Ottawa appears to be listening after years of calls for improved infrastructure to mitigate claims from natural disasters, following the announced $14 billion Building Canada Fund in the recent federal budget.

“It is another positive step taken by the federal government to tackle the country’s aging infrastructure,” said Don Forgeron, President and CEO, Insurance Bureau of Canada.   “We are very encouraged to see this announcement and look forward to the full details of the Canada Building Plan, expected in the spring.”

It is part of the larger $53-billion New Building Canada Plan, which also includes a Gas Tax Fund and a funding model for public-private partnerships. The new fund takes over from a previous similar fund which expires this spring.

In 2013, a number of Canadian communities suffered record losses as a result of natural disasters, the most prominent being the flooding in Calgary, Alta., and the flooding and ice storm damage that hit Toronto, Ont.

“The country needs measures to prevent these disasters from happening in the first place,” says Forgeron. “The Canada Building Plan will help in that regard.”

The 2013 year-end severe weather insured loss totaled $3.2 billion, the highest in Canadian history. The losses of 2013 came after four consecutive years of natural disaster losses for the insurance industry that hit the $1 billion mark.