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MITIGATING FLOOD LOSS THROUGH LOCAL COMPREHENSIVE PLANNING IN FLORIDA A Dissertation by JUNG EUN KANG Submitted to the Office of Graduate Studies of Texas A&M University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY August 2009 Major Subject: Urban and Regional Sciences MITIGATING FLOOD LOSS THROUGH LOCAL COMPREHENSIVE PLANNING IN FLORIDA A Dissertation by JUNG EUN KANG Submitted to the Office of Graduate Studies of Texas A&M University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Approved by: Co-Chairs of Committee, Walter Gillis Peacock Samuel D. Brody Committee Members, Carla S. Prater Janine Edwards Head of Department, Forster Ndubisi August 2009 Major Subject: Urban and Regional Sciences iii ABSTRACT Mitigating Flood Loss through Local Comprehensive Planning in Florida. (August 2009) Jung Eun Kang, B.S., Pusan National University, Korea; M.S., Pusan National University, Korea; MUP, Texas A&M University Co-Chairs of Advisory Committee: Dr. Walter Gillis Peacock Dr. Samuel D. Brody Planning researchers believe that property losses from natural hazards, such as floods can be reduced if governments address this issue and adopt appropriate policies in their plans. However, little empirical research has examined the relationship between plan quality and actual property loss from floods. My research addresses this critical gap in the planning and hazard research literature by evaluating the effectiveness of current plans and policies in mitigating property damage from floods. Specifically, this study: 1) assesses the extent to which local comprehensive plans integrate flood mitigation policies in Florida; and 2) it examines the impact of the quality of flood mitigation policies on actual insured flood damages. Study results show that fifty-three local plans in the sample received a mean score for total flood mitigation policy quality of 38.55, which represents 35.69% of the total possible points. These findings indicate that there is still considerable room for improvement by local governments on flooding issues. The scores of local plans varied widely, with coastal communities receiving significantly higher scores than non-coastal communities. While most communities adopted land use management tools, such as iv permitted land use and wetland permits as primary flood mitigation tools, incentive based tools/taxing tools and acquisition tools were rarely adopted. This study also finds that plan quality associated with flood mitigation policy had little discernible effect on reducing insured flood damage while controlling for biophysical, built environment and socio-economic variables. This result counters the assumption inherent in previous plan quality research that better plans mitigate the adverse effects associated with floods and other natural hazards. There are some possible explanations for this result in terms of plan implementation, land use management paradox and characteristics of insurance policies. The statistical analysis also suggests that insured flood loss is considerably affected by wetland alteration and a community’s location on the coast. Another finding indicates that very strong leadership and dam construction are factors in mitigating flood loss. v DEDICATION To my family vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This study could not have been completed without the support I received from many people. First of all, I cannot adequately thank Dr. Samuel Brody and Dr. Walter Gillis Peacock, co-chairs of my committee, for their guidance and valuable comments during this research. Dr. Brody taught me how to conduct research, manage the research process and prepare publishable articles. He gave me ongoing encouragement and support which helped me develop confidence in myself. Dr. Peacock gave me critical opportunities to participate in his project and was a source of constant encouragement and thoughtful advice throughout my graduate study. I was also fortunate to meet Dr. Michael Lindell, an exemplary researcher who loves teaching and research. Also, I would like to thank my committee members, Dr. Carla Prater and Dr. Janine Edwards for their contributions both to my study and life in general. Dr. Edwards helped me to develop my ability to create and articulate ideas and always encouraged me to be positive and persistent. I want to express my sincere gratitude for her love and generosity. I am very grateful to Dr. Prater for sharing her experience and ideas in plan quality research and continued support throughout my time in the Hazard Reduction & Recovery Center at Texas A&M University. My thanks also go to my wonderful colleagues, Joseph Mayunga, Ama Husein, Shan Gao, Jee Young Lee, Himanshu Grover, Gabriel Burns, Weifeng Lee, Yang Zhang, Yi-Sz Lin and Jing-Chein Lu in the Hazard Reduction and Recovery Center. The vii supportive atmosphere of our center has been most helpful and provided motivation for my research. I am very grateful to my friends, Ho-Rim Song, Sun-Jin Lee, Eun Jung Kim and Hyangmi Lee who rejoiced with me when I did well, and encouraged me in difficulties throughout my life at Texas A&M. I also thank my classmates, Jaesu Lee, Young Jae Lee, Chanyong Sung and Hong Kyu Choi who all provided valuable help in my research. Special thank to Ms. Carleen Cook for editing and proofreading my dissertation. My deepest gratitude to my parents, brothers and sister-in-law. Without their constant love, understanding and support, I would never have been able to achieve so much. viii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page 1. INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................... 1 1.1 Background ....................................................................................... 1 1.2 Research Purpose and Objectives ....................................................... 3 1.3 Research Justification ........................................................................ 4 1.3.1 Why Natural Hazards, Especially Floods, Need Attention ....... 4 1.3.2 Why Local Comprehensive Plans Need Attention ................... 6 1.3.3 Why Florida Needs Attention .................................................. 7 2. LITERATURE REVIEW ................................................................................. 11 2.1 Defining Key Flood Mitigation Policies for Plan Quality Evaluation . 11 2.1.1 Understanding Flooding .......................................................... 12 2.1.2 Principles of Flood Mitigation in the Context of Sustainable and Resilient Community ........................................................ 14 2.1.3 Flood Mitigation Strategies ..................................................... 19 2.1.4 Integrating Flood Mitigation Policies into Local Comprehensive Planning ......................................................... 34 2.1.5 Plan Quality and Plan Evaluation ............................................ 39 2.1.6 Evaluation Protocol for Flood Mitigation Policy ..................... 44 2.2 Local Planning Efforts for Flood Mitigation ...................................... 50 2.3 Factors Influencing Flood Loss .......................................................... 53 2.3.1 Biophysical Factors ................................................................. 54 2.3.2 Built Environments and Floods ............................................... 56 2.3.3 Socio-economic Factors and Flood Loss ................................. 60 3. CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK AND RESEARCH HYPOTHESES ............. 63 3.1 Conceptual Framework ...................................................................... 63 3.2 Dependent Variable: Flood Loss ........................................................ 65 3.3 Independent Variables ....................................................................... 67 3.3.1 Planning Factors ..................................................................... 67 3.3.2 Biophysical Factors ................................................................. 71 3.3.3 Built Environment Factors ...................................................... 73 3.3.4 Socio-economic Factors .......................................................... 75 ix Page 4. RESEARCH METHODS ................................................................................. 78 4.1 Study Design ..................................................................................... 78 4.2 Unit of Analysis, Study Population and Sampling Method ................. 78 4.3 Data Collection .................................................................................. 81 4.4 Concept Measurement ....................................................................... 82 4.4.1 Dependent Variable: Flood Loss ............................................. 82 4.4.2 Independent Variables ............................................................ 82 4.5 Reliability and Validity of Variables .................................................. 88 4.5.1 Validity ................................................................................... 88 4.5.2 Reliability ............................................................................... 91 4.6 Data Analysis and Multiple Regression Model................................... 91 4.6.1 Data Analysis .......................................................................... 91 4.6.2 Multiple Regression Model ..................................................... 92 5. TRENDS AND SPATIAL DISTRIBUTION OF FLOOD LOSS...................... 95 5.1 Historical Flood Loss Data ...............................................................