Emergency Management Australia (EMA) was an
Australian Government
The Australian Government, also known as the Commonwealth Government, is the national government of Australia, a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy. Like other Westminster-style systems of government, the Australian Government ...
body responsible for
emergency management coordination. EMA was transferred from the
Attorney-General's Department in a machinery of government change to become a division of the newly established
Department of Home Affairs in 2018. EMA involved the plans, structures and arrangements which are established to bring together the normal endeavours of government, voluntary and private agencies in a comprehensive and coordinated way to deal with the whole spectrum of emergency needs including prevention, preparedness, response and recovery.
Until late 2001, EMA was an agency within the former
Australian Defence Force Support Command and then the
Department of Defence Corporate Support Group.
In July 2022, the
Albanese government announced that it would recommend the
Governor-General to merge the agency and the
National Recovery and Resilience Agency on 1 September 2022 to form a new agency. The new agency was later known as the
National Emergency Management Agency.
Role
Australian state and territory authorities have a constitutional responsibility, within their boundaries, for coordinating and planning for the response to
disaster
A disaster is a serious problem occurring over a short or long period of time that causes widespread human, material, economic or environmental loss which exceeds the ability of the affected community or society to cope using its own resources ...
s and civil emergencies.
When the total resources (government, community and commercial) of an affected state or territory cannot reasonably cope with the needs of the situation, the state or territory government can seek assistance from the Australian Government.
On request, the Australian Government will provide and coordinate physical assistance to the States in the event of a major natural, technological or civil defence emergency. Such physical assistance will be provided when State and Territory resources are inappropriate, exhausted or unavailable. The Australian Government accepts responsibility and prepares plans for providing Commonwealth physical resources in response to such requests. Emergency Management Australia is nominated as the agency responsible for planning and coordinating Commonwealth physical assistance to the states and territories under the Commonwealth Government Disaster Response Plan (COMDISPLAN).
Planning
The Commonwealth Government Disaster Response Plan (COMDISPLAN) provides the framework for addressing state and territory requests for Commonwealth physical assistance arising from any type of emergency. COMDISPLAN is normally activated when Commonwealth assistance for emergency response or short-term recovery is requested or likely to be requested.
Structure
After the 2009 restructure of the
Attorney-General's Department, responsibility for the Australian Emergency Management Institute (formerly the Emergency Management Australia Institute) was taken over by the National Security Capability Development Division.
EMA is made up of the Crisis Management Branch, Disaster Recovery Branch, and the Disaster Preparedness Branch.
See also
*
Emergency Management Queensland
*
Australasian Fire and Emergency Services Authorities Council
*
FEMA
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS), initially created under President Jimmy Carter by Presidential Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1978 and implemented by two Ex ...
, FEMA is not directly EMA's equivalent in the
United States of America
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...
, however the agencies share some common responsibilities.
*
RMIT Centre for Risk & Community Safety
References
External links
Official website
{{Authority control
Emergency management in Australia
Defunct Commonwealth Government agencies of Australia