News Release

Local angles: Felton Grove, Sacramento, Calif.;
Savannah, Ga.; Saint Tammany Parish, Jefferson
Parish, La.; Beaufort County, Belhaven and
Washington, N.C.

Photo: To download a photo, see end of story.

After the flood: Researchers identify ways
to boost acceptance of federal rebuilding aid

CHAPEL HILL - Researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have identified ways to strengthen federal flood mitigation programs - as well as some reasons why homeowners decline these offers of money to rebuild.

In 2005, Hurricanes Katrina and Rita heightened awareness of the vulnerability of people and property in flood-prone areas of the United States. In a recent study funded by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the researchers found that flood insurance claims from those two hurricanes are approaching $25 billion.

Only a few previous studies have examined the factors that people take into account when faced with a federal flood mitigation offer. Dr. James Fraser, senior research associate in UNC's Center for Urban and Regional Studies, and Danny de Vries, an anthropology doctoral candidate, surveyed 237 property owners whose homes had been repeatedly flooded in eight sites across the United States. They also interviewed 41 mitigation officials to better understand why homeowners accept or decline mitigation offers.

The mitigation offers that researchers considered included buyouts - which involve the transference of property from the individual to the local government and subsequent relocation of the homeowner - and elevating homes above predicted flood levels. The sites included in the study were Felton Grove and Sacramento, Calif.; Savannah, Ga.; Saint Tammany Parish and Jefferson Parish, La.; and Beaufort County, Washington and Belhaven, N.C.

Typically, the federal government provides 75 percent of the funds toward flood mitigation. The remaining 25 percent comes from the state, locality or property owner.

The study revealed that in communities where the local or state government provided the 25 percent match, property owners participated at a rate 6.5 times greater than sites where owners were required to provide the match.

"North Carolina has historically provided the 25 percent match for anyone who accepted mitigation, as opposed to the sites we studied in Louisiana, which did not provide the match," said Fraser, also an associate research professor in UNC's geography department.

The first step toward increasing participation by homeowners is to help them come up with the 25 percent match, Fraser said. The national Flood Insurance Reform Act, passed in 2004, is attempting to address this issue. Through the act, a new pilot program will focus on "severe repetitive loss properties." FEMA is currently drafting guidelines for the pilot program, Fraser said.

"They're talking about paying up to 90 percent or more instead of 75 percent," he said.

Developing more sustainable federal mitigation efforts will involve focusing on a community-based approach, according to the study. Property owners who experienced repetitive property loss due to flooding were 5.2 times more likely to accept mitigation offers when they felt the mitigation official was helpful, for instance. Fraser said this is related to the positive relationships that developed among local officials, community-based organizations and residents.

"FEMA should emphasize a flexible and streamlined application process, support incentives to build local capacity in flood hazard management and increase the role of community-based organizations in mitigation efforts," Fraser said.

"And because the success of federal flood mitigation programs depends on individual property owners' decisions, policymakers must increasingly consider the factors that affect homeowners' acceptance of mitigation offers," he said. "These factors include attachment to the places where they live and the social relationships that they develop there."

Besides de Vries, other UNC researchers assisting in the study included Dr. Martin Doyle, assistant professor of geography, and Hannah Young, who received a master's degree in city and regional planning at UNC in 2005. The study appeared in the July 4 issue of Eos, a publication of the American Geophysical Union.

The Center for Urban and Regional Studies in UNC's College of Arts and Sciences has been conducting research on natural hazards for more than 20 years. The center conducts and supports research on urban and regional affairs that helps to build healthy, sustainable communities across the country and around the world.

For more information on the center, visit http://curs.unc.edu. For a copy of the study, contact Fraser at (919) 962-6835, pavement@unc.edu.

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For a photo of Fraser, visit http://www.unc.edu/news/pics/faculty/fraser_jim.jpg

Center for Urban and Regional Studies contact: Dr. James Fraser, (919) 962-6835, pavement@unc.edu
College of Arts and Sciences contact: Kim Weaver Spurr, (919) 962-4093, spurrk@email.unc.edu