Could Germany’s volunteer-supported disaster relief model work in Canada? | CBC News

Emergency Preparedness Minister Harjit Sajjan says he’s looking abroad for ideas as he works to create a national disaster relief agency.

As he updated reporters on the wildfire and hurricane season Monday, Sajjan said he’s speaking with his counterparts in France, the United States and Australia about their disaster response models. He said he’s also hoping to travel to Germany in the fall to learn more about how it uses volunteers to assist in disaster relief.

“Down the road, yes, I do see a federal response capability. It’s too early to tell what this will look like,” Sajjan said Monday. “But we will take the best lessons from FEMA and some of our other international partners and incorporate it for what will work best for us.”

FEMA, the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency, was established in 1979. It is in charge of preparing for and responding to natural disasters, terrorist attacks and other major threats.

Canada doesn’t have a national disaster response agency. Provinces, territories and municipalities respond to floods, fires and other emergencies first. If they ask for federal assistance, it’s the emergency preparedness minister’s responsibility to coordinate resources.

Sajjan said FEMA works well for the U.S. but that model may not be the best fit for Canada; he did not say why. Any new Canadian emergency response agency would require buy-in from provinces and territories, he said, because they have primary responsibility for disaster relief.

Climate change continues to drive severe weather events across Canada. Federal officials say wildfires have burned a combined 3.4 million hectares so far this year and 474 fires are still active. Last year saw Canada’s worst wildfire season ever.

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The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) spent a record-setting 141 days last year supporting civilian emergency operations, such as wildfire response.

Vice-Admiral Bob Auchterlonie told CBC News last year the CAF is being called upon too often to respond to emergencies.

The House of Commons defence committee issued a report in June stating Canada should look at establishing a permanent workforce to assist in responding to fires, floods and other disasters, instead of relying on the CAF for support. 

Germany’s Technisches Hilfswerk

Since 2022, the federal government has been consulting with provinces and territories on what a volunteer disaster relief program might look like.

Although Sajjan said he hopes to visit Germany to learn more about their model in the fall, his office confirmed that a trip has not been scheduled yet.

Germany’s Interministerial Panel on National Crisis Management co-ordinates disaster relief between states. Germany also has the volunteer-driven Technisches Hilfswerk (THW) — the Federal Agency for Technical Relief — which was set up following the Second World War to help with rebuilding efforts.

The THW has 668 units across Germany and more than 80,000 volunteers. First responders are able to call on these units for additional disaster relief support.

Eva Cohen was a THW volunteer until she moved to Canada in 2003. She said she was surprised to learn Canada did not have a similar program in place when she arrived. 

“The idea behind that is very, very beneficial when you think of it, because it creates, proactively, what you need to have in communities to be ready to act when things go wrong,” Cohen told CBC News.

“The community is prepared, has the abilities it needs to have to deal with whatever is thrown at the community and can easily scale up if there is not enough capacity or capabilities in the local community.”

After coming to Canada, Cohen established Civil Protection Youth Canada, a non-profit aimed at teaching kids and young adults disaster response skills and promoting a sense of civic responsibility.

Cohen’s role in the THW was to help train dog teams for urban search and rescue efforts. She said that each THW unit is equipped with the same equipment and expertise, so first responders can call on standardized local assistance as needed.

“Each unit is trained exactly the same way, with exactly the same equipment, so that you can have surge capacity whenever you need it,” Cohen said. 

“So in Canada, with the geographic situation we have, it’s even more useful to have it this way because you will have local assets and you’re not building an asset that you will have to deploy from elsewhere.”

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Retired Lt.-Gen. Andrew Leslie says Ottawa is far behind allies in creating a national emergency agency to help provinces. He warns Canadians’ safety is at stake, but cautions against relying on an already-strained Canadian Armed Forces.

The THW is funded mainly by the German government, but in 2004 the THW Foundation was established as a non-profit to supplement operational funding due to “budgetary pressures,” according to its website.

In addition to offering training, the THW has a wage replacement program to cover lost pay when volunteers are deployed.

Cohen says this is a big factor in getting citizens to take part in the THW.

“Whereas in Canada we don’t have that same situation. People don’t have a lot of vacation. If they want to volunteer, they usually need to take their vacation time. So things like that in place encourage people to step up and do more within society,” Cohen said.