In February 2019, Dave Peterson was appointed as the Assistant Deputy Minister of Recovery, Planning and Disaster Risk Reduction for Emergency Management BC (EMBC) in the Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor General.

This new position enabled EMBC to assume the lead for disaster recovery across the provincial government, and is part of a greater emphasis within EMBC on disaster recovery, mitigation and preparedness, and the advancement of a number of initiatives, including the modernization of the Emergency Program Act and Emergency Support Services, and implementing initiatives consistent with the UN Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction.

The Recovery, Planning and Disaster Risk Reduction Division is comprised of three areas of responsibility including: 1) Disaster Risk Reduction, 2) Strategic Partnerships which includes extensive work with First Nations partners, and 3) Disaster Mitigation and Community Recovery.

More recently, Dave has been actively engaged with ministries, agencies and First Nations leaders as part of EMBC’s leadership role in the province’s response and recovery actions as the result of COVID-19.

Before coming to EMBC, Dave was the Assistant Deputy Minister of Rural Development, Lands and Innovation within the Ministry of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development (FLNRORD), where he held various Assistant Deputy Minister positions since 2005 as well as two significant additional roles. In May 2012, he was appointed to the position of Provincial Chief Forester until December 2014. He was also temporarily appointed as the Deputy Minister of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations in 2013.

Dave was raised on Vancouver Island, and then moved to the interior of British Columbia. He currently resides in Vernon and travels frequently to Victoria and throughout the province during the course of his work. He has two children and loves to spend his winter days skiing with them.