Report to: General Committee Date
of Meeting: June
12, 2006
SUBJECT: Amendments to the Emergency Management
Program and By-Law
PREPARED BY: Shayne
Mintz, Deputy Fire Chief
Extension 5960
RECOMMENDATION:
THAT the report entitled “Amendments to the Emergency
Management Program and By-law” be received;
THAT the Deputy Fire Chief,
Support Services continue to be the Emergency Management Program Coordinator
and be confirmed as such in the proposed by-law revisions;
AND THAT Council approve the restructuring of the Town’s
Emergency Management Program Committee. The structure of the committee shall
include, at a minimum, the Mayor as ex-officio member, a minimum of one Council
appointed elected official, the Chief Administrative Officer as chair, the Fire
Chief, the Commissioner of Community and Fire
Services, the Commissioner of Development Services, the Commissioner of
Corporate Services, the Town Solicitor, the Town Clerk, the Town Treasurer, the
Emergency Management Program Coordinator, the Director of Corporate
Communications, the Director of Human Resources, the Director of Operations, the
Director of Financial and Client Services, the Director of Asset Management,
the Director of Recreation and Culture Services, the Contact Centre Manager,
and, where necessary, representatives from York Region departments (i.e.
Police, EMS, Health, Social services, etc.) and staff or
members of outside agencies that may be required to assist with emergency
management issues (i.e. PowerStream, Red Cross, Salvation Army, Provincial EMO
Advisor, etc.);
AND THAT Council approve the members of the aforementioned
Committee to serve as the Markham Control Group in the event of an emergency;
AND THAT all personnel identified as being a member of the
Markham Control Group participate in an annual training session covering
subject matters as determined by the Emergency Management Program Committee;
AND THAT in keeping with the requirement to maintain an
emergency exercise routine that an Emergency Alerting Exercise be conducted
with the Markham Control Group within the next 60 days;
AND THAT as prescribed by legislation the Town adopt an
ongoing and annual practice of exercising the Emergency Plan in a format established
by the Town’s Emergency Management Program Committee;
AND THAT the Town participate in a region-wide emergency
exercise planned for October 2006;
AND THAT staff be authorized to do all things necessary to finalize
plans for the provision of back up electrical power to the Emergency Operations
Centre with Markham District Energy and PowerStream and insert those plans and
procedures into the Town’s Emergency Procedures Manual;
AND THAT given the requirement to identify an Emergency
Information Officer that Council designate the Director of Corporate
Communications to be the Town’s Emergency Information Officer;
AND THAT given the additional workload placed onto the
Emergency Management Program Coordinator by legislative regulations that
Council give consideration to a forthcoming proposal in the 2007 budget
deliberations to the provision of one
additional Full Time position dedicated to assist in managing the legislated
requirements of the Emergency Management Program;
AND THAT staff be authorized and directed to do all things
necessary to give effect thereto;
AND THAT Council adopt the attached
by-law to amend By-law 2004-235.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
Under the Emergency Management Act, R.S.O. 1990, C. E9.,
each municipality in Ontario must
adopt by by-law an Emergency Management Program. Such a program must have, as a
minimum, the following elements:
·
An emergency plan governing the provision of
necessary services;
·
Training programs and exercises for employees
and others who could be called upon to provide necessary services;
·
A public education program based on risks to
public safety and public preparedness for emergencies; and
·
Any other element required under legislation
involving municipal responses to an emergency.
As a result of Regulations (O.Reg. 380/04) being added to
the Emergency Management Act the Town’s current program needs to be updated to comply
with the requirements of the Regulations.
This report outlines the proposed changes to the Town’s current
Emergency Management Program to satisfy the requirements of the legislation.
In general, the Town of Markham
has made good strides in its Emergency Management Program and it is well
positioned to address the new provincial requirements.
FINANCIAL
CONSIDERATIONS:
The following are financial considerations associated with
this report.
The cost for any changes to the Canada Room and Ontario Room
have been included in the $10,000 approved in the 2006 IT Capital Budget Projects
(Project No. 06-0040).
All costs for training and staff orientation are included in
the Fire Services, Emergency Management Account, Account No. 420 790 4238.
Council will be requested to consider in 2007 budget
deliberations the addition of a new Full Time position. It is anticipated that
in order to get a fully qualified person for this position it should be posted
at a minimum at the Grade 9 Non-Union level ($90,330 including benefits). The
net outcome of the additional position would be an upset limit of $70,330 ($90,330
- $20,000 cost for eliminated part-time position) annually.
