1998 Year of the Ocean Mitigating the Impacts of Coastal Hazards 



determining the effectiveness of existing and proposed hazard management and land use poUcies. 

 In addition to meeting the needs of the research and scientific communities, hazard risk models 

 and decision support tools should also be developed for use by local governments and decision 

 makers.. 



On the national scale, the applicability of new technologies should be explored for cost- 

 effective methods of assessing hazards vulnerability and measuring hazards impacts. National 

 baseline data need to be established for use in collecting and quantifying disaster impacts. 

 Computer-based geographic information systems should be used to analyze hazards information 

 and provide national risk assessment data to state and local governments in a quick and easy 

 maimer. New high-resolution remote sensing capabilities should be examined for use in large- 

 scale risk and vulnerability assessment projects. 



Hazards Prediction and Modeling 



Technical capabilities to predict events have improved for some hazards, and made only 

 modest gains for others. Improvements in monitoring, data collection, and data processing 

 account for most of the advancements made in short-term weather-related forecasting. Better 

 modeling capabilities, along with a more thorough understanding of variables, such as global 

 climate change and sea-level rise, are needed to improve long-range forecasting and planning for 

 coastal hazard impacts. More information is also needed about the interactions between hazard 

 events such as rising water levels in the Great Lakes, and ongoing coastal processes, such as 

 erosion, to predict future hazard impacts. 



Hazard Impacts and Losses 



Significant progress has been made in understanding the various impacts that hazards 

 produce on human and natural environments. Numerous research activities have been undertaken 

 following the major hazard events of the past few years. These research activities focus on a wide 

 range of impacts including those on developed and natural environments, as well as the effects of 

 disasters on the social and economic systems of impacted communities. Unfortunately, much of 

 this research is piecemeal and has not been incorporated into any type of comprehensive database 

 on disaster losses. 



Detailed information on disaster losses and their associated costs is needed to serve as a 

 baseline for evaluating the effectiveness of mitigation measures. Other advancements needed for 

 evaluating hazard mitigation options include better engineering information about the 

 effectiveness of structural techniques such as flood or wind proofing, and better sociological 

 information about the effectiveness of the various incentives available to encourage mitigation 

 activities. 



H-11 



