In the summer of 2022, county staff floated the idea of an internal resiliency study to see where improvements could be made in the ways the county handles disasters.
Key findings included the need for more interdepartmental collaboration — and for outreach to unincorporated parts of the county to ensure vulnerable populations are aware of available resources.
One particularly large gap in how the county mitigates disasters, is in the Community Rating System, or CRS.
“The benefit directly for citizens is that if you live in a more flood-prone area, your [flood] insurance rates are reduced because of the participation of your local jurisdiction," Planning and Land Use Director Rebekah Roth said.
The City of Wilmington does not participate in the program, leaving out an entire group of the county’s population. The county, Roth said, plans to have more communication on CRS with the city.
The study recommends different levels of risk tolerance in different areas. For example, avoiding all possible risk for underserved and vulnerable populations, and focusing more on mitigating risk for things like historic and cultural amenities.
Commissioner Rob Zapple said the county needs to use water-level gauges to help mitigate flood risks — something he’s asked for for years.
“I don’t see anything in here that says we are committing money or we are actually getting these gauges that tell us exactly what’s happening," he said. "What do we need to do to get the gauges in the water?”
Staff said they’re working on it, but need to identify funding needs.
Commissioners unanimously adopted the recommendations that were presented by staff.
