Alberta municipalities push for expanded police services in rural and remote communities

Alberta municipalities are making a formal call for the provincial government to expand police services in rural and remote areas. 

A resolution about the issue, brought forward by Clearwater County, was passed at the Rural Municipalities of Alberta convention this week. It was brought forward after concerns about rural crime were raised by Albertans living in such communities. 

“We want policing presence that has reasonable response times,” said Clearwater County reeve Jordon Northcott. “Because right now, a lot of the criminals are fully aware that the response times are so long before enforcement can get to site.

“They have a window of opportunity and they break into people's homes, they steal property, they vandalize things.”

Statistics Canada data suggests that rural crime rates in Canada are consistently higher than in urban areas, particularly in the Prairies. This isn’t the first time the RMA has discussed the issue of rural crime; a resolution was also passed in 2018 around the issue. 

Northcott said the resolution came about in part after concerns were raised by residents of the community of Nordegg, located about 300 kilometres southwest of Edmonton. But he said he heard similar concerns from other communities in the province as well.

“If somebody was witnessing a crime, we would report that to Rocky Mountain House, and if they got right on it, [it’s] an hour response time,” said Roy McConnell, the president of the Nordegg Community Association.

Though they did not have a specific statistic for Nordegg on hand when speaking to CBC News, the RCMP said the average response time for Priority 1 and 2 calls in 2024 for the Rocky Mountain House detachment was just under 28 minutes. There are more than 30 officers working there.

The RCMP shared that some of the main calls in Nordegg revolve around property break-ins and theft, search and rescue, and driving-related offences. 

Nordegg is one of a number of small communities that face a unique issue: there is a drop-off of residents in the colder months, meaning many homes are left vacant — and are therefore targets. 

As a result, McConnell shared that residents are putting in security cameras at their homes, and leaving vehicles and valuables locked inside. 

“I would suggest that people would be on edge with respect to leaving their properties unattended.”

RCMP confirmed Nordegg had a rash of break and enters and thefts in June and July with several ATVs being stolen. They said from Aug. 1 to Nov. 20, Nordegg had just one reported theft. 

McConnell said by living at his property full time, he is able to better protect it, unlike part-time residents. But, he added that living in a 200-person community like Nordegg means dealing with crime “comes with the territory."