PrintMitigation
Introduction
Mitigation involves taking action to reduce risk. Mitigation is a long-term planning activity, unlike preparedness, response, and recovery, which are more immediately part of the emergency itself. But mitigation can begin following a disaster, during recovery, to mitigate the effects of any future disaster. In the mitigation phase of the emergency management cycle, activities aimed at decreasing the likelihood of disaster or reducing its negative impacts can either be structural or non-structural. Examples of structural mitigation activities include building physical infrastructure such as sea walls or retrofitting existing buildings to withstand the hazard, or to serve as shelters. Instances of non-structural mitigation activities include developing storm surge warning systems, post-disaster recovery plans, and educational programs. Other non-structural mitigation measures include flood insurance programs (although some consider this as part of preparedness), and land use planning activities like zoning. As you can see, mitigation activities are wide-ranging and can overlap with other phases of the emergency management cycle.
Learning Check Point
Please take a few minutes to think about what you just learned and answer the question below.