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HomeMy WebLinkAbout12_Natural Hazards Final 5-16 2019 CLEANSoutholdTownComprehensivePlanUpdate ThisdocumentwaspreparedfortheNewYorkStateDepartmentofState withfundsprovidedunderTitle11oftheEnvironmentalProtectionFund. NaturalHazards Final September16,2013 UpdatedMay16,2019 NaturalHazards 1 Naturalhazardsarenaturaleventsthatthreatenlivesandproperty,andtendtooccurrepeatedly inthesamegeographicallocations.Theycanoftenbepredictedbecausetheyarerelatedtothe weatherpatternsand/orphysicalcharacteristicsofanarea.SoutholdTownissubjecttonatural hazardsthatcanimperilhumanlives,property,andtheenvironment.Withinthelastcentury,the Townhaswitnessedsignificantweather-relatedoccurrencesincludingnumeroushurricanes, tropicalstorms,severethunderstorms,andnor’easters.Thehazardsfromthesestormsinclude flooding,winddamage,shorelineerosion,andtornados.Othernaturalhazardsthatoccur,andare predictedtore-occur,aredroughtandextremetemperatures.Table12-1 providesalistofnatural hazardsforSoutholdTown.Planningandpreparingfornaturalhazardscanandwillhelpsave livesandproperty. Table12-1.ListofNaturalHazardsforSoutholdTown NaturalHazard Flooding(coastal,riverine,flash&urbanflooding) Nor’easters(extratropicalcyclones,includingseverewinterlow- pressuresystems) SevereWinterStorm(heavysnow,blizzards,icestorms) CoastalErosion SevereStorm(windstorms,thunderstorms,hail,tornados) Hurricane(tropicalcyclones,tropicalstorms,tropicaldepressions) SeaLevelRise Drought ExtremeTemperature(heatwaveorcoldtemperatures) Wildfire Severestorms,severewinterstorms,andnor’eastersarenotedashighrisksforSuffolkCounty, andarepredictedtooccurfrequentlyinSoutholdTown,accordingtotheCounty’shazard mitigationplan.1 TheNationalFloodInsuranceProgramispredictinganincreaseinflooding frequency;asstrongstormsoccurmoreoften,coastalinundationwillbemorefrequent,andsea 1 SuffolkCountyMulti-JurisdictionalMulti-HazardMitigationPlan,2007. NaturalHazards SoutholdTownComprehensivePlanUpdate 2 levelswillcontinuetorise.With220milesofshoreline,andover1,100homesandmany businesseslocatedinthefloodzone,SoutholdTownisvulnerabletocoastalflooding. Overtime,sealevelrisewillcontributetoworseningcoastalfloodingandrelatedhazardssuch assalt-waterintrusionintogroundwaterareascurrentlyusedfordrinkingwater.Accordingto measurementdatafromtheNationalOceanicandAtmosphericAdministration(NOAA),sea levelhasrisenabouttwoinchesintheLongIslandareaoverthepast20years(1993–2013).In thenext20years,therateofsealevelriseispredictedtoincreaseduetothewarmingofthe oceans(waterexpandsasitwarms)andduetoicemeltfromthepolarregion.Studiesproject thatLongIslandwillexperienceatwo-tofive-inchadditionalriseinsealevelinthe2020’s.If theratecontinuestoincrease,however,theactualsealevelriseinthe2020’scouldreachashigh as10inches.2 Thiswillresultinmorehomesandinfrastructurebeingvulnerabletotheeffectsof futurestorms.Thefollowinglinkprovidesmoreinformationaboutsealevelrise: https://sealevelrise.org/.ToviewthepotentialeffectsofsealevelriseforSouthold,clickonthe followinglink:https://maps.coastalresilience.org/newyork/. Tominimizepotentialdamagetostructuresinvulnerableareas,theNationalFloodInsurance Programidentifiedthoseareasmostvulnerabletoflooding.TheseareasareknownastheSpecial FloodHazardAreaandarepredictedtohaveaonepercentlikelihoodoffloodinginanygiven