Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Emergency Management topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Emergency management: Hazard Mitigation Plan due in September; PSAP overtime expected for pipeline reroute
Summary
Emergency Management Director Meagan Quaderer told the committee the county must update its Hazard Mitigation Plan by September to remain eligible for FEMA funding and EMPG; Quaderer also warned the Enbridge pipeline reroute will likely cause overtime in the PSAP and suggested buying radios for interoperability.
Meagan Quaderer, Bayfield County Emergency Management director, told the Sheriff’s Committee on March 16 that the county must update its Hazard Mitigation Plan by September to remain eligible for FEMA funding and to meet Emergency Management Performance Grant (EMPG) requirements.
Quaderer said an update is required every six years; without an updated plan the county could lose eligibility for FEMA funds in a presidential emergency declaration and for EMPG funding that helps pay the emergency management director’s position. She reported that work with the Northwest Regional Planning Commission would cost $32,856 for on-site assistance or $29,247 for remote consultation. Quaderer said she will seek extensions if funding timing requires it and plans to pursue local community grants.
Quaderer also addressed operational impacts tied to an Enbridge pipeline reroute, telling the committee she expects overtime in the public-safety answering point (PSAP) and that there may be a need for additional staffing because the PSAP serves both counties. She told the committee she prefers dispatchers work in the communications center rather than in a mobile command post and suggested the county purchase a cache of radios to improve interoperability for the pipeline project and other events (Apple Fest, Birkie). Jan Lee noted that the earlier Line 3 project had included reimbursement for communications; Quaderer said interoperability—not only project-specific reimbursement—is the priority.
Quaderer said she had applied for a FEMA Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) grant; that application had been defunded and later reopened but remains unfunded. The committee discussed cost, timing and the option to request a deadline extension while pursuing funding.
The committee did not take formal action on the Hazard Mitigation Plan update during the meeting; Quaderer said she will continue grant applications and report back with funding progress.
