Delta County along with each participating jurisdiction developed an update to the 2008 Multi-Hazard Mitigation Plan (HMP)  to reduce losses resulting from natural disasters. Hazard mitigation is the use of long-term actions to reduce the loss of life, personal injury, and property damage that can result from a disaster. Benefits of mitigation planning include:

• Identifying actions for risk reduction that are agreed upon by stakeholders and the public,
• Focusing resources on the greatest risks and vulnerabilities,
• Building partnerships by involving citizens, organizations, and businesses,
• Increasing education and awareness of threats and hazards, as well as their risks,
• Communicating priorities to State and Federal officials, and
• Aligning risk reduction with other community objectives.

Planning efforts could include capital projects and other pragmatic activities that can mitigate the impacts of hazards. The 2018 MJHMP Update covered each of the major natural hazards that pose risks to County infrastructure and residents. Recognizing that successful mitigation planning efforts must be communicated and understood by the public, the County’s approach included stakeholder participation and input with the use of cutting-edge GIS technology to map and updated the hazard information for each hazard profiled in the 2018 MJHMP.

Participating Jurisdictions

The 2018 update included, at a minimum, the jurisdictions listed below. It is understood that fifty-five percent of the County’s 740,000 acres of land is federally owned and managed by the Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre, and Gunnison National Forest and the Uncompahgre Resource Area of the Bureau of Land Management as shown in the map below. While the federal government ultimately has jurisdiction in these parts of the County, the Delta County Hazard Mitigation Plan could also be used to support federal hazard mitigation efforts. In addition, it was important to invite organizations such as public and private utility companies to be stakeholders during the update process.  The following jurisdictions met FEMA guidelines and requirements as a formal participating agency:

• Delta County
• City of Delta
• Town of Cedaredge
• Town of Hotchkiss
• Town of Paonia
• Town of Crawford
• Town of Orchard City
• Delta Fire Protection District
• Delta Fire Protection District #3
• Hotchkiss Fire Protection District
• Paonia Fire Protection District
• Delta County School District

Important to note: Each participating Jurisdiction will have a standalone Annex as part of the 2018 updates and enhancements.

UPDATE REQUIREMENTS AND DMA 2000

A current and approved hazard mitigation plan is a prerequisite for jurisdictions wishing to pursue funding under the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) if a State or Federal disaster should occur. The Robert T. Stafford Act constitutes the statutory authority for most Federal disaster response and recovery activities especially as they pertain to FEMA and FEMA programs.

On October 30, 2000, the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act was amended by Public Law 106-390 and is referred to as the Disaster Mitigation Act of 2000 (DMA 2000).  As a DMA 2000 requirement, the Delta County MJHMP must be updated every five (5) years to remain in compliance with regulations and Federal mitigation grant conditions. Federal regulations require hazard mitigation plans to include a plan for monitoring, evaluating, and updating the hazard mitigation plan. A current and approved hazard mitigation plan is a prerequisite for jurisdictions wishing to pursue funding under the Robert T. Stafford Act.

PROJECT FUNDING INFORMATION

Delta County applied for and received an award of funds from the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) for developing a local Hazard Mitigation Plan (HMP). Using these funds, the County contracted with Dynamic Planning + Science (DP+S) to update the County’s current local Multi-Jurisdictional Hazard Mitigation Plan.  DP+S  provided on-site process facilitation, stakeholder outreach, data collection and analysis, plan writing, and strategy development.