It may be difficult for many of us to think about coastal disasters in the wake of our nation's September 11 tragedy. But as coastal resource managers, think about them we must.
Unlike the events in New York and Washington, D.C., coastal disasters are a regular occurrence in our lives. Our coastal states can suffer from floods, erosion, storm waves, wind, hurricanes, El Niños, and tsunamis. The impacts of these events can include loss of life, human suffering, environmental degradation, and enormous property loss.
To help coastal managers address these events, the Solutions to Coastal Disasters Conference will be held February 24 to 27, 2002, in San Diego, California. The conference will provide a forum for the exchange of ideas and the sharing of knowledge directed at the reduction of impacts from coastal disasters. It will bring together practitioners, managers, and researchers from a wide variety of disciplines involved in coastal zone management, hazard identification, and mitigation.
The conference is presented by the Coasts, Oceans, Ports and Rivers Institute of the American Society of Civil Engineers and the Coastal Zone Foundation, NOAA, and the Association of State Flood Plain Managers. For more information on the conference, point your browser to www.asce.org/conferences/cd2002/.
Another tool that is available to assist coastal and emergency managers with their efforts to reduce the impacts of coastal hazards is the Vulnerability Assessment Techniques and Applications (VATA) Web site created by the NOAA Coastal Services Center and the Organization of American States Unit for Sustainable Development and Environment.
The Web site provides risk and vulnerability assessment research, policy initiatives, case studies, and links and resources—all information to support community-based decision making. To view the site, point your browser to www.csc.noaa.gov/vata/.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) also has just released a publication on Understanding Your Risks—Identifying Hazards and Estimating Losses (FEMA Publication no. 386-2), which provides step-by-step guidance for conducting a risk and vulnerability assessment. To order the guide, call (800) 480-2520 or visit www.fema.gov.
All of these tools can help our efforts to protect coastal communities from future natural hazards.
-- Margaret A. Davidson
