DFES submission to Government calls for incentives to recruit volunteer firefighters to ease burden on ADF

Incentives to help recruit and retain emergency services volunteers should be considered as the Federal Government wrestles with how to ease the burden on the Australian Defence Force in natural disasters. In a wide-ranging submission to the Commonwealth, WA’s Department of Fire and Emergency Services also suggested re-purposing retired ADF aircraft to assist with aerial firefighting and adding emergency management to the school curriculum to build resilience in local communities. The Federal Government is examining options to reduce the reliance on the ADF in domestic emergencies after the already stretched military was regularly called up during a horror three-year span that included Black Summer and the COVID-19 pandemic. The landmark Defence Strategic Review concluded the ADF must be a “force of last resort” as it was not “structured or equipped” to double as a disaster agency while fulfilling its main job of protecting the country. Building up the numbers of volunteer firefighters and unpaid SES personnel is considered one part of the solution given their position on the frontline of natural disasters. In the submission, DFES commissioner Darren Klemm noted 91 per cent of responders to emergencies in WA were volunteers. Mr Klemm said a “contemporary policy position” was needed to sustain the workforce, suggesting the Commonwealth — along with the States and territories — examine potential incentives to encourage people to join the volunteer ranks. The NSW Government also supported the idea in its submission, putting forward tax relief as one option to compensate people for taking time off work to volunteer. DFES would not be drawn on what type of incentives should be offered when contacted by The West, saying only that it was keen to work with the Commonwealth and other states on options to support volunteers before and after emergencies. The submission also suggested retired ADF aircraft could be reborn to help with aerial firefighting as well as air transport, including after cyclones and floods in the State’s north. Having a sovereign fleet of aircraft was becoming more important, Mr Klemm wrote, as climate change and overlapping northern and southern hemisphere fire seasons increased global competition for planes. The Commonwealth’s large air tanker - the centrepiece of the nation’s fleet of firefighting aircraft - has been deployed to WA multiple times during the summer fire season. DFES said including emergency management into school curriculums should also be considered to help future generations “better manage their own resilience”. “Community education to make emergency management part of the school curriculum will bring generational change and normalise community participation and resilience,” the submission said. A Federal Government spokesman welcomed the feedback to the review but would not be drawn on DFES’ specific suggestions. “This feedback process will be used to inform future investment and planning by the Australian Government to ensure we are better prepared for more intense and more frequent natural disasters,” the spokesman said. “Opportunities for greater education and involvement in disaster response are welcomed by the Albanese Government, and we will continue to work on measures to encourage both.”