Thompson Nicola Regional District Director for Area “A” (Wells Gray Country), Usoff Tsao is continuing to advocate for rural areas and hopes that smaller communities don’t discount their own needs when approaching government for funding with regards to specific improvements such as road improvements, rural accessibility, and safety, saying, “Communities shouldn’t discount themselves as being too small to spend money on. The province does understand that they must invest in rural communities, no matter how small.” Tsao says as a representative in rural B.C. this kind of advocacy “re-energizes” him to continue to speak with provincial ministries on behalf of his area in Wells Gray Country, and other municipalities including First Nations communities.
“If we think only about how small we are in rural communities and that we don’t make a difference, that would be a mistake. Government needs to invest in small communities, even if that ends up being a project that may cost quite a bit, if it’s for the safety of the people living in the area then it’s certainly worth it long term.”
Tsao has had recent discussions with his TNRD alternate, Ron Lampreau, a member of the Simpcw First Nations band council and has invited him to join in a meeting next week in Vancouver with Minister Heyman of the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy which oversees BC Parks. “With the amount of trail closures that needs resources to bring them back online, I will be advocating for more support with our critical local tourism industry. This relates again to our transition off the Trans Mountain Expansion Project in the North Thompson.”
Director Tsao hopes to meet with several ministries during UBCM in Vancouver this month to advocate for additional RCMP in the valley, addressing forestry and environmental concerns, future fire mitigation planning and highway safety.
“I’m looking forward to partnering in the valley with other like-minded officials as we all work together to build towards a sustainable future. We know after such an extremely challenging fire and drought season we must work together in sustainable planning as we strive to help our communities grow, become safer and thrive.”
