Mitigation works best when it is based on a long-term plan that is developed before a disaster. By assessing risk and vulnerability to hazards, mitigation planning identifies long-term local policies and actions that communities can take to increase resilience. Effective planning also weighs input from a wide range of stakeholders and the public. Mitigation planning:
- Encourages community leaders to choose actions to reduce risk that stakeholders and the public will support.
- Focuses resources on the greatest risks and vulnerabilities, including where they are needed the most, i.e. areas and populations disproportionately affected by disasters.
- Builds partnerships with diverse stakeholders. This deepens the pool of data and resources, which can help reduce workloads and achieve shared community objectives.
- Boosts awareness of threats and hazards, including their risks and the community’s vulnerability to those risks.
- Aligns risk reduction with other community goals and programs like capital improvements.
- Supports socially vulnerable populations and underserved communities in achieving resilience.