Center for American Progress: 'Equitable and Just Hurricane, Disaster Preparedness Amid COVID-19'

WASHINGTON, Sept. 30 -- The Center for American Progress issued the following report entitled "Equitable and Just Hurricane and Disaster Preparedness Amid COVID-19".

The report was written by Rita Cliffton, research associate for climate and energy policy, Bianca Majumder, research associate for climate and energy policy, and Cathleen Kelly, senior fellow for energy and environment.

Here are the excerpts:

Introduction and summary

Countless communities across the United States have felt firsthand the often deadly and devastating impacts of hurricanes, from Hurricane Katrina, which left 1,833 people dead after slamming into the Gulf Coast in 2005, to Hurricane Sandy in 2012 and hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria in 2017--some of the most costly tropical storms on record--along with many others. And recently, on August 27, 2020, Hurricane Laura lashed Louisiana with 150-mile-per-hour winds, killing six people and registering as one of the most powerful storms on record to strike the United States.1 Hurricane Sally rapidly intensified shortly before making landfall on September 16, 2020, as a slow-moving Category 2 storm with 105 mph winds, dumping 20 to 30 inches of rainfall along hard-hit communities in western Florida and coastal Alabama.2 All in all, as of September 23, 2020, the Atlantic hurricane season has produced 23 named storms--nearly double the season's long-term average and exhausting, for only the second time in history, the National Hurricane Center's list of 21 names.3 Yet the 2020 hurricane season represents uncharted territory, as storms are expected to continue making landfall in communities that are still struggling to contain COVID-19 outbreaks, maintain social distancing, and weather the historic pandemic-induced economic downturn--all amid a national reckoning with racial oppression and resource disparities in Black communities and other communities of color.

Despite the deadly consequences of both delaying the federal response to the pandemic at its outset and urging states to reopen their economies before it was safe to do so, President Donald Trump has boasted about the federal government's response to COVID-19 and the nation's preparedness for the 2020 hurricane season.4 This is confounding and troubling given the realities that people and state and local governments are facing on the ground, including surges in new COVID-19 cases; double-digit unemployment rates; massive state and local budget cuts due to the economic recession; and the onset of an unusually active hurricane season--caused by warmer ocean temperatures that are fueled by climate change--that continues to break storm formation records.5 In short, extreme weather disasters, which are expected to increase in severity with climate change, are likely to further compound the ongoing, historic confluence of economic and public health crises facing the United States.

To protect at-risk communities from additional hardship as cash-strapped state and local governments focus their resources on providing critical services during the pandemic, the federal government must invest in immediate disaster preparedness and mitigation efforts as well as commit to longer-term investments in strong, healthy, and climate change-ready communities, infrastructure, and coastal areas. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act provided an additional $45 billion to the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) Disaster Relief Fund, and although this more than doubles the amount of money available to support the president's emergency and disaster declarations,6 it is not nearly enough to respond to both the coronavirus crisis and extreme weather disasters. In 2019, climate and weather disasters alone caused a total of $45 billion in damages in the United States.7 This year will see an even higher price tag. Experts have calculated that $915 billion is needed to relieve the fiscal pressures that the COVID-19 pandemic has put on states, localities, tribes, and territories8--all during a year that is expected to be "one of the most active hurricane seasons on record," the resource needs of which will likely strain state and local government finances further.9 Furthermore, President Trump's disaster relief memorandum to address unemployment insurance redirects previously appropriated funds from general disaster relief--including extreme weather, flooding, and the severe wildfires devastating the West--to provide lost wage assistance to individuals.10 While unemployment insurance is critical to support families during the pandemic-induced recession, the memorandum redirects $44 billion in critically needed assistance from FEMA's Disaster Relief Fund at precisely the worst time and potentially diverts funds from hurricane relief assistance.11

This hurricane season heightens the need for coordinated, comprehensive disaster planning and response from states, localities, and the federal government. In order to address the impending, deadly threat of climate-fueled extreme weather amid the COVID-19 crisis, and to ensure that the nation's most vulnerable communities have equitable resources to protect themselves and rebuild after storms, Congress must immediately take the following actions:

* Provide a second extension of the FEMA deadline for renewing flood insurance policies.

* Provide funds to help states, cities, and communities prepare for and equitably rebuild after disasters.

* Allocate $20 billion for Superfund site cleanup and $840 million to the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Superfund Emergency Response and Removal Program in future economic recovery and stimulus plans.

* Allocate $100 million to the National Institute of Environmental Health Science (NIEHS) Environmental Career Worker Training Program (ECWTP) in future economic recovery and stimulus plans.

* Create and capitalize a Healthy Communities and Resilient Infrastructure Fund (HCRIF) as part of a long-term economic recovery and stimulus plan.

* Require federal agencies to safeguard federal investments in flood-prone areas.

In addition, state and local governments must take the following steps to reduce the threat and cost of future extreme weather emergencies and disasters and protect vulnerable communities:

* Coordinate with the federal government to assist families in need with evacuation.

* Develop disaster rebuilding plans that prioritize affordable housing and resilient infrastructure.

* Implement equitable housing policies and just and resilient community development.

* Develop bold, equitable, and comprehensive plans to cut pollution and build resilience to climate change.

The Trump administration has denied the science behind both COVID-19 and climate change and, in doing so, has abdicated responsibility for the racial and class inequities that its policies have exacerbated in communities.12 The resulting devastation could leave a long-lasting legacy, and state, local, and federal leaders must start repairing the damage now, including by taking the actions described above.

* * *

Conclusion

As the pandemic rages on and climate change fuels more intense extreme weather, the Trump administration has continued to deny the science of both at every turn. This has left low-income communities, tribal communities, and communities of color dangerously unprepared and underresourced for the historic compounding threats of a viral pandemic; a severe economic and employment contraction; and a record-breaking hurricane season. Congress must act now to support these communities--which, historically, have been left behind time and time again--in future economic stimulus and disaster response and recovery packages. State and local leaders must also do their part by directing disaster rebuilding assistance and economic stimulus funding to prepare for more extreme weather emergencies and disasters; build climate change-ready affordable housing and infrastructure; and cut GHGs and local pollution to reduce climate change and public health threats, particularly in the most vulnerable communities.

* * *

REPORT: https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/green/reports/2020/09/30/490964/equitable-just-hurricane-disaster-preparedness-amid-covid-19/