The provincial government has taken steps to prepare for a major B.C. earthquake, investing millions of dollars in an early warning system and spending billions to seismically retrofit schools and important infrastructure such as bridges.
The province recently held an emergency exercise on Vancouver Island to test its response to an earthquake.
But it has shown little interest in dealing with thousands of privately owned buildings in the province that were constructed largely before the early 1970s and do not meet modern earthquake safety standards.
That job has been left to municipalities, which have relied on passive triggers that only come into effect when building owners change an old building’s use or undertake major renovations.
Each level of government appears reluctant to tackle the issue head on, instead looking to another level of government to take the lead.