year(see Figure12-1).TheSpecialFloodHazardAreaisalsothearealikelytofloodduringa6- to8-inchstormsurge(aswasexperiencedinSoutholdduringHurricaneSandyin2012). FloodingcanalsooccurbeyondtheFloodHazardAreaduringstormsthataremorepowerful. Anotheronlineresourceformodelingcoastalfloodingthatresidentscanusetoseetheirpotential vulnerabilitytofloodingfromdifferent-sizedstormsurgesandsealevelriseislocatedatthe followingwebaddress:https://floodiq.com/. Coastalfloodingcauseserosion,whichisanothersignificantnaturalhazardforSouthold. Erosionoftheshorelinecanalsobecausedbythenormalprocessesofwind,currents,andwave action.Coastalerosionleadstolossofpropertyandstructures,andpotentiallyhazardous conditionsforwaterfrontlandowners.ThereareareasinSoutholdTownthatexperience significanterosionproblems,andstepsneedtobetakentodealwiththisissue. Inadditiontotheincreasingfrequencyofseverestormsandrelatedflooding,the2011ClimAid reportfromtheNewYorkStateEnergyResearchandDevelopmentAuthority(NYSERDA)also predictsincreasesinextremeheatevents(heatwaves)anddroughtsforLongIsland.Extreme heatanddroughtcancauselossofhumanlife,damageandlossofagriculturalcropsand landscaping,andreductioninthequantityandqualityofdrinkingwater.Hot,dryweathercan alsoleadtowildfire,anotherpotentialnaturalhazard. 2 ClimateAdaptationGuidebookforNewYorkState,2011. NaturalHazards SoutholdTownComprehensivePlanUpdate 3 NaturalHazards SoutholdTownComprehensivePlanUpdate 4 Localgovernmentischargedwithrespondingimmediatelybeforeandafternaturaldisastersto protectitscitizens.Governmenthasasharedresponsibilitywithitsconstituentstoplanand manageemergencyresources.AllSoutholdresidentsandvisitorsareencouragedtotake personalresponsibilityfortheirownpreparednessbeforeanemergencyisimminent.Tofulfillits shareoftheresponsibilityforemergencyplanning,theTownproducedaplanforrespondingto coastalstorms. TheTownofSoutholdHurricane/CoastalStormEmergencyResponsePlan(hereinnotedasthe EmergencyResponsePlan)wasadoptedbytheSoutholdTownBoardin1995andservesasa templatetoguidetheTown’seffortstoprepareandrespondtoweather-relatedemergencies.This planwaspreparedwiththeassistanceoftheSuffolkCountyDepartmentofFire,Rescueand EmergencyServicesandtheNewYorkStateEmergencyManagementOffice.Theplandefines theTown’sroleinandresponsibilityforemergencyresponsetohurricanesandothercoastal stormsinordertosavelivesandreduceinjuries.TheEmergencyResponsePlanincludes informationaboutthelocationofemergencyshelters,evacuationprocedures,andother protectivemeasures.ItalsoestablishesprotocolsenablingtheSupervisortodeclarea“Stateof Emergency.” ToimplementtheEmergencyResponsePlan,theTownhasdesignatedanEmergency PreparednessTeamservingastheSoutholdTownOfficeofEmergencyManagement.Thisteam consistsofadiversemembershipofemployeesfromtheTown,FireDepartments,Greenport Village,andFishersIsland.Theyareresponsibleforpreparingfor,respondingto,andmanaging theimmediateimpactsfromnaturalhazards,andhavesuccessfullydonesosincetheirinception. Emergencyresponseisonlyonepartofplanningfornaturalhazards.Hazardmitigationandpost disasterrecoveryandreconstructionaretheothermainareasofnaturalhazardplanning.Hazard mitigationplanningwasupdatedforSoutholdin2014whentheU.S.FederalEmergency ManagementAgency(FEMA)acceptedtheSuffolkCountyMulti-JurisdictionalMulti-Hazard