A year after a wildfire destroyed the western Canadian village of Lytton, residents, municipal leaders and the provincial government are grappling with the slow and costly reality of future-proofing a community against climate change.
Key points:
- In 2021, 90 per cent of buildings in Lytton, British Columbia, were destroyed by a wildfire
- Lytton’s council wants better building emissions standards and energy efficiency to be prioritised in the town’s reconstruction
- However, residents are running out of time as temporary living allowances from insurers near their end
The remote village sits at the confluence of the Fraser and Thompson rivers in the high, dry mountains of interior British Columbia, making it a bullseye for fires and landslides. In June 2021, 90 per cent of Lytton’s structures burned down, a day after the village recorded Canada’s hottest-ever temperature.
Now officials…