Mitigation Measures for Natural Hazards

Mitigation measures are actions that eliminate or reduce risks from future disaster
events, including:
• Physical construction projects such as replacing a highly vulnerable facility
with a new facility or retrofitting an existing facility, and
• Evacuation planning to minimize casualties in future disaster events.

Mitigation planning is complementary to emergency planning. Emergency planning

includes measures to respond more effectively to future disasters. The mitigation
measures listed below do not include emergency planning measures, but rather
focus specifically on measures that eliminate or reduce damages and/or casualties in
future disaster events.

1.0 Earthquake Mitigation Measures

Earthquake mitigation measures are typically intended to reduce both casualties and
damage in future earthquakes.

Common earthquake mitigation measures include:

• Structural mitigation measures to improve the capacity of a building to resist
seismic forces. Structural measures include improving the building elements
that hold up a building and resist lateral forces from winds and earthquakes,
including: foundations, columns, load-bearing walls, floor diaphragms, roof
diaphragms and the connections between these structural elements.
• Nonstructural mitigation measures to restrain, brace, anchor or otherwise
improve the seismic resistance of nonstructural building components such as
parapets, chimneys, non-load bearing walls, fire sprinkler systems, HVAC
systems, suspended ceilings and lights, windows, water heaters, furnaces, air
conditioners and emergency generators.
• Nonstructural mitigation measures to restrain, brace or anchor building
contents, especially tall and/or heavy items that pose life safety risks if they
fall, such as bookcases, file cabinets, storage shelves, computers, monitors,
televisions and others.
• Replacement of an existing building with substantial seismic deficiencies with
a new current code building. Replacement is typically more expensive than
retrofit, but may be appropriate if retrofit costs are high, especially if the
existing building is in overall poor condition, needs non-seismic repairs, is near
the end of its useful life, is functionally obsolescent, or has other deficiencies
such as not being energy efficient. Replacement with a new building on a
different site may be appropriate if an existing site is also subject to other

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 natural hazards, such as tsunamis or floods, or to significant anthropogenic
hazards such as being near a major hazmat site.
• Design and construction of a new facility to higher than the minimum seismic
standards required by building codes, especially for facilities that may serve as
emergency shelters.
• Practicing drop, hold and cover drills, which may reduce injuries from falling
objects, but which are not a substitute for other mitigation measures for
buildings with substantial structural seismic deficiencies and that may be
subject to collapse in major earthquakes.

2.0 Tsunami Mitigation Measures

Tsunami mitigation measures are focused predominantly on life safety, with reducing
damage being as secondary priority, if considered at all.

The primary tsunami mitigation measures are:

• Developing and practicing evacuation plans. This is an essential, urgent
priority for facilities within mapped tsunami inundation zones and strongly
recommended for facilities near mapped tsunami inundation zones or simply
near the coast at low elevations. An essential component of developing a
tsunami evacuation plan is an evaluation of whether it is possible to reach
designated evacuation assembly locations in the available time period
between the end of earthquake ground shaking and the first arrival of tsunami
waves. However, unless there is a high confidence that a safe haven location
can be reached in the available time period, then an evacuation plan provides
a minimal, if any, increase in life safety.

• Constructing new facilities well outside of tsunami hazard zones.

For existing facilities, where reaching a safe haven location takes longer than the
available time period, implementing one of the following mitigation measures is
strongly recommended:
• Replacement of an existing facility with a new facility located well outside the
tsunami inundation zone, at an elevation of at least 50 feet and an elevation of
100 feet or more, if possible.
• Construction of vertical evacuation structures such as platforms or engineered
berms in close proximity to an at-risk facility.
• Designation of existing multi-story buildings as vertical evacuation sites.
Existing multistory buildings are suitable for tsunami evacuation if and only if
they have been rigorously evaluated by qualified, experienced engineers and
found to have all of the following characteristics with a high confidence level:

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 o Have accessible floors or roofs at an elevation well above the
anticipated tsunami inundation level. Ideally, at least 50 feet above sea
level.
o Have immediate access for the public on a 24/7/365 basis.
o Have adequate structural capacity to withstand the very strong
earthquake ground shaking expected from nearby tsunami-generating
earthquakes such as large or very large magnitude earthquakes on the
Cascadia Subduction Zone or large magnitude earthquakes on the
Seattle Fault Zone or Tacoma Fault Zone. Buildings suitable for
vertical evacuation must withstand the earthquake ground shaking
without major structural damage.
o Have adequate structural capacity to withstand the tsunami forces
without significant structural damage.

