Empire strikes back

The County’s Fire Department put up a spirited defence of its big spending ways in recent weeks. In doing so, it managed to persuade a majority of council to get onside with its request for $1 million dollars for a new tanker truck and breathing gear.

Our fire department learned in this process that it can no longer count on council to simply roll over when it shows up with an eyewateringly expensive shopping list for boats and aerial trucks and an ever-rotating fleet of tankers and pumpers—plus all the kits these new vehicles require. Oh, and a second fire prevention officer. None were prepared in previous terms of council to question this growing empire. That era of complacent spending may be ending.

So, Fire Chief Scott Manlow and his team were compelled to make the case for new gear this go around. They were prepared and they were persuasive. They explained that they were spending municipal dollars based on a long-term plan established several years ago. This was no seat-of-the-pants appeal for truck money. Rather than wait for something to break, or malfunction on the job, the fire department had established a multi-year schedule to renew and expand their fleet and equipment as part of a masterplan rework begun in 2009. They were being proactive and responsible. And those who might question that, really weren’t seeing the big picture.

Manlow was backed up energetically by the County’s director of finance. Amanda Carter buttressed the notion that a long-term capital expenditure plan is an improvement over past practices of scrambling to find the money to pay for big items when they broke or reached the end of their useful life.

It’s a good and reasonable argument, as far as it goes. But what the i t ’s-in-the-plan reasoning lacks is a recognition that fires are declining across North America, in Ontario and indeed in Prince Edward County. This trend is spelled out vividly in the National Fire Information Database compiled by Statistics Canada.

“In general the total number of fires reported to the National Fire Incident Database (NFID) showed a downward trend, declining 25 per cent between 2005 and 2014,” according to the first line of the highlights in the report. “Consistent with the overall trend, the number of structural fires declined by 26 per cent between 2005 and 2014.”

This trend is supported anecdotally by several volunteer firefighters in the County, who report that it was not unusual a decade or two ago, to be called to a couple of structure fires a week. Currently they are unlikely to attend two such fires a month.

The reduction in fires ought to be celebrated. We are relieved that the crushing hardship and pain such events cause is being avoided in so many instances. Surely this is due, in part, to the education and fire prevention awareness efforts of our fire departments.

All things being equal, however, fewer fires should result in reduced firefighting capacity. We should be scaling back our firefighting might accordingly. But that’s not the case. Not in Prince Edward County. The opposite, in fact. Staffing is increasing. We spend millions every year on equipment. We are paying for brand new halls in Consecon and Picton.

Someday soon, fire department spending must reflect the changed reality. How can we continue to justify a second fire prevention officer— funded on the fly during budget deliberations in January— when nationally, all fire incidents are down by 25 per cent? This is a long-term trend. It isn’t a oneor two-year blip. The trajectory is crystal clear. But instead of scaling back, we are bulking

The it’s-in-the-plan argument also fails to factor in the ability to pay. It really doesn’t matter how detailed my asset purchase plan is—if I can’t afford the asset. It’s like my minimum-wage-earning teenaged son justifying the purchase of a brand new Audi R8, well, because he has plan. Ability to pay must be part of the equation.

Our municipality is struggling financially in so many ways. We can’t afford to fix our roads. The state of our infrastructure is inhibiting growth. We only dream of tackling issues of food insecurity, transit and affordable housing by throwing mostly token dollars toward these challenges.

Yet we continue to sock away desperately needed funds battling a diminishing threat.

Councillor Phil Prinzen, who is also a volunteer firefighter, noted prudently during the debate over the new tanker truck, that just because you have $20 in your pocket, doesn’t mean you have to spend it. Perhaps there is a better place this money might be put to use?

It’s time to begin the discussion about right-sizing our firefighting resources to the actual threat we face. Let’s start talking about re-allocating some of these dollars where they might do more good. It’s-in-the plan approach isn’t going to fly much longer.

rick@wellingtontimes.ca