MitigationPlan.Southoldparticipatedinthisplanalongwithmostofthetownsandvillagesin SuffolkCounty.Theplanidentifieshazards,assessestheriskfromthosehazards,andlists mitigationeffortsfortheCountyandeachtown.Thismitigationplanmustbeupdatedeveryfive years. Post-disasterissues,atleastshortterm,arediscussedintheTown’sEmergencyResponsePlan; however,theTownneedstotakeamorecomprehensiveandlong-termapproachtopost-disaster recoveryplanning.Preparingforapotentiallydevastatingstormisprudent,andoneofthe objectivesinthischapterincludesarecommendationforcreatingsuchaplan. PlanningfornaturalhazardsrelatestoseveraloftheotherchaptersinthisComprehensivePlan. BuildingcoastalresiliencyintotheTown’splanwillhelptheeconomy,makehousingsafer,and protectfutureinvestmentsinproperty,bothprivateandpublic.Forthesereasons,Chapter6, “NaturalResources&Environment,”andChapter3,“LandUse&Zoning,”bothcontain significantreferencestoplanningfornaturalhazardsandcontainsimilarandadditionalgoalsto thoseputforthinthischapter. NaturalHazards SoutholdTownComprehensivePlanUpdate 5 Goals 1.Mitigatetheeffectsofnaturalhazardstoachieve coastalresiliency,protectpublicsafetyandreduce economicloss. TheTownfacesnumeroushazardsthatarelikelytooccur,includingseverestorms, nor’easters,andhurricanes.Mitigationinvolvestakingstepstoensurethosehazardswillnot causeinjuryordeathtopeople,andtoreduceeconomiclosstostructuresandotherproperty. Asmentionedabove,theTownhasahazardmitigationplanthatcanbefoundwithinthe County’sMulti-JurisdictionalAll-HazardMitigationPlan(HazardMitigationPlan). TheHazardMitigationPlancontainsaprofileofSuffolkCountyandSoutholdTown, identifiesthepotentialhazards,assessestheriskofthehazards,andproposeswaystoreduce theimpactsfromthehazards(mitigation).Thisplancanbefoundonlineatthefollowingweb address:https://fres.suffolkcountyny.gov/RESPOND/ApprovedPlan2014.aspx. Coastalresilienceisatermusedtodescribeaplace’sabilitytowithstandcoastalhazards suchassealevelriseandfloodingwhileminimizingthreatstohumanlifeandproperty.The HazardMitigationPlancanbeconsideredpartoftheTown’scoastalresilienceplan.An excerptfromtheplanwiththeHazardMitigationMeasuresforSoutholdTownisincludedas an Appendix9. Objectives 1.1 PrepareacoastalresilienceplanforSoutholdTown. Workingtowardatownthatismoreresilienttocoastalhazardswillrequireamulti-step approachthatresultsinchangestopoliciesandregulations.SoutholdTownhasalready takenstepstobecomemoreresilienttocoastalnaturalhazardssuchasfloodingand erosionfromstormsandsealevelrisethroughexistingregulationsrelatingtoflood zones,wetlands,andbuildingcodes.Theseandadditionalregulationsfromotherlevels ofgovernmentneedtobeassessedfortheireffectivenessinmitigatingtheeffectsof coastalhazards. Inadditiontothischapter,thisplancontainsgoalsandobjectivesinotherchaptersthat willleadtowardscoastalresilience,includingChapter6,“NaturalResources& Environment,”andChapter3,“LandUse&Zoning.”ExistingplanssuchastheCounty’s HazardMitigationPlanalsohavearoletoplayinourcoastalresilienceplan. Afterassessingexistingtoolsandplans,dataandmodelsfromthemostreliablesources willbeusedtoformulatearationalplanforimprovingourcoastalresiliencywherever feasible.Sourcesfordataandmodelsrelatedtosealevelriseandfloodinginclude NOAA,FEMA,andNewYorkState,aswellasacademicinstitutions.Modelssuchas interactivemapsshowingthelandthatsealevelriseispredictedtoaffectareavailable NaturalHazards SoutholdTownComprehensivePlanUpdate 6 fromseveralsourcesrightnow,andwillbecomemoreaccurateovertime.Examplesof sealevelrisemodelscanbeviewedatthefollowingwebsites: •NOAA’sSeaLevelRiseandCoastalFloodingImpactsinteractivemap http://www.csc.noaa.gov/slr/viewer/# •CoastalResilience.orgwebsite’sFutureScenariosMap http://coastalresilience.org/geographies/new-york-and-connecticut/future- scenarios-map 1.1.1 AuditSouthold’sexistingregulationsrelatedtocoastalresilience. 