• If an existing building doesn’t meet all of the above criteria, one alternative is
to retrofit the building to meet these criteria. It is also possible to construct new
multistory facilities suitable for vertical evacuation. In this case, the same
selection criteria apply as those listed above for existing buildings.
• For facilities near the fringe of expected tsunami inundation areas,
construction of berms or other barriers to protect the facility may be possible.
However, this is done infrequently because of cost considerations.
Furthermore, such protective measures do not obviate the need for developing
an evacuation plan and for immediate evacuation when a tsunami is possible.

3.0 Volcanic Hazards Mitigation Measures

For K-12 facilities, the principal volcanic hazard is lahars (volcanic debris flows),
although some campuses are within possible lateral blast zones. Volcanic hazards
mitigation measures are focused predominantly on life safety, with reducing damage
being rarely, if ever, considered. K-12 facilities are also exposed to volcanic ash
falls. However, dealing with volcanic ash falls is more in the domain of emergency
planning.

The primary volcanic hazards mitigation measures are:

• Developing and practicing evacuation plans. This is an essential, high priority
for facilities within mapped lahar zones and other volcanic hazard zones and
strongly recommended for facilities near mapped hazard zones. An essential
component of developing a lahar evacuation plan is an evaluation of whether it
is possible to reach designated evacuation assembly locations in the available
time period between awareness that a lahar has been initiated and the arrival
at a given campus. However, unless there is a high confidence that a safe
haven location can be reached in the available time period, then an
evacuation plan provides a minimal, if any, increase in life safety.

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 • For facilities with lateral blast zones, evacuation is impossible once a blast
occurs. Therefore, evacuations must be pro-active, when USGS volcanic
event warnings reach a pre-determined level.
• Constructing new facilities well outside of lahar hazard zones.
For existing facilities, where reaching a safe haven location takes longer than the
available time period, implementing one of the following mitigation measures is
strongly recommended:
• Replacement of an existing facility with a new facility located well outside the
lahar inundation zone, ideally at an elevation of at least 50 feet above the
elevation of nearest boundary of a mapped lahar zone.
• Construction of a pedestrian bridge to expedite evacuation in locations where
access to the nearest suitable evacuation location is precluded by a river
without a bridge.

For completeness, we note that it might be possible to build vertical evacuation

structures for lahars, although cost-considerations for a structure robust enough to
withstand lahar forces may well make this impractical and we are not aware of any
such structures having been built.

For K-12 facilities subject to volcanic ash falls, preparation of dealing with ash falls is
recommended to be included in a district’s emergency plan.

4.0 Flood Mitigation Measures

In most situations, the primary objective of flood mitigation measures is to reduce the
potential for future damages and other economic losses. Life safety risk is minimal
for most flood situations, because there is typically more than adequate time to
evacuate a campus before flooding occurs. However, for locations subject to flash
flooding, evacuation planning is a high priority.

Most of the mitigation measures outlined below apply to individual buildings, although
flood barriers may also apply to an entire campus.

Common flood mitigation measures include:

• Replacement of an existing building with a new building well outside of the
flood hazard area. This is the only flood mitigation measure which is 100%
effective in avoiding future damages. Replacement is typically considered for
facilities with high levels of flood risk, most often with a history of repetitive
losses. Replacement may also be appropriate when a building has substantial
vulnerability to other hazards such as tsunamis or earthquake, or if the existing
facility is in overall poor condition, needs non-hazard related repairs, is near
the end of its useful life, is functionally obsolescent, and has other deficiencies
such as not being energy efficient.

