What is a risk mitigation plan?
A mitigation plan is a community-validated document that proposes strategies to minimize the effects of natural and human-caused hazards before they occur. The plan identifies and describes the hazards that impact a specific geographic area, estimating their frequency and magnitude. It also identifies community assets that are at risk or susceptible to these hazards. After understanding the risks that could affect the area, strategies are proposed to reduce or eliminate these risks in the long term and protect communities from the assessed hazards.
Why is it important to develop a plan at the river basin level?
Creating a watershed-level mitigation plan is important because natural hazards create risks that transcend municipal boundaries. This regional plan allows for:
- implement comprehensive mitigation approaches to reduce risks that affect multiple jurisdictions
- avoid duplication of efforts
- improve communication and coordination between jurisdictions and other regional entities
- Expand the resources of municipalities – institutional and fiscal – by identifying mitigation actions and strategies whose viability can benefit from collaborative implementation among municipalities.
- Maximize economy by leveraging individual capabilities and sharing costs and resources.
Why is public participation important in the development of the Plan?
The Plan is the final product, but the process of developing it is extremely important. The knowledge and information provided by the communities and citizen participation are integral to the development of the Mitigation Plan. Mitigation offers a wide range of benefits to communities—social, environmental, and economic. The benefits of creating this plan will help strengthen and protect the communities where we live, work, and enjoy life. The plan seeks to secure funding to address many of the challenges faced daily in estuarine communities.
Benefits of risk mitigation
Mitigating risks means investing in future development, sustainability, and security. Acting now reduces the impact of a potential disaster. Some of the benefits include:
- protects life and property
- reduces or eliminates the risks to which communities are exposed
- It reduces response costs and accelerates the recovery process.
- minimizes the exposure of first responders to risks
- prevents disruptions in essential services
- It improves public health and the quality of life of the population
Why does this Plan need to be reviewed every 5 years?
Risk mitigation plans should be reviewed every 5 years, primarily to integrate socioeconomic and physical changes, reassess the hazards to be evaluated, considering the impact of climate change, and reflect progress in the implementation of proposed mitigation actions, so that long-term risks are effectively reduced or eliminated.
What risks will be assessed and taken into consideration for this Plan?