1.1.2 Identifythebestmodelsforsealevelrise. ResponsibleParties:PlanningBoard PossiblePartnerships:EmergencyPreparednessTeam,OfficeoftheTownEngineer, SuffolkCounty,NewYorkState PossibleFundingSources:NewYorkStateHazardMitigationGrant,NewYorkState DepartmentofStateEnvironmentalProtectionFundGrant 1.2 ContinuetoparticipateintheupdatestoSouthold’shazardmitigationplanin cooperationwithSuffolkCountyandtheSuffolkCountyMulti-JurisdictionalAll- HazardMitigationPlan. Thisplanwasupdatedin2013andapprovedbyFEMAin2014.FEMArequiresthis planbeupdatedeveryfiveyears.Acurrentmitigationplanisimportantforacommunity toremaineligibleforhazardmitigationgrantfundsthatcanhelpimplementthe mitigationmeasures. 1.2.1 Add“extremetemperatures”asasignificanthazard. ExtremetemperaturesareidentifiedasahazardforSuffolkCounty,butthe riskofextremetemperaturescausingwidespreadproblemswasnotconsidered significantintheHazardMitigationPlan.Recentstudiespredictanincreasein thefutureoccurrenceofextremetemperatures,whichsuggestswemust considerhowwemightmitigatetheeffectsofthishazard. 1.2.2 Identifymitigationmeasuresthathavealreadybeenaccomplishedandremove themfromtheplan. 1.2.3 Identifynewmitigationmeasuresandaddthemtotheplan,includingthe following: •Measuresthataddressagriculturalland/cropsatriskfromflooding, drought,andstorms. NaturalHazards SoutholdTownComprehensivePlanUpdate 7 •Measuresthataddresstheincreasedpollutionandhealthhazardsfrom floodingduetostorms,aswellaswaterinundationduetosealevelrise. Thesemeasuresincludefloodedsewerandsepticsystems,oiltanks,and drinkingwaterwells. ResponsibleParties:EmergencyPreparednessTeam PossiblePartnerships:SoutholdPlanningBoardandPlanningDepartment,Southold TownTrustees,VillageofGreenport,NaturalResourcesConservationService 1.3 ImplementtherecommendationsforhazardmitigationforSoutholdintheSuffolk CountyMulti-JurisdictionalAll-HazardMitigationPlanafterithasbeenupdated. Thecurrentmitigationplanincludesdataandanalysesforindividualtowns.Southold’s portionoftheplanincludesahistoryoftheoccurrenceofnaturalhazards,ananalysisof itsfuturevulnerabilitytothosehazards,andalistofhazardmitigationmeasures. Southoldhasalistofmitigationmeasuresinthecurrentplan,someofwhichhavebeen completed,andsomeofwhichareoutdatedorinconsistentwiththeTown’scurrent goals.Thisplancanbefoundonlineatthefollowingwebaddress: https://fres.suffolkcountyny.gov/RESPOND/ApprovedPlan2014.aspx. Thosemeasuresincluderetrofittingevacuationroutesfromfloodhazardareas, consideringtherelocationorelevationofstructuresinthefloodplain,andstabilizing vulnerablebluffs(see Appendix9 foralistofthemitigationmeasures). 1.3.1 Prioritizethemitigationmeasures. 1.3.2 Identifyfundingsourcestoimplementmitigationmeasures. 