The Prince Albert Grand Council is calling out the provincial government over what they say is a “double standard” on the protection of Indigenous trapline cabins.
PAGC released a statement on Tuesday afternoon where they called on the Saskatchewan Government to revise the disaster assistance program.
This season has been one of the worst wildfire seasons on record with over 2 million hectares of land burnt and hundreds of structures lost to the fire.
Many of the buildings lost include cabins used by First Nations in the north.
“These aren’t cottages or vacation shacks. They’re homes, workplaces and lifelines,” said Grand Chief Brian Hardlotte. “The province requires us to register these cabins and follow strict rules. But when they burn down, we’re told we don’t qualify for help. That’s a double standard, and it needs to end.”
Under the Provincial Disaster Assistance Program (PDAP), assistance is available for municipalities, homeowners, smallebusinesses, farms, and non-profit organization for uninsurable losses due to any natural disaster including wildfires.
However, The PAGC says that seasonal-use or secondary cabins, which would include most trapline cabins, are ineligible for this program.
Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation, the Lac La Ronge Indian Band, and Motreal Lake Cree Nation all joined in the statement to call for change to the PDAP program.
“These fires wiped out traplines and cabins that families rely on for food, income and survival,” said Chief Beatty of Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation. “With no insurance and no access to PDAP, they’re left with nothing but ashes.”
“Entire traplines were wiped out,” echoed LLRIB Chief Tammy Cook-Searson. “We’re not asking for special treatment — we’re asking for fairness.”
According to PAGC, trappers are still required to meet provincial cleanup standards following wildfire loss despite being excluded from PDAP.
The PAGC says these cleanups can cost thousands of dollars.
Grand Chief Brian Hardlotte says this is a policy gap by the government and the province needs to expand PDAP eligibility to include trapper cabins.
“If disaster programs only support people with mortgages and civic addresses, they’re failing the North,” said Hardlotte.