Tioga County updating mitigation plan

Tioga County officials announced plans Friday to formally update the county's hazard mitigation plan.

Officials from the county department of emergency management, planning department and soil and water conservation district hope to have a draft of the updated plan completed by the end of spring, according to a release from the county. The plan was last updated and approved by the Federal Emergency Management Agency in 2006.

FEMA requires that the plan be formally updated every five years, the release states. Communities must have a FEMA-approved hazard mitigation plan in order to receive pre-disaster mitigation grant funding, which is available for both public and private properties.

A hazard mitigation plan is a living document which forms the foundation for a community to reduce their vulnerability to natural disasters, cut down losses and rebuild the damage that does occur.

Updating the plan will allow the county and its municipalities to continue to be eligible to apply for mitigation grants. An update would also give county officials the chance to revisit its vulnerability to natural hazards, evaluate the results of the original plan and add new projects.

"Ultimately, these actions reduce vulnerability, and communities are able to recover more quickly from disasters," the release states.

All of the county's municipalities have committed to participating in the plan update process, according to the release.

Waverly trustees agreed to participate in the plan at their Tuesday meeting. Ron Keene, the village's representative for the county council of governments, said he attended a recent meeting about the plan.

The updated plan "will affect every community in the county," Keene told trustees Tuesday. "It's quite a program."

County officials have asked for public input as it drafts the updated plan. Citizens can take a hazard preparedness survey at the county's website,

www.tiogacountyny.com. The county will also hold public outreach events during the plan update process and provide sections of the updated draft on the county website as they become available.

For more information, contact Wendy Walsh of the Tioga County Soil and Water Conservation District at (607) 687-3553 or walshw@co.tioga.ny.us or Dick LeCount at the county Department of Emergency Management at (607) 687-2023 or tcemo@co.tioga.ny.us.

Amanda Renko can be reached at (570) 888-9652; or email: arenko@thedailyreview.com.