Supports and Barriers to the Integration of Hazard Mitigation Plans Into Local Comprehensive Plans
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Date
2014-05
Authors
Ludington, Stacy
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Department of Planning, Public Policy & Management, University of Oregon
Abstract
In 2000, the U.S. federal government passed the Disaster Mitigation Act, which
required local governments to adopt hazard mitigation plans (HMPs) to address
natural and man-made hazards. Most HMPs are developed as!unenforceable, stand
alone documents that have little or no connections with other local plans. The
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) encourages localities with a HMP
to link and integrate it with other local plans that do have legal standing, such as
local comprehensive plans. Lewis(2011) asked to what extent county HMPs were
being integrated into county comprehensive plans and found that little was being
done. This study assesses why this might be the case through the identification and
analysis of the supporting and barrier factors counties face during integration of
these two plans. Six county planners were interviewed in this process; three resided
in counties Lewis identified as having a higher integration score, and three resided
in counties Lewis identified as having a lower integration score. The results reveal
little to no difference between higher and lower scoring counties in regards to their
perception of supports and barriers. However, strong staff and political leadership,
strong community awareness of hazards, and a history of hazard events affecting
the community were consistent supporting factors, while a poor understanding of
what integration looks like, pushback against over regulation, and a question of
responsibility for integration were consistent barrier factors. These results led to
suggestions for improving the integration between HMPs and county level
comprehensive plans for government agencies, county governments, and assistance organizations.
Description
Examining committee: Richard Margerum, chair, Josh Bruce