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A Free Weekly Publication Serving All of Beaver County Wednesday,February March 30, 15, 137 Wednesday 162022, 2022Volume Volume 15Issue Issue
Council pens letter on ambulance shortages in rural areas Patricia Harcourt Beaver County is sending a letter to the Minister of Health as part of a Rural Municipalities of Alberta (RMA) push to get help as ambulance availability remains an issue for rural areas. It stems from a mayors and reeves liaison committee meeting on March 14 which resulted in Stettler County Reeve Larry Clarke tabling the issue of challenges being experiences by rural emergency medical services. The discussion by the committee members brought to light the many challenges that municipalities are facing with respect to the provision of emergency medical services from contract extensions, aging ambulances, and lack of ambulance availability. RMA President Paul McLauchlin advised that a committee had been formed by the Rural Municipalities of Alberta (RMA) and tasked with providing advice to Minister of Health Jason Copping on solutions to challenges facing Alberta’s emergency medical services system. The committee is to provide recommendations to Copping by May. McLauchlin requested that rural municipalities forward their concerns in writing to the RMA as soon as possible so that they may be considered by the committee. The March 17 meeting of Beaver County Council passed a motion authorizing Reeve Kevin Smook to for-
ward a letter to the Rural Municipalities of Alberta regarding the following rural emergency medical services challenges. They included the problem of availability of ambulances within the region due to the provincial dispatch service methodology; the second concerned the current delays in acquiring new ambulances; the third concern was the provincial contract extensions for employees with little increase in financial compensation; and the fourth concerned the resulting Impact on fire protection services which often have to take calls when ambulances are simply not available as they have been dispatched elsewhere. Beaver County’s Deputy Reeve Gene Hrabec, who also chairs the Beaver Emergency Services Commission (BESC), told council that the local emergency services had also written a letter, citing the extended wait times there are for ambulances. “Then it falls back to the fire department,” he said, to take calls ambulances cannot answer. Costs end up coming back to the municipality, he said. “We don’t want to burn out those volunteers,” in the fire departments, he said. Hrabec said he liked the idea of a presenting a letter but there might be “unintended consequences…I believe it’s a bigger overall problem.” But Councillor Barry Bruce (Division 4) added there is a world wide shortage of ambulances. And rural areas have only one ambulance which, if it
breaks down, means no ambulance is available. “I would like to see priorities (in place) to keep ambulances in the rural communities,” said Bruce. A motion by Councillor Dale Pederson (Division 5) for the reeve to sign and send a letter to the health minister, with the BESC letter attached, was passed by council. On March 10, the province announced a funding boost for Emergency Medical Services (EMS) funding to put more ambulances on the street and improve response times. The announcement said the $64 million increases the EMS funds by 12.2 per cent to “help EMS respond to high demand and (reduce) stress on staff.” It is hoped that giving more ambulances to Edmonton and Calgary will stop the use of rural ambulances being called away leaving their own local areas without emergency services. Minister of Health Jason Copping states that “EMS has been experiencing historic call volume and staffing pressures and we’re taking action to significantly increase EMS funding to improve capacity and access.” The province has also invited Albertans to have their say on the future of EMS. New public consultations were announced March 17 and the public is invited to respond by April 8 on the current state of EMS through an engagement website and a survey. - With files from Beaver County meeting highlights.
Public hearing held recently this month for road closure proposal Patricia Harcourt A public hearing was held March 17 at Beaver County’s council chambers to allow anyone for or against a proposed road closure to inform council. Interim Chief Administrative Officer Rick McDonald explained that the province has passed a Meeting Procedures (COVID-19 Suppression) regulation to permit hearings to be conducted electronically instead of in person. “The hearing has been structured so that all who wish to participate have the right to hear all discussions and speak for or against the road closure,” he said. The road closure request involved the road allowance north of NE 12-50-18-W4 (Township Road 502). The request is for a temporary road closure to public travel and leasing of portions of the public road allowance. The proposed bylaw states that “is no longer required for public travel.” The county “deems it expedient to provide for a bylaw for the purpose of closing to public travel, certain roads, or portions thereof, situated in the said municipality…” the bylaw continues. The proposal is to lease the surveyed road plan, subject to rights of access granted by other legislation. The public hearing had no objections to the proposal either through in-person attendance, on YouTube, or through a written submission. As there were no objections raised at the public hear-
ing, Development Officer Kim Vana recommended that council pass first reading for the temporary closure bylaw. “The road allowance currently dead ends at the applicant’s driveway and is the sole access to their property,” stated Vana, in her report. “The applicants would like to close the road allowance as there is no through access for the general public and the closure would help to prevent the public from trespassing onto their private property.” She added that Alberta Transportation expressed the concern that north Twp. Rd. 502 access off Highway 14 was considered unsafe after an inspection. Transportation wanted to remove it if no property to the north required it as an access. Vana said that Transportation has agreed to keep the existing Twp. Rd. 502 access off Highway 14 open, “but only if the road closure is changed to a temporary closure and leased from the county.” The arrangement allows the applicant to put up a “no trespassing” sign while leaving the option of having the road allowance remain a public access in future. However, landowners to the north confirmed they use the access for farming their lands, and would need another access point off R.R. 180 if Twp. Rd. 502 were closed. As a temporary closure, Alberta Transportation may erect a “no access” or “dead end” sign.
A motion for first reading by Councillor Barry Bruce (Division 4) was passed by council. A motion by Deputy Reeve Gene Hrabec (Division 3) to refer the proposed bylaw to Alberta Transportation for approval was then passed. Second and third (final) readings will be considered after that process is completed.