Modernizing Wildland Fire in…

Modernizing Wildland Fire in Ontario
Items in no particular order

1) Cost Recovery. The current cost recovery model is very problematic for Municipalities for a number of reasons. I feel the cost recovery for suppression wildfires should be the responsibility of the province. If a resident starts a wildfire and the OMNRF is seeking cost recovery, the OMNRF should be completing the investigation, charging, and fighting in court for the cost to suppress the fire.
a. According the FFPA, Municipalities are responsible for the cost to extinguish fires within its boundaries. If the OMNRF responds to assist with a wildfire, the Municipality is expected to pay to costs that are incurred by the OMNRF. These can be very large bills that can and will bankrupt many Municipalities. For example, we had a fire in 2021 that required water bomber support. Three aircraft for a couple hours in the afternoon added up to almost $200,000. That is a significant, unplanned hit to a Municipal budget. The theory is that it is basically a cash flow through, where the OMNRF bills the Municipality and the Municipality will get their money back from the individual that started the fire. Sounds simple on paper, however the Municipality is faced with first paying the bill, paying for an investigation that will stand up in court, then fighting in court to get their money back, significantly adding to the overall cost (staff time and lawyer fees) the Municipality has already paid out. At the end of it all, you can’t get blood from a stone, and the Municipality is out the money.
i. Secondly, what happens when we are dealing with a lightening strike causing a wildfire. For the most part these will occur in areas that are not accessible by fire departments, and if they are within the MPA, the Municipality is paying.
ii. The current Act states that in the opinion of a fire warden (OMNRF Fire Attack Boss), if they deem that the local fire department can not handle the fire, can assume control of the fire and take actions to suppress. The Municipality is then responsible for cost recovery.
b. Building on the above, municipal fire departments do not have the expertise to complete a wildfire cause investigation that will stand up in court. Currently we can request assistance from the OMNRF for investigations, however the municipality will pay for this service, adding to the cost. The Office of the Fire Marshal is available and many time mandated to complete fire investigation, at no cost to the Municipality.
c. One more level is that the Municipalities have no ability to enforce infractions to the FFPA. So, if a resident starts a fire while smoking in the forest land, the one person that can lay a charge is a Conservation Officer. As we are all aware, it is problematic for cost recovery with out support that somebody has done something that justifies the responsibility for an individual to pay for the cost of suppression a fire.
2) Authority under the FFPA. I feel that the Act should be updated to give authority to Chief Fire Officials and By-law enforcement Officers to enforce the FFPA and it’s regulations.
a. Currently there are very few that can enforce the FFPA (a conservation officer or deputy, a police officer, or RCMP). During one of the in-person session there was discussion around MIOP/IOP/FFPA and industries (forestry, mining etc) following these documents, and it being up to the Municipality to monitor and enforce the requirements. The Fire Chief’s do not have any authority to enforce the FFPA or Crown Forest Sustainability Act. So, putting that responsibility onto the Municipality is unrealistic. In other words, if there is somebody harvesting wood within a Municipality, and not operating within the FFPA (no extinguisher on machine for example), as a Fire Chief what can I do to enforce this infraction. In other words, there is a fire within a Municipality that is caused by smoking material. The local fire chief can not enforce the FFPA unless they call one of the above-mentioned people.
3) Section 35 of the Act talks about penalties and offences. This section outlines penalties for individuals and corporations for those that “disobey or neglects to carry out provisions in this Act…… is guilty of an offence and on conviction is liable to,”. How does this work when somebody causes a wildfire within a Municipality from smoking on forest fuels (an offence) and is responsible for cost recovery. Does the Province fight for the offence and then the Municipality fight to get money back that is already paid to the province for cost recovery? Maybe something that can get cleaned up as part of the re-write
4) There are a number of items listed in the Legislation that should probably be part of a regulation (16(1) disposal of refuse, 17 clearing of land etc.)
5) Strengthen collective responsibility
a. I think this is a good idea for Municipalities, however it must be a two-way street. We can’t simply download responsibility to municipalities, we are already stretched to the limit and keep in mind, the vast majority of fire departments are volunteer based.
6) Improve awareness of Wildfire Risk
a. There was a lot of discussion around the awareness and public education. I think this is an area that needs focus. I feel the province need to develop programs and material that can be distributed by municipalities. One of the key factors is that there is a consistent message that is being derived to the public. This can only be done with a top down approach. Province develops education material, that a municipality can put their contact info on it and distribute as part of their programs. This same material can also be delivered through parks, private campgrounds/resorts that are not in an organized municipality. etc.
b. Discussion question. Are there any disadvantages to having a required source of information on wildland fire risk in Ontario that communities are required to consider in planning…….. One major disadvantage is having somebody that has no local knowledge of an area telling a local expert what is required. Things look good on paper, but impossible to implement. Example being putting a fire break around a subdivision within a municipality, when all of the surrounding property is privately owned.
7) Expand prevention and mitigation
a. There was discussion around setting standards and authority regarding emergency planning and mandating plans and content to these plans. Municipalities are currently faced with a number of mandated plans, with required updates etc. This is taxing the resources and giving a false sense of security. Many times, these plans turn into a “check the box” documents that is not usable in the real world. Remembering that fire departments are for the most part volunteer, and don’t have the support needed to effectively develop more plans.
b. There was also talk about the minister have the power to make orders to address wildland fire management risks and actions. Again, it is easy to make an order to do things like this, but who pay’s and who does the work?
c. Discussion questions regarding standards on what must be part of a plan, fire management planning etc. On of my common themes throughout this entire engagement. Who is paying and who is going to do the work. It is very easy to sit around a table and make big plans, but at the end of the day, somebody has to pay for it and somebody has to do all the work.
8) Enhance preparedness and response
a. I think this is an area that can certainly be improved, with training, equipment upgrades etc. However, as stated earlier, volunteer departments will be hard pressed to get properly trained and equipped to safely and effectively deal with wildfires. One key safety item is having an aerial view of a fire. How does a municipality accomplish this?
b. Discussion question around sharing roles and resources. I certainly agree with this, however we have to be mindful of primary responsibilities. As stated earlier, most municipal fire departments are volunteer, with regular jobs. Fire departments also have a primary responsibility of community protection, with limited resources to deal with that responsibility. To implement the sharing of resources, enabling by-laws need to be updated, and agreements in place.
9) One area that needs to be address deals with sharing responsibility and then dealing with cost recovery. Not sure that you will get by in from municipalities to share responsibility and still have to pay to suppress a fire. This is not really sharing the responsibility.