Town of Hartland, Vermont 2015 Local Hazard Mitigation Plan
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Town of Hartland, Vermont 2015 Local Hazard Mitigation Plan Prepared by the Two Rivers-Ottauquechee Regional Commission and the Town of Hartland July 6, 2015 Date of Town Adoption August 4, 2015 Date of Final Approval by FEMA Town of Hartland, Adopted 7/6/2015, Approved 8/4/2015 Page | 1 Table of Contents I. Introduction ....................................................................................................................................3 II. Purpose of the Plan ........................................................................................................................3 III. Community Profile ........................................................................................................................4 IV. The Planning Process .....................................................................................................................5 A. Plan Developers ........................................................................................................................... 5 B. Plan Development Process .......................................................................................................... 5 C. Status Update on Mitigation Actions Identified in 2011 ........................................................... 10 D. Existing Hazard Mitigation Programs, Projects & Activities ...................................................... 13 E. Plan Maintenance ...................................................................................................................... 15 V. Community Vulnerability by Hazard ............................................................................................. 17 A. Hazard Identification ................................................................................................................. 17 B. Hazard Profiles for “Top Hazards” ............................................................................................. 20 1. Structure Fire .................................................................................................................................. 20 2. Hazardous Materials Spill ............................................................................................................... 22 3. Wildfire ........................................................................................................................................... 25 4. Severe Weather (Thunderstorm, Lightning, High Winds, Hail, Flooding) ...................................... 28 5. Landslides/Mudslides/Rockslides................................................................................................... 33 VI. Mitigation ................................................................................................................................... 35 A. Mitigation Goals ........................................................................................................................ 35 B. Excerpted Town Plan Goals & Objectives Supporting Local Hazard Mitigation ........................ 35 C. Hazard Mitigation Strategies: Programs, Projects & Activities .................................................. 36 Appendices ...................................................................................................................................... 43 Appendix A: Hazard Ranking Methodology ................................................................................... 43 Appendix B: Critical Stream Crossings ........................................................................................... 44 Appendix C: Five-Year Review and Maintenance Plan .................................................................. 45 Attachments .................................................................................................................................... 46 Attachment A: Map of the Town of Hartland ................................................................................ 46 Town of Hartland, Adopted 7/6/2015, Approved 8/4/2015 Page | 2 I. Introduction Natural and human-caused hazards may affect a community at any time. They are not usually avoidable; however, their impact on human life and property can be reduced through community planning. Accordingly, this Local Hazard Mitigation Plan (hereafter referred to simply as the Plan) seeks to provide an all-hazards mitigation strategy that will make the community of Hartland more disaster resistant. “Mitigation” is defined as any sustained action that reduces or eliminates long-term risk to people and property from natural and human-caused hazards and their effects. Previous Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), State and Regional Project Impact efforts have demonstrated that it is less expensive to anticipate disasters than to repeatedly ignore a threat until the damage has already been done. While hazards cannot be eliminated entirely, it is possible to identify prospective hazards, anticipate which might be the most severe, and recognize local actions that can be taken ahead-of-time to reduce the damage. These actions, also known as ‘hazard mitigation strategies’ can (1) avert the hazards through redirecting impacts by means of a structure or land treatment, (2) adapt to the hazard by modifying structures or standards or, (3) avoid the hazard through improved public education, relocation/removal of buildings in the flood zone, or ensuring development is disaster resistant. II. Purpose of the Plan The purpose of this Plan is to assist Hartland in identifying all hazards facing the town, ranking them, and identifying strategies reduce risks from known priority hazards. The Town of Hartland seeks to be in accordance with the strategies, goals, and objectives of the State Hazard Mitigation Plan. The 2015 Hartland Local Hazard Mitigation Plan is the first stand-alone mitigation plan drafted for the Town. Previously, the Town had a town-specific 2011 Annex in the Regional Pre-Disaster Mitigation Plan. This new Plan has been reorganized and new sections have been added: Program eligibility subsequent to plan approval Authority for plan development Participating jurisdictions Funding for plan development Brief information about the community Old assumptions have been challenged throughout and new information has been added to make the plan stronger and more useful for the Hartland town officials and residents who will implement the hazard mitigation strategies in the future. Town of Hartland, Adopted 7/6/2015, Approved 8/4/2015 Page | 3 III. Community Profile The Town of Hartland, located in Windsor County, in the Eastern-Central section of the State on the Connecticut River bordering the State of New Hampshire, has an area of 28,544 acres, or 44 square miles and a population of 3,383 (ACS 2008-2012). Highways Route 4, Route 5, Route 12 and Interstate 91, provide the major highway access to the Town. Railroads passing through the town are Amtrak and New England Railroads. The town has a volunteer fire department. Fire station 1 is located on Route 12, Hartland. Station 2 is located on Clay Hill Road, North Hartland. The Fire Department has mutual aid agreements with Upper Valley Mutual Aid and the Upper Valley Regional Emergency Services Association (U.V.R.E.S.A.), which include 12 towns in New Hampshire, 10 towns in Vermont, and the VA Hospital in Hartford. Mutual Aid assistance is intended to supplement rather than replace local efforts. Law enforcement is handled by a Town Constable and the State Police with headquarters in Bethel. Hartford Dispatch and Bethel State (now Rockingham) Police Barracks provide dispatching services. The town Highway Maintenance garage is located on Route 12 and is responsible for 75 miles of highways within the Town. The State Highway district garage is located in White River Junction on Beswick Drive. There is one elementary school, one nursery school, and one day care facility in Hartland. School buses transport the public elementary school students. The town has experienced population growth over the last 10 years due to the influence of Hanover, Lebanon and White River Junction. Primary industries in town are Netam, D&D Gravel/Excavating, and Britton Lumber. The nearest hospitals are the Mt. Ascutney Hospital, located in Windsor; VA Medical Center, in White River Junction; Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, Lebanon, N.H.; Alice Peck Day, Lebanon, N.H.; and, Valley Regional Hospital, Claremont, N.H. The US Army Corps of Engineers North Hartland Lake flood control property extends from the North Hartland Dam in a rural residential area of Hartland to the heavily-visited Quechee Gorge, the new Visitor Center and the State Park area in Hartford. Many homes in Hartland are located close to brooks. Lull's Brook flows through two of the town's densely developed village areas, Three Corners and Four Corners. As noted previously, much development in town has followed the logical path provided by the brooks and so many homes are located close to these streambanks. It is recognized that the interests of property owners in expanding or redeveloping these residences must be balanced with the need to prevent further water quality degradation. The FEMA Flood Insurance Rate Maps for Hartland identified floodplain areas along McArthur Brook, the Connecticut River, the Ottauquechee River and its tributaries, Lull's Brook and its tributaries including Alder Meadow Brook, and portions of Babcock Brook along Route 12. These mapped floodplains cover only a small portion of the land area of Hartland.