To comply with the legislative revisions, the Town of Markham
needs to implement the following amendments to key elements of the existing Emergency
Management Program:
a) New
standards and responsibilities for the Emergency Management Program Coordinator;
b) Changes
in the membership of the Emergency Management Program Committee;
c) There
must be a Council recognized Emergency Control Group;
d) New
requirements for appropriate technological and telecommunications systems to
ensure effective communication in an emergency;
e) New
requirement for an Emergency Information Officer to be the primary media and
public contact for the municipality; and
f)
The Emergency Plan must include a response plan and assign
responsibilities to the Markham Control Group. Additionally, there shall be
procedures in place to notify the Markham Control Group of an emergency.
Further discussion of each element is provided below.
a) New standards and responsibilities
for the Emergency Management Program Coordinator (EMPC)
It is now a legislated requirement that the Town’s Emergency
Management Program Coordinator (EMPC) undertake and complete training as
required by the Chief of Emergency Management Ontario. The EMPC shall
co-ordinate the development and implementation of the municipality’s emergency
management program within the municipality. The EMPC shall also co-ordinate the
municipality’s emergency management program in so far as possible with the
emergency management programs of other municipalities, Ministries of the
Ontario government, and organizations outside government that are involved in
emergency management.
The EMPC shall report to the municipality’s Emergency
Management Program Committee on his/her work.
Currently the EMPC function is performed by the Deputy Fire
Chief, Support Services. The incumbent
has received all the training as prescribed in the Act and it is recommended
that the Deputy Fire Chief, Support Services
be confirmed as the Emergency Management Program Coordinator in the By-law.
b) Changes in the
membership of the Emergency Management Program Committee
The current Emergency Management Program Committee (the
“Committee”) membership needs to be revamped to reflect the following
makeup:
i)
Town’s Emergency Management Program Coordinator;
ii) A
senior municipal official appointed by council;
iii) Such
members of the Council as may be appointed by Council;
iv) Such
municipal employees who are responsible for emergency management functions, as
may be appointed by Council; and
v) Such
other persons as may be appointed by Council in accordance with requirements of
the Regulation.
The committee shall advise Council on the development and
implementation of the Town’s Emergency Management Program as well as ensure that
an annual review of the municipality’s Emergency Management Program is
conducted. Based on those activities the committee shall also make
recommendations to Council where necessary.
It is recommended that the Committee shall be comprised of seventeen
(17) Town of Markham members as
outlined below:
- Mayor, as ex-officio member - Minimum of one Council
appointed elected official
- Chief Administrative Officer - Commissioner of
Community and Fire Services
- Fire Chief -
Commissioner of Development Services
- Commissioner of Corporate Services - Town Solicitor
- Town Clerk -
Emergency Management Program Coordinator
- Director of Corporate Communications - Director of Human Resources
- Director of Operations -
Director of Asset Management
- Director of Recreation and Culture Services - Contact Centre Manager
-Director of Financial & Client Services
In addition, representatives from York Region (i.e. Police, EMS,
Health, Social services, etc.) and other outside agencies (i.e. PowerStream,
Red Cross, Salvation Army, Provincial EMO Advisor, etc.) may be invited to sit
on this Committee.
It is further recommended that the Chief Administrative
Officer be named as Chairperson of the Committee.
c) There must be a Council
recognized Emergency Control Group (ECG)
Under previous versions of our Emergency Plan the Town’s
Emergency Control Group (referred to as the “Markham Control Group” in the
Emergency Procedures Manual) was identified but without Council endorsement or
approval. It is now a requirement that the Markham Control Group (the “Group”)
participate as outlined below and be comprised of officials, employees or
members of Council as may be appointed by Council.
Members of the group shall:
i)
Complete the annual training that is required by the
Chief of Emergency Management Ontario;
ii) Direct
the municipality’s response in an emergency, including the implementation of
the municipality’s emergency response plan;
iii) Develop
procedures to govern its responsibilities in an emergency;
iv) Conduct
an annual practice exercise for a simulated emergency incident in order to
evaluate the municipality’s emergency response plan and its own procedures;
v) Revise
procedures and make recommendations to revise a municipality’s emergency
response for Council approval; and
vi) At
any time seek advice and assistance from any level of government that is
involved in emergency management, representatives of organizations outside of
government who are involved in emergency management or persons representing
industries that may be involved with emergency management.
To ensure consistency and effectiveness, it is recommended
that the members of the Emergency Management Program Committee function as the
Markham Control Group during an emergency.
It is further recommended that any staff identified as a member of the
Markham Control Group participate in an annual training session covering
subject matters as determined by the Emergency Management Program Committee.
