have what it takes to manage it,” Paul remarked. 

“We can’t afford to be a sacrifice to their lack of planning and lack of resources, and if they don’t have the resources, we’re going to have to get the resources.” 

Paul added there’s a growing concern in Northern Saskatchewan that the provincial government can’t be trusted when it comes to protecting northern communities. That’s why it is crucial they know what resources each other has and they have the ability to pool them when needed.  

“I think we can do more to help one an another and help service one an another, but we need that regional coordination amongst ourselves, and we also need the SPSA to respect and take that guidance from us. They could do a whole lot better,” she said.  

derek.cornet@pattisonmedia.com