The federal government is hoping Canadasa国际传媒檚 devastating wildfire season sparks momentum for carbon pricing at the United Nations.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was the big draw at a UN event Wednesday aimed at encouraging countries to put a price on pollution.
But two of the heroes from a fearsome summer of wildfires ended up stealing the show.
West Kelowna fire Chief Jason Brolundsa国际传媒檚 harrowing story of a 36-hour battle to keep the flames out of his B.C. city earned a partial standing ovation.
And assistant Halifax fire Chief Sherry Dean described how some of her crew members pulled people to safety as their homes went up in flames.
Trudeau used the moment to promote carbon pricing as a way for the leaders of UN member countries to stand by their first responders.
It was sa国际传媒�36 hours that felt like 100 years,sa国际传媒� Brolund said as he described his marathon shift in mid-August fighting the blazes that were threatening his community in the B.C. Interior.
A fellow B.C. fire chief, Darren Lee, sa国际传媒渟aid during this fire that firefighters have been warriors for thousands of years, stepping up to protect their villages,sa国际传媒� Brolund said.
sa国际传媒淏ut today, these warriors are doing things that we never imagined, on a scope and scale itsa国际传媒檚 nearly impossible for us to be successful against.sa国际传媒�
The money that went into that herculean firefighting effort sa国际传媒� about $20 million, by Brolundsa国际传媒檚 account sa国际传媒� is being spent sa国际传媒渙n the wrong end of the problem,sa国际传媒� he said.
sa国际传媒淲hat could we have accomplished if we use that same amount of money proactively?sa国际传媒�
The event, a late-day gathering after a busy day at UN headquarters, took place in a pop-up nature sanctuary on the campus, designed to showcase the bodysa国际传媒檚 effort to kick-start sustainable development.
Birdsong chirped over the loudspeakers as guests entered a makeshift boreal paradise, complete with leafy plant life, man-made mist and a high-definition greenspace backdrop, swaying in an invisible breeze.
Dean described how two firefighters requested a pickup truck sa国际传媒� the conditions were too harsh for a fire engine sa国际传媒� so they could go door-to-door ensuring residents were out of harmsa国际传媒檚 way.
sa国际传媒淭hey went into homes that were burning and grabbed a gentleman out of his home as the home itself was engulfed in flames,sa国际传媒� she said.
sa国际传媒淚f it were not for the heroic efforts of those men, that life would have been lost.sa国际传媒�
Trudeau hailed their efforts and that of their respective departments, and also acknowledged the deaths of four firefighters who died in a head-on crash early Tuesday in northern B.C.
sa国际传媒淔irst responders on the front lines understand that ambitious collective action to tackle climate change is now a matter of survival,sa国际传媒� he said.
sa国际传媒淐limate action can be hard, but as leaders, yousa国际传媒檙e here today because you know that it matters and that it works.sa国际传媒�
Putting a price on carbon has been central in helping Canada sa国际传媒渂end the curve,sa国际传媒� he said, touting the countrysa国际传媒檚 emissions-reduction record as the best in the G7.
He said Canadasa国际传媒檚 Global Carbon Pricing Challenge, which encourages countries to adopt similar mechanisms, is gaining steam, with Norway, Denmark, Vietnam and C么te dsa国际传媒橧voire coming aboard.
Climate has been a dominant theme of the UN General Assembly so far this year, along with the grinding war in Ukraine and its global reverberations.
Today, Trudeau will focus on a different geopolitical crisis, this one in Haiti, where stable government is non-existent, gang violence is rampant and cholera stalks the citizenry.
Hesa国际传媒檒l sit down with Haitian officials and preside over an ad hoc advisory group moderated by Bob Rae, Canadasa国际传媒檚 ambassador to the United Nations, before a closing news conference.
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