Government : Meetings set as county begins revising Hazard Mitigation Plan

Benton County will begin the process of revising its Multi-jurisdictional Hazard Mitigation Plan with kick-off meetings at the following locations:

Tuesday, January 27 at the Benton County EOC (East Door of Sheriff’s Office)

Wednesday, January 28 at the Atkins Community Center/City Hall

Tuesday, February 3 at the Van Horne Community Center/City Hall

Thursday, February 5 at the Belle Plaine Community Center

All meetings begin at 7:00 pm.

Benton County’s Hazard Mitigation Plan was originally developed in 2011 by Consultant Steve Meyer. FEMA requires the plans to be updated every five years. The Benton County plan will be submitted to FEMA by February 1, 2016.

A multi-jurisdictional hazard mitigation plan takes all incorporated communities and the unincorporated areas of a county into consideration and also any previous hazard mitigation planning that has occurred in the county. The purpose of a Hazard Mitigation Plan is to identify what natural and manmade disasters a community is vulnerable to and then to also identify steps that may be taken to lessen the impact of such events upon the citizens, their property and community resources. Benton County has received a grant from FEMA to revise the plan. Having a Hazard Mitigation Plan in place is one of the necessary elements for receiving federal hazard mitigation project funds. Benton County has contracted with Emergency Management Consultant Steve Meyer to develop the plan.

The January meetings will be the first meeting of the planning process. At the meeting emergency management consultant Steve Meyer will overview the hazard mitigation planning process, the Benton County Hazard Mitigation Plan and past hazard events that have impacted Benton County. A committee will then determine potential hazards the county is vulnerable to and begin determine mitigation activities to address those hazards.

Benton EMA Coordinator Scott Hansen will serve as the project lead.

These are open public meetings. All citizens and interested parties are invited to attend the meeting and provide comments relative to the plan. Developing a multi-jurisdictional hazard mitigation plan usually requires up to 5 public meetings.

A copy of the current plan can be found at the website www.stevemeyerconsulting.com.

For more information contact: Steve Meyer at Steve Meyer Consulting LLC, 319-477-5041.