American communities that lose military installations can survive. So says the Pentagon, which is moving forward with another round of base closures. Many cities and counties even find that the loss of a base can be transformed into a new economic opportunity.

Spokane doesn’t want to find out.

U.S. military presence accounts for $570 million, or nearly 9 percent, of the wages and salaries paid in Spokane County, according to a recent study by the state Office of Financial Management. Fairchild Air Force Base itself buys $14 million in goods and services from Spokane County businesses each year. Statewide, the OFM report estimated military installations’ impact at more than $7.2 billion.

The Defense Department puts little weight on local economic impact of bases. It looks primarily at whether they are in the right place to serve the nation’s defense needs over the next 20 years.

The OFM report, therefore, is important not because of the impression it will make on the Pentagon but because of the fire it should build under state and local leaders. Credit the Spokane Regional Chamber of Commerce for recognizing the issue early and mounting a strong campaign on the air base’s behalf.

Not that the Pentagon needs the community’s help to understand Fairchild’s value to the air refueling mission — far enough inland to be removed from easy coastal attacks, yet close enough to be in convenient range for an Asian Pacific response. Or that the Air Force Survival School and other activities here reflect a multifaceted role that maximizes the use of Fairchild.

That’s the kind of information that will make an impression on Pentagon officials and the closure commission, once it’s appointed. Also vital will be evidence of community support for the base and the personnel who staff it.

Will land-use pressures so confine the base as to create tension between the military mission and the civilian culture? Will municipal services, such as public transit, be designed in a way that integrates uniformed personnel with the community?

Such issues have military relevance, and civic leaders and community members can affect them.

In four previous base closure rounds, the Defense Department has made reductions that are credited with saving $7 billion a year.

What Spokane leaders can do — especially state and federal lawmakers — is to follow the Chamber’s lead. Take a clear-headed look at Fairchild Air Force Base, understand its strategic advantages, and lend their support as the base assessment proceeds.