Would You Provide Billions To Fund This Plan?

Gov. Christie’s  Hazard Mitigation Plan Is Vague – No Deadlines For Action

Source: NJ Hazard Mitigation Plan (March 2014)

The above table presents “high priority” actions from NJ’s Hazard Mitigation Plan – Section 6 – Mitigation Strategy.

The actions and initiatives involve conducting vulnerability assessment and mitigation planning for critical facilities in the highest risk flood zones – little things, like parking trains in flood hazard areas; and protecting drinking water and sewage treatment plants; and hardening energy infrastructure.

Like all the important stuff that was wiped out by Sandy.

If the print is too small to read, let me summarize:

• Projected timelines:        “to be determined”
• Projected resources:       “to be determined”
• Status:                                “ongoing“
• Responsible agencies: “local/regional authorities”

Understanding the last point, regarding the “responsible agency” is key – note that the State’s Plan makes all that a local government responsibility or the job or regional water and sewer authorities. Total state abdication. Get it?

Would you sign you kids homework if it contained bullshit like that?

So why should Congress, FEMA, HUD, EPA, and the US Army Corps provide billions of taxpayer dollars to fund it?

Of the dozens of actions and initiatives listed, there are two that are rated “highest priority” actions in the plan are 1) to incorporate existing earth quake studies into the plan; and 2) develop local government webpages.

This is not a joke.

Does it surprise you that this shoddy effort is being managed thusly:

The Governor of New Jersey has the overall responsibility for Emergency Management activities in the State.    

A number of federal and State programs support hazard mitigation in New Jersey. The Governor’s Office of Recovery and Rebuilding (GORR) was established to lead the recovery efforts after Superstorm Sandy. The GORR taps the institutional knowledge and bandwidth of New Jersey state agencies in recovering from Superstorm Sandy. The working group structure developed by Governor Christie’s recovery team is designed to complement the federal long-term recovery structure, allowing the State to efficiently identify federal resources and coordinate New Jersey’s recovery.

Given the Christie Administration’s supreme competence and stellar performance in Sandy recovery and administering federal grant money, don’t you just feel so much safer now?

But how could the NJ press corps miss this story? For details, see this.