All existing members of the Markham Control Group are aware
of the Emergency Plan and are familiar with the Emergency Alerting Procedures
used to notify each member of an impending or active emergency. The Emergency
Alerting Procedure has been exercised in the past. It is recommended that another Emergency
Alerting Exercise be conducted within the next 60 days from the adoption of
this report.
In response to regulations, it is recommended that the Town
adopt an ongoing and annual practice of exercising its Emergency Plan in a format
established by the Town’s Emergency Management Program Committee. To get as much experience as possible, the
Town should participate in the region-wide emergency exercise planned for
October 2006.
d) New requirements
for appropriate technological and telecommunications systems
It is now a legislated requirement for each community to
have a community Emergency Operations Centre (EOC). The EOC shall be
established by the Town and is to be used by the Markham Control Group in an
emergency. By regulation the Emergency Operations Centre must have appropriate technological
and telecommunications systems to ensure effective communication in an
emergency.
The Canada Room, Ontario Room
and the cafeteria in the Markham Civic Centre are all identified as EOC rooms
in the current Emergency Procedures Manual. The procedures for using the Canada
and Ontario Rooms will need to be revised to meet
the changed operational needs of the Emergency Management Program Committee. These
rooms have been retrofitted or will be with new technology (e.g. wireless
connectivity, radio system, mapping and telephone changes etc.). Funding of
$10,000 for these changes is included in the approved IT 2006 Capital Projects.
While an informal arrangement has yet to be finalized, staff
is in the process of finalizing the provision of the back-up electrical power
arrangements to the EOC with Markham District Energy and PowerStream. It should be noted that under a best case
scenario, this back-up power arrangement can be available within one half hour
after onset of a power failure. It is
recommended that staff be authorized to do all things necessary to finalize
these arrangements. Once completed these procedures are to be inserted as part of
the Town’s Emergency Procedures Manual for future reference.
e) New requirement
for an Emergency Information Officer
By regulation every municipality shall designate an employee
of the municipality as its Emergency Information Officer. The Emergency Information
Officer shall act as the primary media and public contact for the municipality
in an emergency.
The Town’s Emergency Procedures Manual has provisions for
emergency media communications staff. However, there is a requirement now for the
Emergency Information Officer to be designated and recognized by by-law. It is
recommended that Council designate the Director of Corporate Communications to
be the Town’s Emergency Information Officer.
f) The Emergency Plan
of a municipality must include a response plan and assign responsibilities to
the Markham Control Group
The Town’s Emergency Procedures Manual contains a response
plan that assigns roles and responsibilities to each key person. Furthermore,
the manual has always contained information and details in the format
prescribed to notify staff of an emergency. It is recommended that aside from
the required annual review, no additional action is needed in this area.
On the Horizon
The province has been clear in their desire to have
communities escalate their levels of Emergency Preparedness to the greatest
extent possible. The province may require communities to move to a
‘Comprehensive’ level of preparedness. Although the timing is currently unknown,
if that comes to fruition then greater resources and vigilance will be
required.
With an ever increasing workload being created by provincial
regulations and the Town’s Emergency Management Program, staff will table for
consideration in the 2007 budget deliberations the request for one additional Full
Time position to assist the current Emergency Management Program Coordinator in
meeting the current and future legislative requirements. This position will be
responsible for updating the Emergency Procedures Manual, as well as assist in
ensuring all aspects of the Emergency Management Program as outlined in the
attached by-law are in compliance with provincial regulations and guidelines.
At it’s meeting on November
15, 2004, Council approved a .25 Full Time position to assist the
Deputy Fire Chief in updating and distributing
our annual Emergency Procedures Manual revisions. But, as is evident by the
workload encompassed with this provincially mandated program, the .25 Full Time
position is insufficient to cover the current and future workload that is
anticipated. This position will be eliminated on approval of the Full Time
position as outlined above.
Municipalities of a similar or smaller size to Markham, such
as Brampton, Vaughan and Peterborough, currently have dedicated full time staff
allocated to support their emergency management programs. In the instance of Brampton
it has created a standalone department of four staff to manage its emergency
management, security, and business continuity issues.
At present Markham
allocates partial staff resources to the Emergency Management Program by
assigning the Emergency Management Program Coordinator function to the Deputy Fire
Chief, Support Services. Additional support is provided on an ad-hoc basis from
ITS, Corporate Communications, Asset Management, Legal Services and other
departments. With the maturity of Markham’s
effort, it is becoming increasingly clear that dedicated staffing would be an
asset to the success of the Town’s Emergency Management Program.
ENGAGE 21st CONSIDERATIONS
The effort placed in community emergency
planning contributes to the Engage Markham goal of Quality Community.