National Wildlife Federation Report, The Protective Value of Nature: A Review of the Effectiveness of Natural Infrastructure for Hazard Risk Reduction
The National Wildlife Federation, in partnership with Allied World, released a new report summarizing the latest science on the effectiveness of natural infrastructure in lowering the risks to communities from weather- and climate-related hazards. Over the past two decades, the body of research evaluating and quantifying the protective performance of natural infrastructure has increased significantly. Both model-based assessments and empirical evidence from recent floods, hurricanes, wildfires, and other natural disasters underscore the considerable risk reduction services that natural systems such as wetlands, reefs, dunes, floodplains, and forests provide. This report summarizes that body of science and provides some recommendations for appropriately expanding the use of natural defenses to reduce hazard risk.
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USDA Offers New Hurricane Insurance Endorsement for Crop Year 2020
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Risk Management Agency (RMA) today announced a new crop insurance endorsement, Hurricane Insurance Protection – Wind Index (HIP-WI). HIP-WI covers a portion of the deductible of the underlying crop insurance policy when a county, or county adjacent, is within the area of sustained hurricane-force winds.
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Banking on Soil Health
Farmers implementing conservation practices that improve soil health aren’t just hoping for better crop yields, they’re banking on them. The Natural Resources Conservation Service and American Farmland Trust recently released case studies highlighting the economic benefits of implementing soil health management practices.
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ASFPM Flood Science Center
Association of State Floodplain Managers has recorded webinars for your review. The CRS Green Guide, Building CRS Capacity, Open Space Preservation, and Stormwater management. Other resources available are Green Guide, Success Stories and More.
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Planning for Growth and Open Space Conservation Webinar Series
In 2012, USDA-Forest Service embarked on a project to help inform natural resource professionals, land use planners, private landowners and others about the issues facing our forestlands – both public and private – and to help them learn about opportunities and strategies to conserve open space through a series of monthly webinars. Here are archive of these webinars. We hope you find them interesting!
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USDA – Office of the Chief Economist: Webinars On-Demand
The US Department of Agriculture offers many of their past webinars On-Demand. Take the time to review some of the topic that you may have missed live. The webinars include topics like: K-12 Schools Reducing, Recovering, and Recycling Food Waste, Donating Unsold Food – A Primer of Liability, Food Safety, and the Good Samaritan Act, and Cities and Counties Leading Efforts to Reduce Food Waste.
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Farm Bill Conservation Programs: Helping Landowners Manage Their Lands
Through the Farm Bill conservation programs, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service and Farm Service Agency offer financial and technical assistance to landowners and agricultural producers to voluntarily implement conservation practices that will benefit the environment and agricultural operations.
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Colorado Springs Mitigation StoryMap
FEMA released a StoryMap on Colorado Springs’ Wildfire Mitigation and the 2012 Waldo Canyon Fire. Prior to the 2012 fire, Colorado Springs used Pre-Disaster Mitigation grants to implement a wildfire mitigation plan, saving an estimated $75 million and 250 homes.
Learn more by visiting the Colorado Springs Mitigation StoryMap or watching the wildfire mitigation video, “Sharing the Responsibility – Wildfire Mitigation in Colorado Springs, Colorado.”
Lessons Learned from Green Stormwater Infrastructure Design and Construction
Please find below the link to the webinar hosted by NCTCOG on November 19, 2019 titled “Lessons Learned from Green Stormwater Infrastructure Design and Construction.” The main presentation was given by Jake Aalfs of the San Antonio River Authority. The link also includes the discussion from Brenton Dunn and Michelle Wood-Ramirez of the Tarrant Regional Water District (TRWD) regarding TRWD’s green stormwater infrastructure projects in North Central Texas.
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FEMA Release New Wildfire and Windstorm Mitigation Job Aid
DRRA Section 1205 authorizes the use of financial assistance to help reduce the risk of future damage, hardship, loss, or suffering in any area affected by a wildfire or windstorm. FEMA may provide this assistance under Stafford Act Section 203 for pre-disaster mitigation, and under Stafford Act Section 404 for the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP). Section 1205 only applies to Pre-Disaster Mitigation and the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program. HMA has developed a Job Aid on how these activities can be incorporated in eligible mitigation project applications, and a crosswalk to document the program guidance sections and efficiencies that support these activities.
