Serving Copiah, Hinds, Madison, Rankin, Simpson, Warren, and Yazoo Counties...
Mitigation Planning
Mitigation Planning is an ongoing effort by the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to reduce the impact natural disasters have on people and property through damage prevention. Over the past decade, emergency managers have altered their approach to disaster response and recovery due to the rising cost of natural disasters. Emergency managers no longer approach natural disasters with the sole thought of how to recover from a disaster. Instead, emergency managers stress the importance of pre-disaster or ongoing risk analysis in order to lessen the impact communities sustain from a disaster. Like any other region, the seven counties that comprise CMPDD’s area are vulnerable to many different types of natural disasters. These disasters, which include winter storms, flooding, tornadoes, hurricanes, and thunderstorms, can have substantial human, economic and environmental consequences.
In an effort to reduce or eliminate the long-term risk to human life and property from natural hazards, the Central Mississippi Planning and Development District is working with local jurisdictions in our seven-county region to update and enhance Hazard Mitigation Plans that were developed in 2005. Each plan, which was developed in partnership with MEMA and FEMA, identifies natural hazards that threaten the area, characterizes each jurisdictions vulnerability to those hazards, and outlines an action plan of projects that can be implemented to reduce the identified risks.
Since the implementation of these plans in 2005, many local jurisdictions have taken significant strides to protect the safety and welfare of its residents by implementing strategies outlines in their Mitigation Plan. This has included purchasing emergency generators for critical facilities, implementing drainage improvement project, building community shelters, and improving emergency warning capabilities.
Now as the District begins its efforts to update and enhance the existing plans, the District is seeking public involvement. As with any mitigation planning process, open public involvement is essential to the development of an effective comprehensive plan especially from those who hold a stake in mitigation planning such as neighboring communities, government agencies, academia, businesses, and other private and non-profit organizations. For more information concerning mitigation planning or to find out how you can be involved in the planning process please contact Lesley Callender at (601) 981.1511.
The District along with Magee’s Mitigation Council has completed gathering data to update and revise the city’s mitigation plan. The updated plan is in DRAFT form and can be viewed by clicking on the link below. Those interested in providing comments on the Draft version of Magee’s Mitigation Plan can do so by contacting the
District.
If you are interested in receiving more information about any of the plans in CMPDD’s region that are currently being revised please contact Lesley Callender at (601) 981-1511.
