Lewes Hazard Mitigation and Climate Adaptation Action Plan
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The City of Lewes Hazard Mitigation and Climate Adaptation Action Plan June 2011 The City of Lewes Hazard Mitigation and Climate Adaptation Action Plan A community guide developed to improve public safety, minimize losses and create greater city‐wide resilience. Presented to the City of Lewes by Delaware Sea Grant College Program ICLEI‐Local Governments for Sustainability University of Delaware Sustainable Coastal Communities Program Prepared in conjunction with The City of Lewes Mitigation Planning Team – Pilot Project Subcommittee City of Lewes Pilot Project Workshop Participants June 2011 Acknowledgments The City of Lewes, in conjunction with Delaware Sea Grant and ICLEI‐Local Governments for Sustainability, gratefully acknowledges the participation and efforts of the following people, agencies and organizations in developing this pilot project action plan. This document is representative of the effort and input from many individuals, including city staff, citizens and committee members. Building on previous Lewes hazard mitigation planning efforts, the summary of existing natural hazards was compiled from several existing documents, including the 1999 Flood Mitigation Plan, 2000 Hazard Vulnerability Assessment, and Sussex County’s 2010 Multi‐Jurisdictional All Hazard Mitigation Plan Update. This action plan is a compilation of ideas, issues of concern, discussions and recommendations brought forward through a series of five public workshops to address current hazards, climate change impacts, and future risks. The authors acknowledge the City’s commitment to creating a more sustainable and hazard/climate resilient community, with a special acknowledgement to the following individuals, commissions, agencies and organizations. City of Lewes Workshop Speakers James L. Ford, III, Mayor Michael Powell, Delaware Department of Natural Paul Eckrich, City Manager Resources and Environmental Control Victor Letonoff, City Council Mark Nardi, U.S. Geological Survey Theodore Becker, City Council David Carlson, Delaware Emergency Management Barbara Vaughan, City Council Agency Fred Beaufait, City Council Theresa Grubb, Federal Emergency Management Henry Baynum, Building Official Agency, Region III Charles O’Donnell, P.E., City Engineer Alice Erickson, Administrative Assistant Lewes Mitigation Planning Team and Lewes Pilot Project Subcommittee, including James L. Ford (Chairperson), Paul Eckrich, Gilbert Holt, Charles O’Donnell, Michael Powell, Victor Letonoff, Chatham Marsch, Wally Evans, Richard Short, Ronald Webster, James Morris, Joseph Stormer, Henry Baynum, and Frank Buck Lewes Board of Public Works, including Darrin Gordon (General Manager), Jim Richmann, Gilbert Holt, Jim Gayhardt, and Preston Lee Lewes Planning Commission, including Mike Mahaffie (Chairperson), Jim Linnen, and Maria Simoes Workshop Participants – individuals, committees, and agencies including Citizens of the City of Lewes, Lewes Parks & Recreation Commission, Lewes Scenic Byways Committee, Lewes Chamber of Commerce, Lewes Historical Society, Beebe Medical Center, Delaware State Forest Service, Delaware Department of Transportation, Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control, Delaware Emergency Management Agency, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Region III Mapping and GIS Development Nicole Minni, GIS/Graphics Specialist, Water Resources Administration, University of Delaware Institute for Public Administration Document Preparation and Technical Editing Michelle Scorziello and Maxine Scholtz, College of Earth, Ocean, and Environment, University of Delaware Funding Support ‐ This project and publication is the result of work sponsored by Delaware Sea Grant with funds from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Office of Sea Grant, U. S. Department of Commerce, and the University of Delaware Sustainable Coastal Communities Program. The statements, findings, conclusions, and recommendations are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of Delaware Sea Grant or the U.S. Department of Commerce. i Preface The City of Lewes, a thriving bayfront community, offers both visitors and residents a unique opportunity to experience intimate walkable commercial and historic districts along with beautiful open spaces, including sandy beaches and healthy wetlands. Lewes’ proximity to water and well understood threats from coastal storms and flooding has made the city a leader in the field of hazard mitigation. With a strong Mitigation Planning Team, the City works diligently to provide its citizens and visitors with a safe place to both live and play. Recognizing the threat climate change poses to its hazard mitigation efforts, the City has worked on a pilot project that integrates climate change adaptation into hazard mitigation planning. This report summarizes the process and results from this pilot project – a project that has helped the City of Lewes enhance local understanding of climate change and natural hazards impacts and begin devising strategies to build resilience towards these impacts. This project engaged key local stakeholders – City staff, City Board / Commission members, and Regional / State partners – as well as the public and resulted in this summary report and six initial recommendations for the City to begin implementing. As both a citizen of Lewes and a member of the Mitigation Planning Team, I am proud to have been involved throughout this pilot project. I am now honored to endorse this document as the City’s unified Hazard Mitigation and Climate Adaptation Action Plan. Finally, I look forward to working with local Boards and Commissions to implement the plan and create a more resilient and safe Lewes today and tomorrow, for our residents, visitors, and businesses. ii Table of Contents Executive Summary ........................................................................................................................................ v Section 1: Introduction ................................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 General Overview of the City of Lewes ............................................................................................................. 1 1.2 General Overview of the Project ....................................................................................................................... 6 1.3 General Overview of the Methodology ............................................................................................................. 7 Section 2: Why Plan to Mitigate Natural Hazards and Adapt to Climate Change ............................................. 9 Section 3: Overview of Current Natural Hazards ........................................................................................... 11 3.1 Identification and Profile of Current Natural Hazards in Lewes, DE ............................................................... 11 Section 4: Overview of Regional Climate Change Impacts ............................................................................. 27 4.1 Global Climate Change .................................................................................................................................... 27 4.2 Regional Climate Change ................................................................................................................................. 27 4.3 Regional Impacts of Climate Change ............................................................................................................... 30 4.4 Climate Change Impact to Natural Hazards in Lewes, DE ............................................................................... 32 Section 5: Assessing the City of Lewes’ Current and Future Vulnerability ...................................................... 37 5.1 Risk and Vulnerability – Self‐Assessment Tools and Methodology ................................................................. 37 5.2 Risk and Vulnerability Self Assessment ........................................................................................................... 38 5.3 Future Vulnerability Assessment for Climate Change Impacted Natural Hazards .......................................... 44 5.4 Selecting Key Vulnerabilities ........................................................................................................................... 46 Section 6: Strategies for Addressing Vulnerabilities to Hazards and Climate Change ..................................... 47 6.1 Current Hazard Mitigation Actions .................................................................................................................. 47 6.2 Potential Hazard Mitigation and Climate Change Adaptation Strategies ....................................................... 47 6.3 Strategy Prioritization ...................................................................................................................................... 48 6.4 Primary Hazard Mitigation and Climate Change Adaptation Actions ............................................................. 48 Section 7: Moving Forward – Monitoring and Implementation Guidance ..................................................... 51 References Cited .......................................................................................................................................... 73 Appendix A: Maps .......................................................................................................................................