- Hazard Mitigation Grant Program Frequently Asked Questions
- FEMA P-2055, Post-disaster Building Safety Evaluation Guidance
- New Public Assistance 406 Mitigation Brochure
Watershed Academy
The Watershed Academy provides self-paced training modules and webcasts from national experts about a range of watershed management topics.
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USDA-NRCS: Frequently Flooded Ag Land May Be Eligible for NRCS Easement Restoration Program
Temple, Texas, October 1, 2019 — The USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in Texas is taking applications through November 15, 2019 for floodplain easements through the Emergency Watershed Protection Program Floodplain Easement (EWPP-FPE). The program’s focus is to provide landowners with another option for frequently flooded properties such as agricultural fields, forested land, fallow land, pasture and in certain situations residential areas in cooperation with a qualified sponsor.
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Parks and Natural Areas Funding Opportunities
H-GAC provides this list of regional, state, federal, and private funding sources for improving and maintaining parks for information and convenience for parks managers.
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Healthy Wetland, Healthy Watersheds: Leveraging State Wetlands Restoration and Protection Programs to Improve Watershed Health
The manner in which wetland managers approach wetland protection and restoration has changed over the last 25-30 years to incorporate a systems approach, recognizing that wetlands are a component of watersheds, and thus elements within the watershed, but perhaps external to a specific wetland site, need to be integrated into wetland restoration projects.
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Conservation Millage Toolkit – Step-By-Step
While some communities are able to access funding for land conservation from federal and state programs, or gifts from private foundations, businesses, and individual donors, competition for public grants and private dollars is strong. Federal and state funding may be unreliable due to shifting budgets and priorities. Local governments may lack adequate funding to implement their community’s conservation vision because their general fund dollars are allocated to other core services such as fire and emergency response and road maintenance. Local funding through property tax millages for conservation is the only source of funding that a local government and its citizens control.
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Sensors Help Old Stormwater Systems Deal With Floods
In the city of Ann Arbor, the University of Michigan and civil and environmental engineer Branko Kerkez are testing a new generation of smart and connected stormwater systems.
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Review of Changes to the Policy for Flood Risk Analysis and Mapping
FEMA maintains guidelines and standards to support the Risk Mapping, Assessment and Planning program. These guidelines and standards define the specific implementation of the statutory and regulatory requirements for the National Flood Insurance Program.
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Resource: Three ways to cultivate more green space in your community
From vegetable gardens to bike paths, the nonprofit ioby gives tips for starting three types of green space in your neighborhood. Green space provides a multitude of environmental benefits, including: reduced heat buildup, soil erosion, and air pollution, improved rainfall retention, water quality protection, and energy savings as well as benefits to human wellbeing, like: reduced stress and sedentary habits, improved mood, attitude, mindfulness, & creativity.
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NCSL Disaster Mitigation and Recovery Releases New Publications
The National Conference of State Legislatures’ Public-Private Partnership on Disaster Mitigation and Recovery has just released two new publications. Information
- 2019 Disaster Mitigation Legislative Brief. This report details enacted disaster mitigation legislation from 2019 state legislative sessions, across flood, wind, seismic, and wildfire events. Information
- In Case of Emergency: The Role of the Legislator in Natural Disasters. This first-of-its-kind guide details the role of the state legislator in natural disasters both within and beyond the legislative chamber and across disaster mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery. Information
FEMA Hazard Mitigation Assistance Division Year In Review
This document provides an overview of the activities and accomplishments over the course of the year. It also highlights success stories that demonstrate how the HMA Division advances FEMA’s strategic goals of building a culture of preparedness and readying the nation for catastrophic disaster through their grant programs.
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The Wind Energy Workforce in the United States: Training, Hiring, and Future Needs
National Renewable Energy Laboratory’s technical report outlining evidence that there are dynamics beyond supply and demand at play, there is a Workforce Gap. Collegiate Wind Competition.
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