Difference between revisions of "Flood Insurance"

Revision as of 00:36, 28 September 2014

Coastal adaptation planning focuses primarily on issues several years or decades into the community's future. However, vulnerable coastal communities are already threatened today in a variety of ways. Managing the complex physical challenges of climate change requires that it be understood together with a similarly complex web of economic pressures and governmental regulations from the local to federal level. One example of this is the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) managed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The affordability or otherwise of flood insurance for homes and business in flood-prone areas can have a major effect on determining what type of community can be sustained in those areas. As such, a topical understanding of NFIP is important for coastal adaptation planners. Resources to aid that understanding are documented here. On the other hand, the management of municipal NFIP procedures for a particular mapping cycle, such as FIRM appeals or CRS certification, while critical to the immediate needs of coastal communities, is not itself part of long-term adaptation planning. Timely response to these immediate needs should be addressed through a separate dedicated effort. In Marshfield, NFIP response is handled by the central administration in Town Hall, notably aided by the commendable efforts of the Marshfield Citizens Coastal Coalition citizen advocacy group.

General NFIP resources

• Until such time as a listing of references for helping understand NFIP is developed in this space, the Marshfield Citizens Coastal Coalition may be the best source of information for local citizens seeking information on this issue.

2013 Mapping Cycle

News Coverage

• FEMA flood maps online as neighborhoods approach appeals Marshfield Mariner 31 July 2013.
• Flood insurance rates rising Cape & Plymouth Business 30 July 2013.

Maps and Documentation

• MCC's pdf 2013 Draft FIRMs downloads
• 2013 Draft FIRMs from Town Marshfield, slightly different form above.
• Community Rating System Resources. See also the 2013 CRS Coordinator's Manual.