Hon. Carolyn Bertram, Minister responsible for the Prince Edward Island Office of Public Safety met recently in Halifax with federal, provincial and territorial ministers responsible for emergency management to discuss critical infrastructure, public alerting and disaster mitigation.
“I was pleased to meet with my counterparts and explore ways in which we will work together to strengthen emergency preparedness and build safer communities,” said Minister Bertram. “With the very recent snow storms, past hurricanes, tidal surges and heavy thunderstorms we have experienced in Prince Edward Island, we are actively aware of the importance of emergency preparedness, on both a personal and a public level.”
Disaster mitigation activities are designed to save lives, preserve the environment and protect property. The Ministers discussed the importance of the National Disaster Mitigation Strategy (NDMS) and mitigation activities, such as flood mapping of shorelines and threat and risk analysis, to eliminate or reduce the impacts of hazards. Although the NDMS allows for structural mitigation projects to access funding under the $8.8 billion Building Canada Fund, provincial and territorial ministers highlighted the need for dedicated funding for mitigation measures to help reduce the impact of disaster recovery costs.
The Ministers also agreed to continue working towards implementing a national public alerting system operational by 2010. In addition, the Ministers committed to developing a national strategy to protect critical infrastructure such as power grids, telecommunications and banking systems, continuing work on pandemic planning, best practices, and supporting aboriginal emergency management.
Minister Bertram said the Provincial Office of Public Safety is working on upgrading the local Provincial Integrated Communication System (PICS) which will allow first responders more efficient communication in emergency situations. “We are also coordinating with municipalities on their emergency plans. We are working with government departments on Business Continuity Plans and developing a Public Alerting system for the province,” she said.