OTTAWA — The federal government has been spending steadily more on natural disaster assistance since 1970, according to a recent review of payments under the Disaster Financial Assistance Arrangements program. The numbers:
$10 million: Average annual cost of Disaster Financial Assistance Arrangements (DFAA) between 1970 and 1995.
$110 million: Average annual cost between 1996 and 2010.
$360 million: Average annual cost between 2011 and 2016.
$4.1 billion: Amount of money Ottawa paid out under DFAA between 1970 and 2014.
$1.8 billion (44 per cent): Share of overall spending, in total and percentage, paid out over the last five years.
$1.9 billion: Amount of money outstanding for claims made between 2010 and 2014.
257: Events resulting in a DFAA designation between 1970 and May 11, 2017.
27 per cent: Percentage of those designations that were for events occurring since 2010.
90 per cent: Percentage of claims since 2010 for flooding that were related to spring run-off or rainstorms.
Eight per cent: Percentage of claims since 2010 that were related to fires.
The Canadian Press
