COOPERATING TECHNICAL PARTNERS FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY

Risk MAP

SOLUTIONKey to Georgia’s approach with Risk MAP is to maintain a continuous conversation with communities and residents throughout the lifecycle of a Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM). To achieve this, Georgia applies a multi-faceted approach to its outreach.

Each year, Georgia participates in 10 to 12 conferences where staff present and operate a booth. Cooperating Technical Partner (CTP) staff also engage with individuals at fairs and the local mall, as well as at one-on-one meetings. The CTP is focused on engaging all stakeholders within a community, from realtors to the chamber of commerce to regional commissions.

Georgia uses a variety of online tools to communicate risk. Central to this digital engagement is a website, www.GeorgiaDFIRM.com. An important website feature provides the ability for property owners to look up the flood risk for their property and print a snapshot that they can bring to an insurance agent or lender. Using data from the Flood Risk Database that the State has developed through its Risk MAP projects, the user can print out a snapshot that includes not only the flood zone and panel index information but also the chance of flooding over the course of 30 years. The next evolution of the website will include depth grid information on the printout, as well.

The website also includes information targeted directly to community officials. The Georgia Outreach Guidebook is an online resource containing various educational materials and tailorable communication templates for communities to use in their own outreach efforts. The website also offers a password-protected Contact Management System containing contact information for all floodplain administrators and Chief Executive Officers in the State, to give local officials a means to more easily reach out to one another for best practices.

In addition, Georgia uses social media to reach communities. The State maintains a YouTube page (see Resources) that contains interviews with community officials and explains the importance of floodplain management. Additionally, their Facebook page advertises meetings,

Increasing Flood Risk Communication for Property Owners with Risk MAP Products

CHALLENGEIn the new era of flood risk assessment, management, and communication, there is an increased need for awareness and

action. Due to the increasing severity of storms and continued development, stakeholders don’t always have the tools

needed to take action to protect their own lives and properties.

The Georgia DNR staff is focused

on engaging all stakeholders

within a community through

conferences, events, tools and

resources made available for the

public and community officials at

www.GeorgiaDFIRM.com.

continued

provides updates, and disseminates storm-related information during weather events. The site also incorporates RSS (Really Simply Syndication) feeds from FEMA.gov and the Georgia Emergency Management Agency (GEMA.gov).

Using another Risk MAP product, the Changes Since Last FIRM (CSLF), in conjunction with tax assessor’s maps provided by communities, Georgia can automatically generate letters specific to a property based on the flood hazard data reflected on the new FIRM. The letters are co-branded with the logos from both the State and the local community, and the community receives copies to send out. An additional benefit of using the CSLF to identify the number of properties for which the flood risk has changed is that Georgia and its local communities can better plan for their Flood Risk Open Houses by estimating the number of attendees.

OUTCOMEIncreased outreach has benefited both community officials and residents. Forsyth County, Georgia—the fastest growing county in U.S. (2012)—provides an example of improved engagement. In 2010, FEMA and Georgia initiated a Risk MAP project. Because of the number of people affected by the study, Georgia recognized the importance that outreach would have. The State mailed Open House notifications to 2,800 residents, of which 240 attended a meeting. This helped increase risk awareness and resulted in less stress on the local officials because of the reduced volume of calls.

BENEFITBy continuously engaging communities, Georgia has educated community officials and empowered them to answer questions from the public. Additionally, the public is better educated on flood risk.

LESSONS LEARNEDArming community officials with the information and tools that they need to communicate flood risk to their citizens encourages communities to take ownership of their flood hazard data. Because citizens trust their community officials more than FEMA or the State, community officials are key allies in communicating risk.

RESOURCES• Georgia Flood M.A.P.: www.GeorgiaDFIRM.com

• Georgia Flood M.A.P. YouTube Channel: www.youtube.com/user/georgiafloodmap

• Georgia Flood M.A.P. Facebook Page”: www.facebook.com/GAFloods?fref=ts

RISK MAP PHASES

• Data Development

and Sharing

• Risk Awareness and

Mitigation Outreach

• Proposed NFIP Map

Changes and Impacts

• Preliminary Map Release

and Mitigation

• Due Process and

Path Forward

RISK MAP GOALS ADVANCED

• Increasing Awareness

INCREASING FLOOD RISK COMMUNICATION FOR PROPERTY OWNERS | 2COOPERATING TECHNICAL PARTNERS FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY Risk MAP