Natural disasters challenge communities every year and are expected to increase in frequency and intensity. In addition to addressing the loss of homes, lives, and power from natural disasters, communities are tasked with the difficult job of managing large amounts of natural disaster debris that may be generated. Debris may damage necessary infrastructure, block access to roads, and pose threats to human health and the environment. Cleaning it up can be time-consuming and costly, and recovery is not complete until all debris has been managed.

To assist communities (including cities, counties, states, tribes) in planning for debris management before a natural disaster occurs, EPA's Office of Resource Conservation and Recovery updated its Planning for Natural Disaster Debris Guidance. Pre-incident planning can significantly aid decision-making during a response and enhance a community's resiliency. Pre-incident planning can also help communities recover faster, spend less money on cleanup and debris/waste management, and use fewer resources to rebuild and recover. This webinar will provide an overview of the guidance and highlight lessons learned and best practices. After the presentation, we look forward to answering stakeholder questions.

The Planning for Natural Disaster Debris Guidance can be found here: https://www.epa.gov/homeland-security-waste/guidance-about-planning-natural-disaster-debris.

Speaker

Melissa Kaps began working in EPA's Office of Resource Conservation and Recovery (ORCR) in 2007. As a member of ORCR's Homeland Security Team, she provides support in the identification and characterization of waste generated from homeland security incidents and the management of that waste. Recently, her focus has been on promoting waste management-related planning and preparation for disasters, particularly natural disasters. Melissa graduated from Boston University in 2001, where she received a degree in Political Science with a minor in Environmental Analysis and Policy. In 2004, Melissa earned a law degree from The George Washington University Law School.