Date: November 19, 2013
Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada's (AANDC) Emergency Management Assistance Program (EMAP) was established in 2005. It is the primary federal government mechanism for emergency management in First Nation communities. The program enables funding and coordination assistance to First Nations on reserve lands in the event of emergencies like fires and floods, often through arrangements with provincial and territorial governments for the delivery of emergency management services to First Nations. These arrangements help ensure that First Nations have access to services comparable to those available to other communities in their province. Provinces and territories are then reimbursed for eligible costs incurred in relation to emergency response and recovery on reserve.
AANDC has a general mandate, flowing from the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development Act, to support and fund programs for emergency management on reserves. As well, pursuant to section 6 of the Emergency Management Act, all federal departments, including AANDC, have the responsibility to identify risks within their areas of responsibility, prepare emergency management plans, and train, test and conduct exercises with respect to those risks. The Emergency Management Act defines "emergency management" to include the prevention and mitigation of, preparedness for, response to and recovery from emergencies.
Emergency Events in First Nation Communities:
In order to strengthen emergency management support to First Nation communities and to better protect the health and safety of residents in First Nation communities, the Government of Canada announced, on November 19, 2013, a new approach to emergency management on reserve. The Government of Canada will:
- create a new single-window for First Nations to secure funding for emergency costs, including those previously funded under the Disaster Financial Assistance Arrangements, which will eliminate overlap and provide First Nations and provinces and territories improved access to emergency funding when needed;
- provide $19.1 million to facilitate negotiation of new or renewed agreements with provinces and territories and support emergency preparedness activities, including the development of emergency management plans for First Nation communities;
- commit stable funding for response and recovery activities, which in turn would provide greater certainty to First Nations, provinces and territories and confirm our commitment to address their needs; and
- revise the Emergency Management Assistance Program to provide greater clarity about expense eligibility and strengthen program management.
The new approach will allow the Government of Canada to build on successful agreements already in place, such as the formal agreement that AANDC has with the Alberta Emergency Management Agency. This agreement facilitated successful response and quick recovery efforts for the First Nation communities affected by the major flooding event in Calgary in 2013. The Government intends to work toward similar agreements with all provinces and territories.
New and renewed agreements will also better clarify roles and responsibilities and support enhanced preparedness activities, including training and the development of more robust community emergency plans for First Nations on reserve.
As bilateral agreements for emergency management in First Nation communities are improved or negotiated with provinces and territories, AANDC will continue to work in partnership with First Nations.
Sustainable funding to cover annual response and recovery costs will provide increased certainty to First Nations and to provinces and territories about the predictability of the funding resources to address emergency costs. In the event that there is a particularly catastrophic event and there are eligible disaster costs beyond the department's ability to fund, AANDC would access the necessary funding.
These concrete actions to improve emergency management support stronger and more resilient First Nation communities.