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 • Elevation of an existing building is a very common mitigation measure for
residential buildings and for small commercial buildings. Elevations have also
been done for some school buildings. Whether or not elevation is possible,
from both an engineering perspective and a cost perspective, depends on the
size and on construction details, including the type of foundation.
• Relocation of an existing building to a new site is a much less common
mitigation measure than elevation, but may be possible for some school
buildings, depending on the same factors as for elevations, as well as on the
transport routes, distance and rights of way.
• Flood barriers such as flood walls or berms may be constructed to protect an
entire campus or single buildings.
• Floodproofing of an existing building by waterproofing existing exterior walls
and adding removable flood gates for door openings is possible for buildings
where the walls have adequate strength to resist hydrostatic forces from floods
and anticipated flood depths are not more than several feet.
• In addition the above whole-campus or whole-building mitigation measures,
there are several types of smaller-scale flood mitigation measures which
eliminate or reduce flood damages to a limited extent, including:
o Elevating at-grade outside utility infrastructure or key in-building
infrastructure such as furnaces and electrical panels.
o Moving expensive equipment or other expensive contents to an upper
story.
• For campuses subject to flash flooding, developing and practicing an
evacuation plan is a high priority mitigation measure. Flash flooding may
occur in some narrow valleys in mountainous or hilly areas, in arid areas with
limited vegetation but that are subject to occasional heavy rainfalls. Flash
flooding is also possible for locations behind levees or downstream of dams or
large water reservoirs.

• Constructing new facilities well outside of flood hazard areas.

5.0 Wildland/Urban Interface Fire Mitigation Measures

Mitigation measures for wildland/urban fires typically focus primarily on evacuations

for life safety. However, there are also physical mitigation measures to reduce the
risk of damage to buildings.

Common mitigation measures for wildland/urban interface fires include:

• Developing and practicing evacuation plans. The most urgent evacuations are
for situations in which a wildland or wildland/urban interface fire poses an
immediate threat. Evacuations may also be necessary when heavy smoke
from a more distant fire poses health risks.

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Mitigation measures to reduce the potential for damage include:
• Vegetation management and fuel reduction measures for high vegetative fuel
load areas near developed areas. Such measures are almost always
developed, implemented and maintained by fire agencies and/or other city or
county departments, rather than by school districts.
• Maintaining defensible space around buildings to minimize the potential of a
vegetation fire spreading to structures.
• Implementing fire-resistant construction details for buildings, such as non-
flammable roof coverings, nonflammable exterior walls, screening ventilation
openings to prevent embers from entering and many others.
• Siting new facilities in locations with lower risk of wildland/urban interface fires.

Vegetation management, fuel reduction measures and maintaining defensible space

apply to an entire campus. However, implementing fire-resistant construction details
for buildings applies on a building-by-building basis.

Fire-resistant construction details, which may go beyond minimum building code

requirements, can be included in the design of new buildings and this is may be
desirable for new construction in areas at high risk from wildland/urban interface fires.

Fire safe measures can also be incorporated into existing buildings, especially when
building elements are being repaired or upgraded. For example, it may be most cost-
effective to install a non-flammable roof covering when an existing flammable roof
covering has reached the end of its useful life and needs to be replaced. Similarly, if
windows are being replaced for energy efficiency, it may be desirable to install fire-
resistant windows

6.0 Landslide Mitigation Measures

Possible mitigation measures for landslides include:

• Slope stabilization by dewatering and other methods,
• Protecting at-risk buildings by building berms or other structures to stop or
deflect shallow landslides such as debris flows.
• For very high risk locations, where a building is located very close to a deeply
incised stream with eroding banks or is located at the base of a very steep,
very unstable slope, the only viable mitigation measure may be to abandon the
existing building and locate a replacement outside of landslide hazard areas.
• Evacuation when landslide risk appears imminent such as evidence of
downslope movements above a building or a rapidly eroding steep slope is
approaching a building.
• Constructing new facilities outside of landslide hazard areas.