Year: 2014
Project(s):
Relevance
The increasing cost of flood and wind insurance is making it difficult for coastal residents to be financially resilient. Participation in the National Flood Insurance Program and its incentive-based program, the Community Rating System (CRS), has become essential to mitigating for future hazards, as well as reducing insurance premiums.
Response
The Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium offered technical assistance, hosted workshops, or planned meetings with 10 communities and two counties to increase community participation in the CRS. It also assisted these communities in improving their CRS class rating. By participating in the Coastal Hazard Outreach Strategy Team (C-HOST), Sea Grant extension staff conducted informal needs assessments to determine challenges associated with the CRS. Joint outreach campaigns with CRS communities were conducted to address these challenges which included radio PSAs and billboards about purchasing flood insurance, TV spots reminding residents of flood risks, and flood warning materials placed in the yellow pages books which are received by all coastal residents. These activities earned CRS points for participating C-HOST member communities.
Results
The NOAA Coastal Storms Program in coordination with the Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium conducted an evaluation of the Gulf of Mexico Region to determine the economic impact and benefits of this assistance. When compared to control groups in North Carolina and Florida, communities in Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana increased their CRS participation by 14 communities and decreased their class rating by 0.6 from 2007 to 2013 (i.e., more than a half of a class better than the control group). These improvements in flood protection lead to reduced risk of flood damage and can result in significant cost savings for those needing to purchase insurance.
Recap
The Coastal Storms Program in the Gulf of Mexico helped 29 communities in Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana improve their flood insurance ratings saving residential and commercial policyholders hundreds of dollars annually. (2014)