The federal government is hoping Canada香蕉视频直播檚 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 Brolund香蕉视频直播檚 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 香蕉视频直播�36 hours that felt like 100 years,香蕉视频直播� 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, 香蕉视频直播渟aid during this fire that firefighters have been warriors for thousands of years, stepping up to protect their villages,香蕉视频直播� Brolund said.
香蕉视频直播淏ut today, these warriors are doing things that we never imagined, on a scope and scale it香蕉视频直播檚 nearly impossible for us to be successful against.香蕉视频直播�
The money that went into that herculean firefighting effort 香蕉视频直播� about $20 million, by Brolund香蕉视频直播檚 account 香蕉视频直播� is being spent 香蕉视频直播渙n the wrong end of the problem,香蕉视频直播� he said.
香蕉视频直播淲hat could we have accomplished if we use that same amount of money proactively?香蕉视频直播�
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 body香蕉视频直播檚 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 香蕉视频直播� the conditions were too harsh for a fire engine 香蕉视频直播� so they could go door-to-door ensuring residents were out of harm香蕉视频直播檚 way.
香蕉视频直播淭hey went into homes that were burning and grabbed a gentleman out of his home as the home itself was engulfed in flames,香蕉视频直播� she said.
香蕉视频直播淚f it were not for the heroic efforts of those men, that life would have been lost.香蕉视频直播�
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.
香蕉视频直播淔irst responders on the front lines understand that ambitious collective action to tackle climate change is now a matter of survival,香蕉视频直播� he said.
香蕉视频直播淐limate action can be hard, but as leaders, you香蕉视频直播檙e here today because you know that it matters and that it works.香蕉视频直播�
Putting a price on carbon has been central in helping Canada 香蕉视频直播渂end the curve,香蕉视频直播� he said, touting the country香蕉视频直播檚 emissions-reduction record as the best in the G7.
He said Canada香蕉视频直播檚 Global Carbon Pricing Challenge, which encourages countries to adopt similar mechanisms, is gaining steam, with Norway, Denmark, Vietnam and C么te d香蕉视频直播橧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.
He香蕉视频直播檒l sit down with Haitian officials and preside over an ad hoc advisory group moderated by Bob Rae, Canada香蕉视频直播檚 ambassador to the United Nations, before a closing news conference.
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