Calaveras County Water District

423 East St. Charles Street, Post Office Box 846
San Andreas, California 95249
Ph. # (209) 754-3543,  Cust. Serv. Fax # (209) 754-0270, Admin. Fax # (209) 754-1069

Multi-Hazard Mitigation Planning

The Calaveras County Water District is developing a comprehensive Multi-Hazard Mitigation Plan to better position their resources to address potential natural hazards before they occur and to maintain eligibility for mitigation funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). 

The deadline for public comment will be in early October 2006 with specific dates updated to this web page as it becomes available. The public's feedback will be incorporated into the final version of the plan, which will be reviewed by the California Office of Emergency Services and FEMA. Upon approval, the plan will be presented to the District’s Board of Directors for formal adoption. Your comments and ideas are invited and encouraged at the upcoming public meetings.  Some examples of hazards to be studied include:

Fires:   Flooding:

PUBLIC MEETING TIMES: Both meetings are scheduled to be held in the CCWD Board Room

Wednesday, October 4th,2006, 9:00am to Afternoon (Flexible but probably after 2:00pm)

Thursday, October 5th, 2006, 6:30pm to 8:00pm

In advance of the public meetings, the draft plan when received will be available for review at the following locations:

The draft plan is being developed by a Hazard Mitigation Planning Committee with input from the water district; city, county, state, and federal agencies; and local stakeholders. The plan identifies natural hazards that pose a threat to the water district [e.g., floods, fires, wind damage, and drought, as well as other hazards, that have/has occurred in the recorded/recent past and will re-occur in the future] and evaluates the current abilities of the district to reduce the impacts of future disasters. The committee is seeking public input on the draft Multi-Hazard Mitigation Plan. Feedback may be offered by reviewing and providing comments to the plan. See below for details.

Nationwide, taxpayers pay billions of dollars annually helping communities, organizations, businesses, and individuals recover from disaster. Some natural disasters are predictable and, in many cases, much of the damage can be alleviated or even eliminated. 

FEMA has targeted natural disaster loss reduction as one of its primary goals. The Disaster Mitigation Act of 2000 requires local governments, including universities and special districts, to have a FEMA-approved Hazard Mitigation Plan to maintain continued eligibility for certain federal disaster assistance and hazard mitigation funding programs. 

Hazard mitigation is defined as any sustained action taken to reduce or eliminate long-term risk to human life and property from hazards. Natural hazard mitigation planning is the process in which natural hazards that threaten a community are identified, their likely impacts are assessed, mitigation goals are set, and appropriate strategies for reducing risk are developed, prioritized, and implemented.

The Calaveras County Water District is currently taking the lead in writing this plan under the direction of Edwin Pattison. Mr. Pattison has drawn on the expertise of consultants with AMEC Earth & Environmental, a nationwide engineering firm with a Hazard Mitigation and Emergency Management Division that specializes in writing community disaster preparedness plans seeking FEMA approval. Mr. Pattison and the consultants formed the Hazard Mitigation Planning Committee to facilitate development of the plan.

The Calaveras County Water District Multi-Hazard Mitigation Plan will address a comprehensive list of natural hazards ranging from floods and wildfires to severe winter storms and drought. The past occurrences and future likelihood of each hazard are described and their likely impacts are assessed. When complete, both existing and planned mitigation efforts will be documented, resources identified, and priorities assigned.

The plan is organized as follows:

Executive Summary

1.0 Introduction

2.0 Community Profile

3.0 Planning Process

4.0 Risk Assessment Process

5.0 Mitigation Strategy

6.0 Plan Adoption

7.0 Plan Implementation and Maintenance

Please bring your comments to the public meeting or submit them by mail, fax, or e-mail to:

Edwin Pattison

Calaveras County Water District

423 E. St. Charles Street

San Andreas, CA 95249

W:  209/754.3543 X29

F:  209/754.9620

E-Mail:  edwinp@ccwd.org

Julie Baxter

AMEC Earth & Environmental, Inc.

355 S. Teller Street, Suite 300

Lakewood, CO 80226

Fax: 303/935.6575 (Attention: Julie Baxter)

E-mail: julie.baxter@amec.com

Useful Links:

1. CA OES Hazard Mitigation Web Page: 
2. Federal FEMA Hazard Mitigation Web Page

Revised: 11/27/2006                                                    {Home}  {Questions or Comments?}