The federal government is hoping Canada91裸聊视频檚 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 Brolund91裸聊视频檚 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 91裸聊视频�36 hours that felt like 100 years,91裸聊视频� 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, 91裸聊视频渟aid during this fire that firefighters have been warriors for thousands of years, stepping up to protect their villages,91裸聊视频� Brolund said.
91裸聊视频淏ut today, these warriors are doing things that we never imagined, on a scope and scale it91裸聊视频檚 nearly impossible for us to be successful against.91裸聊视频�
The money that went into that herculean firefighting effort 91裸聊视频� about $20 million, by Brolund91裸聊视频檚 account 91裸聊视频� is being spent 91裸聊视频渙n the wrong end of the problem,91裸聊视频� he said.
91裸聊视频淲hat could we have accomplished if we use that same amount of money proactively?91裸聊视频�
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 body91裸聊视频檚 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 91裸聊视频� the conditions were too harsh for a fire engine 91裸聊视频� so they could go door-to-door ensuring residents were out of harm91裸聊视频檚 way.
91裸聊视频淭hey went into homes that were burning and grabbed a gentleman out of his home as the home itself was engulfed in flames,91裸聊视频� she said.
91裸聊视频淚f it were not for the heroic efforts of those men, that life would have been lost.91裸聊视频�
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.
91裸聊视频淔irst responders on the front lines understand that ambitious collective action to tackle climate change is now a matter of survival,91裸聊视频� he said.
91裸聊视频淐limate action can be hard, but as leaders, you91裸聊视频檙e here today because you know that it matters and that it works.91裸聊视频�
Putting a price on carbon has been central in helping Canada 91裸聊视频渂end the curve,91裸聊视频� he said, touting the country91裸聊视频檚 emissions-reduction record as the best in the G7.
He said Canada91裸聊视频檚 Global Carbon Pricing Challenge, which encourages countries to adopt similar mechanisms, is gaining steam, with Norway, Denmark, Vietnam and C么te d91裸聊视频橧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.
He91裸聊视频檒l sit down with Haitian officials and preside over an ad hoc advisory group moderated by Bob Rae, Canada91裸聊视频檚 ambassador to the United Nations, before a closing news conference.
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