1.3.3 Identifypartnershipsandareasofcooperationwithadjacentmunicipalities includingGreenportVillage,Riverhead,andShelterIsland. ResponsibleParties:PlanningBoardandPlanningDepartment PossiblePartnerships:EmergencyPreparednessTeam,OfficeoftheTownEngineer, SuffolkCounty,NewYorkState,VillageofGreenport,SoutholdTownTrustees,Town ofRiverhead,TownofShelterIsland 1.4 Re-examinethelocationoftheCoastalErosionHazardArealine. In1991,theTownofSoutholdenactedthe"TownofSoutholdCoastalErosionHazard AreaLaw”toallowtheTowntoassumetheresponsibility,authority,andadministration oftheCoastalErosionManagementProgramestablishedpursuanttoArticle34ofthe EnvironmentalConservationLaw.Thelawregulatesactivitiesinanareacalledthe CoastalErosionHazardArea(CEHA).Thisareaislocatedalongtheshorelinewhere NaturalHazards SoutholdTownComprehensivePlanUpdate 8 coastalerosionismostlikelytooccur.DevelopmentwithintheCEHAisgenerally prohibitedduetotheriskoferosion. ThelineidentifyingthelocationoftheCEHA(knownasthe“CEHAline”)wasmapped bytheNewYorkStateDepartmentofEnvironmentalConservation(NYSDEC)inthe late1980s.Sinceenactmentofthelaw,shorelineshavechangedduetoerosioncaused bywavevelocityandadverseweatherconditionscausedbystorm events.Correspondingly,severeerosionandstructurallosshasbeendocumentedalong thePeconicBays,onFishersIsland,andonothershorelinesinareasnotincludedinthe mappedCEHAs. ItisrecommendedthattheTownworkwithNYSDECtore-assesstheaccuracyofthe existingCEHAs,aswellasthedesignation’sapplicabilitytoadditionalareasalongthe GreatPeconicBayandLittlePeconicBayshorelinesthatarenotcurrentlymappedas CEHAs. ResponsibleParties:PlanningBoard PossiblePartnerships:NewYorkStateDepartmentofEnvironmentalConservation 1.5 UpdatetheTownofSoutholdHurricane/CoastalStormEmergencyResponsePlan. TheTown’sEmergencyResponsePlanreflectstheTown’seffortstoexpedientlyand effectivelyrespondtonaturalhazardemergencies.Thisdocumentservesasavaluable resourceinassistingpersonnelresponsibleforpreparingandrespondingtothedamages ofnaturalhazards.Theexistingplanrequiresperiodicupdatingtoreflectchangesin personnel,technology,andresources. 1.5.1 Updatetheplantoincludethelatestshelterlocationsandresourcesprovidedat thoseshelters. 1.5.2 Considerhowbesttoinformresidentsaheadoftimethattheirhouseisinaflood zone,andthattheymaybesubjecttofutureevacuations,orthattheirlocationisat riskofbeingisolatedduringafloodingevent(example:OrientCauseway flooding). 1.5.3 ProvideSpanish-speakingvolunteersatshelters. ResponsibleParties:EmergencyPreparednessTeam PossiblePartnerships:SuffolkCountyDepartmentofFire,RescueandEmergency Services,NewYorkStateEmergencyManagementOffice NaturalHazards SoutholdTownComprehensivePlanUpdate 9 2.CompleteaPostDisasterRecovery& ReconstructionPlan BecauseoddsarethatnaturaldisasterswilloccurinSouthold,theTownneedstoplanfor long-termrecoveryandreconstruction.Dependingontheextentofthedisaster,thisphase cangofarbeyondthetime-frameandactivitiescoveredbytheEmergencyResponsePlan. AccordingtoguidelinespublishedbyFEMAtogetherwiththeAmericanPlanning Association3,thisis“aplanformanagingpost-disasterrecoveryandreconstruction.Sucha planprovidesdescriptionsthatinclude,butarenotlimitedto,linesofauthority,interagency andintergovernmentalcoordinationmeasures,processesforexpeditedreview,permitting, andinspectionofrepairandreconstructionofbuildingsandstructuresdamagedbynatural disasters.” Thepost-disasterplandiffersfromtheemergencyresponseplaninthatitfocusesonthe