Re-scaling risk governance using local appraisal and community involvement

Abstract

This paper describes a risk governance model applied on a local scale, showing the advantages and constraints found during its application. The risk governance model, built on a municipal scale, results from the application of the International Risk Governance Council framework. The model is characterised by the cyclicity between the assessment and management spheres, assuming communication to be essential in all stages. Its application in central Portugal is rooted in a specific knowledge of hazards and their impacts, the human and financial constraints, and the expectations of citizens and stakeholders. The results show that preformatted management solutions derived from national civil protection stakeholders can be adapted to a local physical, social and institutional context. It was found that this depends significantly on the stakeholders’ concerns assessment, as this allows the subsequent risk management options to be adapted and legitimised. As a result, more appropriate land-use regulations and mitigation strategies are being designed, which are related to urban planning, road design, risk sensitisation and communication tools. However, two features are likely to lead to an overlapping of competences and conflicts concerning responsibility for decision-making in the actual civil protection structure: the current constraints on resources on an operational level and the potentially inadequate representation of stakeholders on a strategic level.

Keywords:

• risk governance
• municipal level
• appraisal
• communication
• emergency planning

Acknowledgements

This work is funded by National Funds through FCT – Foundation for Science and Technology under the project ‘DISASTER – GIS database on hydro-geomorphologic disasters in Portugal: a tool for environmental management and emergency planning (PTDC/CS-GEO/103231/2008)’.