FEMA and Cooperating Technical Partners Collaborate for More Resilient Communities

By Laura Algeo, National Cooperating Technical Partners Program
Coordinator

A major risk faced by communities across the country every year
is flooding. I have been working on reducing risks due to flooding
for over 20 years and know coming up with solutions is complicated.
Each community’s unique qualities, like the landscape, buildings,
population, and weather, define the kind of risk they face. There
are so many people and groups that have pieces to that puzzle. When
we build partnerships, we get a better picture of not just the risk
but also how we can work together to reduce it.

I coordinate the Cooperating
Technical Partners� program, which is made up of tribal
nations, communities, territories, universities, non-profits, and
regional and state agencies, all of whom make the difference in
reducing risk. They work with, and in, communities to identify,
reduce, and plan for risks. I get to see how our network of more
than 300 members is one of our greatest strengths.

Partners are in every FEMA region and represent all sizes of
community. They work on identifying flood hazards and risk,
communicating that risk, helping communities to find unique ways to
reduce their risk, and more.  Over the last two decades, there have
been many successes through these partnerships. I’d like to share
with you some standout partnerships that have been recognized by
their peers and received the Cooperating Technical Partners
Recognition Award.

The following partners all provide excellence in communicating
with their communities and helping them better understand their
risks and act on that knowledge:

• The Iowa Department of Natural
  Resources  developed a web viewer and a process to collect
  community feedback. The goal is to share flood data with
  communities early and often. This results in more open and free
  flowing conversation with everyone in the community. The public
  gets a more direct line back to the state that is working to
  identify their risks. This helps ensure the best possible data and
  study of risk is done.
• The Georgia Department of
  Natural Resources created an online shop to access educational
  tools, plain language materials, and property-specific flood risk
  snapshots. This tool goes a long way to ensure that the public
  understands the risk that their community has and what they can do
  to make their properties safer.
• The Kentucky Division of
  Water  uses a type of virtual reality to help people see and
  understand flood risk in local places in a new way. It is an
  amazing way to put yourself into the area of the flood risk and see
  what the impacts of that risk are on the area around you in an
  in-depth way.

The following partnerships have increased access to modeling and
data that can help communities ensure development that takes place
is done in a safe and forward-thinking way:

• The Harris County Flood
  Control District has been a partner for 20 years. In that time,
  their forward-thinking approach has provided professionals and
  residents within Harris County access to expertise, data, and
  educational opportunities to promote floodplain management, risk
  awareness, and resilience.
• The Indiana Department of
  Natural Resources  developed a place for elected officials,
  floodplain administrators, and residents to access state-specific
  floodplain data. If you are looking to live in Indiana, this site
  has a lot of tools to help you better understand your risk.
• The San Antonio River
  Authority  is part of a watershed master planning and
  floodplain management program. It is developing models to update
  flood hazard data, improve flood warning systems, and highlight
  areas for improvements.

This partner has improved the mapping process in its state:

• The Illinois State Water
  Survey  created a program to streamline the state processes
  with the federal ones to ensure that there is maximum coordination
  with communities. They have developed accurate, easily accessible
  data for every county in Illinois, while maximizing local
  involvement.

Despite our best efforts to avoid damage from flooding, at times
we still face disaster. This partner responded in an exceptional
way to record-breaking floods in 2019.

• Nebraska Department of Natural
  Resources supported floodplain administrators throughout the
  post-disaster period. They captured lessons-learned before, during
  and after the flood event to create a post-disaster handbook. The
  handbook will be available in early 2021.

These examples show how partnerships work in creative and
original ways. I have been involved with the program since it
started in 1999 and the advancements made by all the partners have
helped so many communities become more aware and plan safer for
coming risks. I am excited to see all our partnerships continue to
grow and build understanding of risk and help communities come up
with inventive ways to stay resilient.