Agenda item

The Acting Assistant Chief Fire Officer presented the report. 

The Strategic Assessment of Risk identified the increasing impacts and consequences of climate change in terms of both prevalence and duration of large-scale flooding and wildfire events in the county.  The Community Risk Management Plan (CRMP) 2022-27 detailed high-level ambitions in response to those emerging risks and the Climate Change Operational Response Plan (CCORP) 2022-27 aimed to provide a more detailed overview of how the provision of services to our communities would be strengthened to ensure that LFRS remained best placed to plan and respond to incidents of these types.

It was noted that the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change  (IPCC) earlier in 2021, shared a view on the current ‘State of the Climate’:

“The scale of recent changes across the climate system as a whole and the present state of many aspects of the climate system are unprecedented over many centuries to many thousands of years.

“Many changes in the climate system become larger in direct relation to increasing global warming. They include increases in the frequency and intensity of hot extremes, marine heatwaves, and heavy precipitation, agricultural and ecological droughts in some regions, and proportion of intense tropical cyclones, as well as reductions in Arctic Sea ice, snow cover and permafrost”.

A key element of their observations was that:

“Continued global warming is projected to further intensify the global water cycle, including its variability, global monsoon precipitation and the severity of wet and dry events”.

Armed with this insight and to ensure LFRS’ preparedness and response capabilities, the five-year plan detailed LFRS’ ambitions in response to emerging evidence and warnings on the likely impacts of climate change. 

As the extremes of foreseeable weather events were evident, the action plan would consider flooding and wildfire as two separate areas of focus, whilst recognising that some of the proposed actions to be taken, would serve to mitigate aspects of both risks in tandem.

In delivering against this plan, the aim was to:

•        Reduce the threat to the communities in Lancashire

•        Improve firefighter safety

•        Reduce the costs and impact upon LFRS, partners and our communities

Key principles outlined in the plan integrated activities across preparedness, prevention, protection and operational response.  Several key principles that guided activities were:

1.    Working in partnership with other agencies and/or private bodies to make our communities safer;

2.    Delivering prevention activities serves to educate and inform and thereby reduce potential risks;

3.    Empowering communities to play their part can increase local resilience and assist planning and response;

4.    Utilising operational debriefing and learning supports continuous improvement in the delivery of our services;                                                                                                                     

5.    Working to support local, regional, and national policy design through learning and sharing areas of best practice;

6.    Responding effectively when required, with the right vehicles, trained staff, best equipment, and operational tactics.

Members considered the report in detail which included the legal framework, causation factors and incident demand which demonstrated that both flooding and wildfire incidents had increased over recent years.  It was noted that 2021 figures did not include the winter period and it was expected that the report would be updated with the complete year’s figures prior to publication.  The report also included that when local and wide area flooding events and wildfires did occur, these events could lead to significant risk to life, damage to communities and infrastructure. It was noted that LFRS was part of the Lancashire Resilience Forum and worked with upper and lower tier councils and a wide range of partners to ensure communities were prepared. Areas of Lancashire which are known to be particularly vulnerable had established flood action groups and community resilience plans. The impact on property and infrastructure were also noted.  Lancashire faced a particular threat from flooding and wildfire due to the proximity of rivers, forestry and heathland to property and major transport routes.  Large areas at risk from flooding and wildfire were directly adjacent to commercially and residentially developed areas, consequently a major event had the real potential to damage an assortment of buildings and property. The report also set out the social impact (in terms of direct and indirect risk to Lancashire’s communities) and the economic costs which could severely impact the viability of commercial enterprise and threaten jobs which could damage the sustainability of local economies.

The prevention, protection and education section (from page 70 of the agenda pack) provided an overview of what the Service was doing to mitigate risks and what its future aspirations were to reduce the number, scale and impact of these types of incidents including the continuous learning and improving from experience to identify opportunities for improvement to practices and personal protective equipment.  Staff welfare was of primary significance particularly when operating over protracted periods in arduous conditions.

Members commended the detail in the report and welcomed the Service aspirations that supported new equipment and training for staff.  The Acting Assistant Chief Fire Officer confirmed that any additional costs would be included in the budget setting papers to the full Authority.

The Deputy Chief Fire Officer added that the Fire and Rescue Services Act 2004 provided for the Service to become a rescue service.  Due to prevention work the Service had seen a decline in traditional fires however, over time there had been an increase in flooding and wildfire incidents.  In the past the fire sector had called for statutory responsibility for responding to flooding incidents given the need to invest, train and be prepared for these types of incidents.  He took this opportunity to acknowledge Bay Search and Rescue, a local charity who worked in partnership with LFRS in providing logistic and technical rescue support (personnel and a range of dedicated rescue vehicles).

County Councillor Kay, as the Authority’s Member Champion for Health and Wellbeing (which included the responsibility for climate change issues) advised that she had approached schools in Wyre to gain views of young people on climate change to raise awareness and assist with future planning.

RESOLVED: - that the Planning Committee noted and endorsed the Climate Change Operational Response Plan 2022?27 for publication.