The Product
This guidebook includes three sections that involve the creation of work products -- Guiding Principles, Hazard Identification and Vulnerability Assessment, and Mitigation Initiatives. In addition to these discrete work products, the checklist included in each section of these guidelines must be completed. The working group discussed in the process sections of this guidebook will complete the various work products that make up the local mitigation strategy.
It is important to view the work products as flowing from one another, rationalizing the proscribed outcomes of the strategy. Initiatives derived from guiding principles, are justified based on the vulnerability assessment. This prevents a strategy from proposing projects that have no basis in a community’s overall vision of hazard mitigation, or in its vulnerability to hazards.
The Guiding Principles section of the strategy articulates the community’s vision for hazard mitigation. This section should emphasize multiple objectives that may be achieved under the goal of mitigation - from the preservation of open space to housing rehabilitation. It is critical that the guiding principles make clear that hazard mitigation and economic development are complementary objectives.
The Hazard Identification and Vulnerability section helps to justify the mitigation initiatives identified in the strategy. It is important to consider the development of the strategy as an iterative process. It is not necessary to wait for the best available data to make informed decisions regarding mitigation. The vulnerability assessment can be based on Flood Insurance Rate Maps, Storm Tide Atlases, and anecdotal information on past floods or other disaster events. Through the Evaluation and Enhancement process built in to these guidelines, recommendations can be made to augment these data sources and better justify a community’s mitigation initiatives.
The Mitigation Initiatives section of the strategy represents the logical outcome of the Guiding Principles and Hazard Identification and Vulnerability Assessment sections. While the checklist included in this section calls for an evaluation of existing and proposed policies, the primary element of this section is the development of a list of mitigation projects and programs. Local governments will be able to identify and prioritize their mitigation needs. This list will help local governments plan to incorporate these mitigation initiatives into their working budget and will also assist the state in advocating for additional funds to support the identified projects after a disaster strikes.
Section 5. Hazard Identification And Vulnerability Assessment
Section 6. Mitigation Initiatives