The Houston Chronicle published an editorial on Sunday sharing the five lessons they think we can learn from Texas’s experience with Hurricane Ike. The article is short and well worth a quick read. We particularly liked number four: Better and smarter building makes sense Hurricanes may not discriminate, but the damage they inflict on buildings […]
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Smart Growth Guide for Coastal and Waterfront Communities Released
Posted on September 9, 2009
Today the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the International City/County Management Association, and Rhode Island Sea Grant released Smart Growth for Coastal and Waterfront Communities. Developed in consultation with the national Smart Growth Network, the interagency guide builds on the network’s ten smart growth principles to create coastal and waterfront-specific strategies […]
North Carolina Amends Innovative Beach Plan
Posted on September 3, 2009
The latest newsletter from the Institute for Business and Home Safety reports on some of the more forward-thinking innovations in the recently passed amendments North Carolina Beach Plan, including some interesting building code and insurance revisions: Legislation that amends North Carolina’s state-funded coastal insurance plan, known as the Beach Plan, was recently signed by Gov. […]
How it Adds Up: FEMA in Mississippi Four Years After Katrina
Posted on August 29, 2009
In recognition of today’s fourth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina’s devastating Gulf Coast landfall, FEMA has released a summary of federal spending/efforts in the state of Mississippi (perhaps other Gulf state numbers will follow?): $9.5 billion: Total FEMA has already spent in Mississippi (up approximately $500 million since 2008). $3 billion: FEMA obligated funds for infrastructure […]
Updated Extreme Weather Information Sheets Available
Posted on August 21, 2009
The NOAA Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management has released an updated version of their popular and extremely handy Extreme Weather Information Sheet series for (all PDFs) Texas, Louisiana Southwest, Louisiana Southeast, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida Northwest, Florida North Central, Florida Northeast, Florida West Central, Florida East Central, Florida Southwest, Florida Miami Dade, and Florida […]
New TV Program on Coastal Watersheds Now Online [UPDATED]
Posted on August 20, 2009
All programs in the series “Gambling Against Mother Nature” are now available online. Hurricanes, Storms and Impacts on Coast“Wind and Water” (aired last month, available online here) Coastal Watersheds “Water Runs Down Hill” (available online now) Storms and Insurance”Hedging Our Bets” (available online now) The full series will be available on DVD after the last […]
FEMA Proposes Payout Cuts for Repairs of Repetitively Damaged Facilities
Posted on August 12, 2009
FEMA has published a proposed regulation to allow for a reduction of the federal cost share for restoration of repetitively damaged facilities that have not undergone appropriate mitigation measures. The proposed rule would apply only to public and eligible private nonprofit facilities that have been damaged three times by the same type of event within […]
Hurricane Resistant "Louisiana Lift House" Launched
Posted on August 11, 2009
In the aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina & Rita in November 2005 a unique partnership formed with the Terrebonne Readiness and Assistance Coalition (TRAC) to design sustainable affordable housing for the rural coastal bayou regions of Louisiana. A true collaborative effort, the Lift House has been designed in partnership with Oxfam America, Sigus-MIT, and TRAC and […]
Television Programs Promote Storm Resilience
Posted on August 6, 2009
Gambling against Mother Nature is a three-part television series produced in partnership by NOAA’s Coastal Storms Program, the Mississippi/Alabama Sea Grant Consortium, WKRG-TV, the City of Orange Beach, Alabama, and grassroots, inc. to encourage wiser development along the Gulf Coast. Wind and Water: Beaches, Barrier Islands, and Storm Surge, the first of the three 30-minute […]
"Planning for Climate Change" Workshop Materials Released
Posted on August 6, 2009
Developed as a national project for NOAA’s National Estuarine Research Reserve System, the “Planning for Climate Change” workshop is geared primarily toward shoreline planners and was developed so that Coastal Training Programs (and other programs/agencies) can customize the workshop and use it as part of their climate change educational efforts. While it lays a foundation […]