long-termrecoveryeffortsthatmustoccurbeyondtheemergencypreparednessandresponse functionsofgovernmentjustbefore,during,andimmediatelyafteranemergencyevent.The averagetimelineforemergencyresponseeffortsisthreedays,whilerecoveryand reconstructioncangoonforweeks,months,orevenyears. Objectives 2.1 ConsidercreatingaRecoveryandReconstructionOrdinanceintheTownCode. ARecoveryandReconstructionOrdinanceisanactionacommunitycantaketobetter managedisasterrecovery.ThisisanordinancetheTownwouldhaveinplacetoestablish asetofrulesandanoperationalorganizationtodealwiththeaftermathandlong-term recoveryfromamajordisaster. Recoveryandreconstructionordinancestypicallycreatearecoveryorganizationand authorizeavarietyofpre-andpost-eventplanningandregulatorypowersandprocedures relatedtodisasterrecoveryandreconstruction.Thisorganizationwouldoperateparallel toandincooperationwithemergencyoperations,typicallycontinuebeyondthetypical timeframeofemergencyoperations,anddealwithissuessuchasplanningandbuilding thatareoutsidethepurviewoftypicalemergencyoperations. SomeexamplesofareasaRecoveryandReconstructionOrdinancemightcoverinclude thefollowing: 3 PlanningforPost-DisasterRecoveryandReconstruction.1998.PlanningAdvisoryServiceReportNumber 483/484.Schwab,et.al. NaturalHazards SoutholdTownComprehensivePlanUpdate 10 2.1.1 Createtemporaryregulationsdealingwithdebrishazardabatement,temporaryuse andrepairpermits,handlingnon-conforminguses,andpermitfeewaivers. 2.1.2 EmergencyContractorCertification.Asystemwouldbesetuptohelpvetand establishthelegitimacyofthefloodofcontractorsthattypicallyflowtoregions experiencingadisaster. 2.1.3 Createarecoverymanagementorganizationthatlastsintothelong-termrecovery phaseandhelpsdirectthepreparationofrecoveryplansaswellashelpingto implementthoseplans.Thisorganizationorteamiscreatedbyputtingtogetheran interdisciplinaryteamofstaffandofficialsinvolvingallaspectsoftown government,includingBuilding,InformationTechnology,GeographicInformation Systems,Planning,Engineers,HumanServices,PublicWorks,Highway Department,Accountingandanyothersthatmightbeabletohelptheeffort. 2.1.4 CreatesatemplateRecoveryPlantobereadyfordetailstobeaddeddependingon thetypeofdisasterthatoccurs. 2.1.5 Coordinatesdebrisremovalfromprivateproperty. 2.1.6 Outlinespublicparticipationinrecoveryplanning. 2.1.7 Createsaframeworktocoordinatedonationsanddistributionofsuppliesto affectedresidents. ResponsibleParties:PlanningBoardandPlanningDepartment PossiblePartnerships:EmergencyPreparednessTeam,SoutholdTownTrustees, SoutholdTownDepartmentsincludingBuilding,PublicWorks,Highway,Community Development,HumanResources,andanyotherdepartmentsthatmightbeinvolvedin reconstructionandrecovery,VillageofGreenport,Riverhead,ShelterIsland,Suffolk County 3.Provideeducationtothepublicrelatingto naturalhazards. Objectives 3.1 Createaneasytoreadplanforresidentsandvisitorsthatclearlydescribeswhatto dointheeventofnaturalhazardemergencies. 3.2 Usesocialmediaasatooltoinformresidentsandvisitorsofnaturaldisasters, includinghowtoprepareaheadoftime,whattodowhenapredictednatural disasterisimminentoroccurring,andhowtodealwiththeaftermath. 3.3 Addlinkstothetownwebsitewithfloodzoneinformation,maps,andvisual representationsoffloodingscenarios. ResponsibleParties:PlanningBoard PossiblePartnerships:EmergencyPreparednessTeam,InformationTechnology