Local disaster debris management planning priorities: qualitative assessment of plans from Virginia
Date
2020
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Publisher
University of Delaware
Abstract
Debris management is often one of the largest disaster recovery costs a community must absorb. Because it is such a burdensome process, state and federal government agencies offer many tools and templates to guide local communities through the debris management planning process. The existence of these programs suggests emergency management practitioners consider planning for disaster debris a worthwhile endeavor, but there is little research on the subject. Studies find that disaster debris planning can improve debris management post-disaster, but there is little research that evaluates the content of these plans. ☐ This study adapts three planning evaluation criteria—goals, fact base, and policy criteria—from planning literature to determine the quality of debris management plans. The study includes all 37 localities in Virginia with a population greater than 50,000 people in order to limit the sample to communities with access to relatively uniform levels of resources. Virginia is the state selected to frame the population of this study due to its relatively non-hierarchical government structure, uniformity of hazard types, and diversity of landscapes. ☐ The analysis conducted found that while most communities have debris plans, the depth and detail vary greatly. Standalone plans are the most detailed type of plan, while debris sections incorporated into Emergency Operations Plans are the least detailed and address the fewest criteria. Further study is required to determine other debris management plan quality factors. The evaluations serve as a resource for communities developing or updating plans.
Description
Keywords
Disaster Debris, Emergency Management, Planning priorities