For Immediate Release - January 6, 2010
BC – The BC Association of Emergency Managers (BCAEM) has been informed that it’s Direct Access Public Safety Gaming Grant application, to provide emergency management training across the Province, has been denied.
After nearly a year of providing training through a Grant, the Gaming Policy & Enforcement Branch informed the BCAEM that there would be no additional funding provided to the Association after March 31st, 2010 - a decision that will have major impacts on the provision of Emergency Management training to communities throughout the province.
In 2009, the BCAEM applied for a grant to ensure the continuation of Emergency Management training after the funding was cut from the Provincial Emergency Program (PEP) budget. At that time the BCAEM realized that gaming funding would not be sustainable and applied for the Grant as an interim measure to ensure Emergency Management training continued to be offered to communities across the province.
“Our hope is that Emergency Management BC (EMBC) and PEP will find a way to reinstate core funding to deliver Emergency Management training to local authorities across the province” said BCAEM President Bill Elsner. “We will continue to work with the Fire and Emergency Management Commissioner and the Provincial Government, as well as other training stakeholders to determine how to get top notch training out to communities in the most cost-effective manner.”
The BCAEM remains committed to working with its membership, local governments, training providers and EMBC to develop workable solutions to provide this critical training for all communities in British Columbia.The BC Association of Emergency Managers is an association of dedicated professionals whose main purpose is to promote emergency management and represent the interests, aims, and opinions of those who are involved in the mitigation/prevention, preparedness, response, and recovery of emergencies and disasters.
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Contact:
Alan Stebbing, NE Regional Director/Information Officer
(250) 783-7542
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