The focus of regional planning should be on regional mitigation and recovery issues. Institutional Framework Long term, North Carolina s approach to achieving resilient communities must focus our institutions and communities on preventing property damage and social and economic disruption before disasters strike. Such policy should incorporate several key features. There is much that can be done at the secretarial level in utilizing existing authority and capability to address hazards more aggressively and to integrate hazard mitigation and recovery into executive branch policy and practice. In addition, there needs to be a state hazards council and someone on the Governor s team who is responsible for the hazard mitigation mission and who coordinates state agencies.
Natural hazards pose high potential destruction, but from low probability events.
Due to that inherent nature of risks from natural hazards, they have not received the attention they deserve from individual families and businesses or local and state government until after disaster strikes. In order to move hazard planning and mitigation to their appropriate priority on our agendas, all parties must better appreciate the risks and our approaches to them. That requires a better understanding of the risks and regular reminders to spur appropriate action. Build a more holistic approach to hazards and disaster management at the state and local government levels. Thus local hazards planning would be required to account for neighboring jurisdictions and for regional interests.