Public safety agency formalizes wildfire partnership with Sask. First Nations

The Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency has formalized an ongoing partnership with a number of First Nations which it says will help inform wildfire planning and strategy in the province.

On Tuesday, the agency signed a memorandum of understanding with the Prince Albert Grand Council and Meadow Lake Tribal Council, which it says will create “a more structured approach to collaboration,” which will include meetings before and after each wildfire season, allowing the First Nations to bring their leadership and knowledge to bear when it comes to tackling the threat of wildfires.

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The province said the working group will allow First Nations to share local and traditional knowledge, the experience of their communities and lessons learned after each wildfire season, while also developing recommendations and feedback to improve wildfire strategy, operational planning and protection efforts.

The collaborative approach will also include Indigenous Services Canada and the Canadian Forest Service, the provincial government noted, adding federal participation to the table.

“Our government continues to take action to improve prevention, response and recovery from wildfires, and First Nations are an integral partner in effectively responding to the challenging threat of wildfires in our province,” Michael Weger, the provincial minister responsible for the public safety agency, said in a statement.

“I thank the Prince Albert Grand Council and Meadow Lake Tribal Council, along with communities throughout Saskatchewan, for their strong leadership in protecting the people of Saskatchewan.”

Jeremy Norman, chief of the Meadow Lake Tribal Council, said First Nations communities have experienced the impacts of wildfires firsthand. He called the agreement “an important step towards improving preparedness, enhancing communication and building resilience for future wildfire seasons.”

“First Nations have generations of knowledge about our lands, our forests and the communities we are working to protect,” added Brian Hardlotte, grand chief of the Prince Albert Grand Council.

“That knowledge needs to be part of wildfire planning from the beginning – not only when an emergency is already underway. This agreement gives us a stronger way to work together before, during and after wildfire seasons. With First Nations, the province and federal partners at the table, we can identify gaps, improve preparedness and make decisions that better protect our people, our communities and our lands.”

The signing of the new collaborative agreement follows an independent report released in June that found the provincial government “was not fully prepared” for the devastating wildfire season that hit the province in 2025.

The review, completed by accounting firm MNP, found “significant gaps” in the province’s wildfire and emergency preparedness, as well as the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency’s prevention and mitigation efforts.

“While the (Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency) had some foundational planning and structures, it was not fully prepared for a wildfire season of the scale and complexity seen in 2025,” the report read.

“Findings point to the need for a more risk- and science-informed prevention and mitigation framework that is grounded in accumulated wildfire risk and supported by sufficient capacity and inter-agency coordination. More consistent readiness is also required through earlier workforce planning, training, contracting, and pre-season exercises.”

Marlo Pritchard, the agency’s president and fire commissioner, said wildfires continue to pose significant challenges across Saskatchewan, but the agency is working to strengthen its ability to prepare for and respond to fires.

“This agreement reflects our commitment to working alongside First Nations leadership to strengthen wildfire preparedness, improve response efforts and support long-term community resilience,” Pritchard said.

“We are committed to enhancing our working relationship and continuing to build a better co-ordinated and effective approach to protecting people, communities and valued lands.”

Pritchard said his agency has conducted reviews and identified places to do better.

“That will be probably a never-ending cycle of improvement because we know communication was one of the first things that broke down last year because of the overwhelming natural disaster that we all were facing in different communities,” he said.

–with files from paNOW’s Susan McNeil