From Surviving to Thriving: Equity in Disaster Planning and Recovery

Abstract

The natural disasters of 2017-19 have exposed weaknesses in our preparation for disaster and climate change. What if we had paid attention — before disaster ensued — to how environmental protection and planning can prevent and minimize the harm that disasters cause to people, their housing, and the infrastructure of our cities, states, and territories? Steps to inform the public about risks, to adopt protective measures, and to enforce health, safety and environmental standards could have minimized the human suffering and loss and minimized the economic costs associated with recovery. This paper explores how such changes in various federal and state laws could make us more resilient.

Keywords: environment, environmental law, disaster, disaster law, RCRA, CERCLA, Emergency Waiver, EPCRA,FEMA, Planning, Migration, Relocation, Resilience, Stormwater, NEPA, Stafford Act, climate, Environmental Justice

JEL Classification: H12, H41, H54, H77, I14, I18, I31, K19, K32, Q01, Q51, Q54, Q58