STATE of OREGON“Best Practices for Supporting Locals”

Marian Lahav, Natural Hazards Planner, DLCD

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COMMUNICATION HOW DO YOU REACH OUT TO LOCALS ABOUT

HAZARDS, RISKS, AND RISK REDUCTION?

Oregon Office of Emergency Management (OEM)• Direct Technical Assistance for Mitigation Project

Development• Applicant Briefings for Major Disaster Declarations (PA &

HMGP)• Meetings of the Oregon Emergency Management

Association• Annual EMPG Meeting for County Emergency Managers• Web page for HMGP (DR-4169) & HMA Offerings (PDM14

& FMA14)

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COMMUNICATION HOW DO YOU REACH OUT TO LOCALS ABOUT

HAZARDS, RISKS, AND RISK REDUCTION?

Oregon Department of Land Conservation & Development (DCLD)• State NHMP Website and Listserv• State Flood Hazard Website and Listserv• State Risk MAP Website• Technical Support

Natural Hazards Staff Coastal Hazards Specialists Regional Representatives Natural Hazards Staff

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COMMUNICATION HOW DO YOU REACH OUT TO LOCALS ABOUT

HAZARDS, RISKS, AND RISK REDUCTION?

Oregon Department of Geology & Mineral Industries (DOGAMI)

(in addition to DLCD’s responses)

• DOGAMI web site and HazVu web application (Hazard Viewer)

• Risk MAP Discovery Meetings• Ongoing hazards outreach by DOGAMI Earth Science Info.

Officer• Technical Support

Natural Hazards Staff

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COMMUNICATION HOW DO YOU REACH OUT TO LOCALS ABOUT

HAZARDS, RISKS, AND RISK REDUCTION?

Oregon Water Resources Department (OWRD)• Develop and review emergency action plans with local

governments• Meet with local governments and residents and develop

individual emergency plans when issues posing safety concerns occur

• Meet with local governments and residents to educate them about potential dam safety risks and mitigation and disaster response actions they can take on their own

• Educate local government officials on procedures for obtaining drought declarations and potential relief might be available from a declaration

• Web page devoted to drought

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COMMUNICATION HOW DO YOU REACH OUT TO LOCALS ABOUT

HAZARDS, RISKS, AND RISK REDUCTION?

Oregon Partnership for Disaster Resilience (OPDR)• Direct technical assistance to local communities for

Mitigation Planning In coordination with OEM and the State Interagency Hazard

Mitigation Team (IHMT) On an annual basis, coordinated with local NHMP update

cycles and FEMA HMA offerings

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COMMUNICATION WHAT CAN FEMA DO TO ASSIST COMMUNICATION

BETWEEN YOU AND LOCALS?

OEM• Continue to keep FEMA.GOV current with program

offerings, regulations, and related documentation.• Quarterly FEMA program staff meetings with state to

include project site visits

DLCD• Make sure to include DLCD in the communications loop

with locals when the issue(s) touch on land use.• Give accurate and consistent information and messages

to local government and the public.• Engage in long-term coordination on technical issues (GIS

data sets, web services, libraries, etc.).

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COMMUNICATION WHAT CAN FEMA DO TO ASSIST COMMUNICATION

BETWEEN YOU AND LOCALS?

DLCD (continued)

• Provide literature specific to Region X in addition to national brochures, FAQs, etc.

• Spend time meeting face-to-face with people at both state and local levels to build trust and credibility.

• At the beginning of each Risk MAP project, introduce all participating members of the project team, their respective roles, and idealized timelines.

• Clarify the lines of communication between FEMA contractors and State NFIP and Risk MAP Coordinators.

• Share information early and often.

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COMMUNICATION WHAT CAN FEMA DO TO ASSIST COMMUNICATION

BETWEEN YOU AND LOCALS?

DOGAMI (in addition to DLCD’s responses)

• Make sure to include DOGAMI in the communications loop with locals when referencing technical work we performed in their jurisdiction.

• Provide technical clarity and support when needed on projects.

• Participate in Discovery meetings, project coordination meetings, and conference calls to show support and provide guidance for the projects.

OWRD• Help fill the communications gap about severe and

extreme floods, when they are occurring, and what to do when multiple county governments’ emergency capacities are exceeded.

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COMMUNICATION WHAT CAN FEMA DO TO ASSIST COMMUNICATION

BETWEEN YOU AND LOCALS?

OPDR• OPDR regularly coordinates with and receives assistance

from FEMA Region X staff on local NHMP communication matters.  OPDR needs no additional assistance is needed at this time regarding NHMP planning matters.

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PLANNING HOW DO YOU SUPPORT/HOW ARE YOU INVOLVED IN

THE PLANNING EFFORTS OF LOCALS?

OEM• Not as much as I should! (that would be the SHMO

talking)• Plan Reviews: As the “Deputy” SHMO for local mitigation

planning, Joseph Murray is involved in coordinating local plan reviews with the Region and providing technical assistance to local governments.

