Engineering Division, Dam Safety

Portland, Ore., July 19, 2014 – A “open” class finisher powers through his last obstacle of the Disaster Relief Trials, a shallow water crossing. Pools of displaced water is one of the anticipated challenges riders would face in a real earthquake scenario.

Portland, Ore., July 19, 2014 – Rando the bulldog and his owner came to the FEMA Disaster Relief Trials booth to learn more about protecting themselves in a Cascadia Subduction Zone earthquake. Pet preparedness is a campaign that FEMA Region X focuses on to highlight the importance of planning for your pets as well as your family.

Portland, Ore., July 19, 2014 – Yajaira Reyes, a member for FEMA Corps team Blue 5, helped a young child understand about earthquake shaking intensity in his hometown. Educating children about what they can do in a disaster is a key component of a family emergency communications plan, a core element of disaster preparedness.

Portland, Ore., July 19, 2014 – FEMA Corps team Blue 5 member David Solis helped a gentleman pinpoint where he is from on the Cascadia Subduction Zone Earthquake Map at FEMA’s booth. The map depicted shaking intensity so viewers can better understand how a major earthquake would affect them.

Portland, Ore., July 19, 2014 – This rider puts out a fire as part of the Fiets of Parenthood obstacle course at the Disaster Relief Trials (DRT). Fiets of Parenthood, another family biking event in Portland, is a sponsor of the Portland DRT.

In 2011, FEMA undertook a multi-year project to improve the way guidelines and standards are published, maintained and used. The final product of the first phase of work is the Policy for Flood Risk Analysis and Mapping, which comprises the standards for practitioners of the Risk MAP program. The Policy for Flood Risk Analysis and Mapping outlines FEMA’s requirements to produce better overall consistency and more efficient operation of mapping activities. In the past, FEMA published guidelines and standards in single documents comprising a document library. In the new policy, the standards are published separately from guidance. The vast majority of these standards are ones that are already in place and existing, extracted from the existing guidelines and standards documents into standalone statements. At the high level, this transformation does not change the way the program operates. However, for practitioners working on Flood Risk Projects, there are a number of standards that are new or significantly changed. The Policy for Flood Risk Analysis and Mapping represents the vision of the transformation processes and has set the stage for future updates and revisions. The new policy also includes mapping elements from the Biggert-Waters Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2012 (BW12). Many of the substantial reforms in BW12 are required to be implemented in coordination with the new Technical Mapping Advisory Council (TMAC). The development and implementation of these additional changes will happen over the next several years as the TMAC makes its recommendations to FEMA.

Guidance documents provide best practices for FEMA's Risk MAP program. These guidance documents are intended to support current FEMA standards and facilitate effective and efficient implementation of the program. All guidance documents were written to support FEMA standards, but nothing presented in this document is considered mandatory. Alternate approaches that comply with standards that support program objectives are also acceptable.

To help you navigate the available guidance and related documentation, there are additional instructions for Finding Standards, Guidance, and Related Documents.

Technical References are specifications of a technical nature essential to the success of the program but too granular to be considered standards. These are database, product and documentation requirements where consistency is needed.  There are a number of standards that mandate compliance with the Technical References.

To help you navigate the available templates/other resources and related documentation, there are additional instructions for Finding Standards, Guidance, and Related Documents.

This Strategic Plan for the National Dam Safety Program (NDSP) for Fiscal Years (FY) 2012 through 2016 was developed to present the goals and objectives established by FEMA and its partners in the NDSP to reduce the hazards from dam failures and demonstrate the benefits of dams in the United States.

The National Dam Safety Program (NDSP) is a national program that targets the improvement of dams and the safety of those who live in surrounding communities. Since it was first authorized by Congress in 1996, there have been marked improvements in the safety of many of our Nation’s dams. This is directly attributable to what NDSP has been able to achieve since its inception. Beginning in 2012, FEMA began to highlight key NDSP accomplishments on a yearly basis to advance awareness and understanding of the important role NDSP plays to reduce risk, promote benefits, and enhance safety surrounding our Nation’s dams. The Year-in-Review provides the progress of NDSP along with important accomplishments that continue across all NDSP elements, including State assistance, research, training, and the alignment of NDSP within the emergency management and resilience frameworks.

In this issue receive information about the 2013 Florida Statewide Hurricane Exercise, Higher Education Resources Consortium (HERC) Group Revival, NCR Hazus User Group Revival, Regional Training Courses, and future Hazus User Group call dates.

In this issue: Hazus is the 2012 Government Security News Winner for the Most Notable Emergency Response Implementation, University of Singapore Cooperative, Linking Hazus with Proactive Mitigation in Delaware, Online LOMC Application, Hazus Help Desk Updates, and future Hazus User Group call dates.

This factsheet provides information about the Risk MAP Progress Website, which is an interactive geoportal that was developed to provide transparency and communicate FEMA’s investments towards achieving its vision and goals for Risk MAP.   The FEMA Risk MAP Progress website is accessible from the Risk MAP webpage, http://www.fema.gov/rm-main.

FEMA conducted its second nationwide survey of local officials to baseline, then track progress toward, achieving Goal 2 of the Risk MAP Multi-Year Plan, which is to “Ensure that a measurable increase of the public’s awareness and understanding of risk management results in a measurable reduction of current and future vulnerability to flooding.” The results from the local official survey are valid at the national level. The following are key findings.

Public Survey: In 2011, FEMA conducted its second annual nationwide survey of U.S. households to track progress toward achieving Goal 2 of the Risk MAP Multi-Year Plan, which is to “Ensure that a measurable increase of the public’s awareness and understanding of risk management results in a measurable reduction of current and future vulnerability to flooding.”
The results from the public survey are valid at the national and regional levels. The following are the key findings from the survey.