Edmonton introduces emergency management agency

The government of Edmonton has created a new provincial Emergency Management Alberta Agency, which will better prepare Alberta for response to emergency situations. The new agency combines the current organization with the Alberta Fire Commissioner’s Office (FCO), which the government says will result in better co-ordination, preparation, response and recovery to a wider array of disasters and emergencies. The new agency will incorporate both the current emergency management organization and the FCO, formerly a branch within the Public Safety Division of Municipal Affairs. The government says that the municipal fire departments play a critical role as first responders in disasters and emergencies, and as such moving the FCO will allow for closer co-ordination of training, support and public education. Also, the Crisis Management Unit will be transferred from Municipal Affairs to Solicitor General and Public Security, forming a single point of co-ordination and response for counter-terrorism. These components will enhance the agency’s ability to continuously improve the province’s preparedness for response to and recovery from disasters and major emergencies, as well as mitigating risk exposure through an increased focus on training, enhanced exercise capability and specialized communications resources, according to a government press release. The new agency was formed as a governmental response to the recommendations put forward by the Environmental Protection Commission, formed to review the province’s emergency response capabilities following the CN derailment at Lake Wabamun on August 3, 2005. Establishing a central emergency management agency was one of the key recommendations put forward by the Environmental Protection Commission. The committee’s work was completed with the release of its final report on December 14, 2005, which included 10 recommendations accepted by the government. “The government’s existing emergency management framework is sound and a good base to build on,” Rob Renner, Minister of Municipal Affairs, who is responsible for emergency management for the province, says in the press release. “The new agency will ensure a more proactive, co-ordinated provincial response on an all-hazards basis.” Other government actions on the commission’s recommendations include: * Increasing emergency response training and field simulations for emergency managers and first responders from all levels of government and industry; * Conducting an all-hazards risk assessment on the province’s nine most sensitive water bodies as well as a provincial all-hazards risk assessment; * Creating an Environmental Emergency Response Team within Alberta Environment; * Amalgamating call centres from Alberta Environment and Alberta Infrastructure and Transportation into a single call centre; developing a leading-edge, world-class interdisciplinary institute dedicated to supporting the safety, environmental and security functions in Alberta; and * Developing the province-wide Alberta First Responder Radio Communications System. The government agency is currently seeking a suitable candidate to fill the position of managing Director of the Emergency Management Alberta Agency. The managing director will be responsible for co-ordinating the new agency and will report directly to the Minister of Municipal Affairs.