• Making sure risk reduction actions are designated (and prioritized) as plan implementation measures as appropriate

• Coordinating application for grant program funding (HMGP and PDM) for local plan development and updates

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PLANNING HOW DO YOU SUPPORT/HOW ARE YOU INVOLVED IN

THE PLANNING EFFORTS OF LOCALS?

DLCD• Providing direct technical assistance

Pilot project to integrate NHMP into Comp Plan (Madras) Implementing Oregon Statewide Planning Goal 7 with respect

to new landslide hazard maps for Clackamas County NFIP implementation Risk MAP implementation Coastal Planners Network Meetings Tsunami Land Use Guide Salmon Recovery through Floodplain Management Guide Community-focused GIS assistance

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PLANNING HOW DO YOU SUPPORT/HOW ARE YOU INVOLVED IN THE

PLANNING EFFORTS OF LOCALS?

DOGAMI (in addition to DLCD’s responses)

• Providing multi-hazard expertise, guidance, data and maps Clackamas County landslide inventory data and maps Tsunami evacuation planning, evacuation route improvements Risk MAP product creation (depth grids, exposure analysis)

• Participating in a coordinated planning effort of multiple agencies to leverage resources, communicate needs, and develop partnerships that support the creation and update of local hazard mitigation plans

OPDR• OPDR provides direct training, technical assistance and

planning support in the form of process facilitation and plan writing to communities throughout the state.

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PLANNING WHAT SUPPORT CAN FEMA PROVIDE TO THE STATE TO

SUPPORT RISK REDUCTION PLANNING EFFORTS?

OEM• Continue the excellent support provided by Risk Analysis

Branch.• Get the annual HMA offerings back on track with a normal

application period and process. Move to approve and obligate selected projects more quickly.

DLCD• Make funding available for incremental improvements instead

of only for complete plans (e.g., a Hazus run, a hazard-related study, or updating a planning document without producing a complete NHMP).

• Develop a plan to run Hazus for the entire state.• Formally involve DLCD Regional Planners in Risk MAP Discovery

& Risk Report analysis.

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PLANNING WHAT SUPPORT CAN FEMA PROVIDE TO THE STATE TO

SUPPORT RISK REDUCTION PLANNING EFFORTS?

DLCD (continued)

• Help coordinate FEMA/OEM mitigation opportunities with Risk MAP efforts.

• Communicate with the state what support Region X is providing or is planning to provide to local governments.

• Share results of FEMA’s direct support to local governments with the state (e.g., Hazus runs).

DOGAMI• Support the State’s priorities for flood hazard analysis

needs. Improve A Zones. Retire the paper maps in the state (new studies or map mod

project).

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PLANNING WHAT SUPPORT CAN FEMA PROVIDE TO THE STATE

TO SUPPORT RISK REDUCTION PLANNING EFFORTS?

OPDR• FEMA can lobby directly with state administration for, and

support state agency efforts to increase the allocation of state resources designated to mitigation planning and risk reduction projects.

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REGULATIONS HOW DO YOU ENFORCE REGULATIONS MEANT TO

REDUCE RISK?

OEM• Post-Acquisition Open Space Enforcement• Deed restrictions on elevated properties for flood

insurance and non-conversion of elevated space

DLCD• Through the NFIP• Through Statewide Planning Goal 7

DOGAMI & OPDR• No role in enforcement

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REGULATIONS DO LOCALS UNDERSTAND THE REGULATIONS? DO

THEY CHALLENGE THEM?

OEM• Not all the time, but with direct technical assistance they

will understand if the regulations are not enforced there are implications. OEM is not a pro-active enforcement agency … more opportunistic (other than the 3-year open space property reporting requirements).

DLCD• Generally local governments do understand the

regulations.• Local governments often challenge the data (“It never

floods here!”).

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REGULATIONS DO LOCALS UNDERSTAND THE REGULATIONS? DO

THEY CHALLENGE THEM?

OPDR• In our experience, locals do understand regulations when

they are made aware of them.  However, awareness of the range of hazard regulations is not particularly high.  This is exacerbated by limited resources and technical capacity to address hazard regulation at the local level.

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REGULATIONS WHAT SUPPORT CAN FEMA PROVIDE TO ASSIST YOUR

REGULATORY PROCESSES?

OEM• Streamline and “Automate” the 3-year Open Space Property

Reporting Requirements.

DLCD• Provide accurate and consistent information and messages

tailored to the region to local governments.• Communicate through state on local government regulatory

issues.• Recognize the limitations of smaller communities.

OPDR• FEMA can lobby directly with state administration for, and

support state agency efforts to increase the allocation of state resources designated to the enforcement of hazard regulations.

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ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

The State of Oregon has no additional comments at this time.

Thank you!