Community Risk Assessment and Resilience Planning Partnership

The Community Risk Assessment and Resilience Planning Partnership is a DCRA partnership with the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium’s (ANTHC’s) Center for Environmentally Threatened Communities (CETC). This partnership advances a Community Risk Assessment Program at CETC and expands technical assistance to help Alaska communities address natural hazard impacts statewide. DCRA staff serve as Risk Assessment Planners, helping communities build resilience by improving understanding of hazard risks, supporting decisions on risk reduction, and assisting with Infrastructure Protection Plans that guide long-term protection efforts.

Map of 144 Most Threatened Communities

A 2019 Statewide Threat Assessment evaluated 187 communities for threats to public infrastructure from flooding, erosion, and permafrost degradation. 144 communities were found to be at high or moderate risk of damage to infrastructure, and are the focus of the Community Risk Assessment Program.

Partnership Resources

• Statewide Threat Assessment: Identification of Threats from Erosion, Flooding, and Thawing Permafrost in Remote Alaska Communities

  This study aimed to 1) identify the individual risks to public infrastructure in Alaska communities from erosion, flooding, and thawing permafrost; 2) evaluate the combined threat when these factors interact in Alaska communities; and 3) provide decision-makers with technical guidance on the information needed to develop mitigation or adaptation strategies for these threats.

• The Unmet Needs of Environmentally Threatened Alaska Native Villages: Assessment and Recommendations

  The purpose of this report is to help improve the effectiveness of federal and state government support for Alaska communities to address natural hazard threats to infrastructure from erosion, flooding, and permafrost degradation. This report identifies funding needs, priorities, and recommends implementation strategies. It offers a conceptual whole-of-government coordination framework for Alaska, with specific roles and responsibilities identified for state and federal partners, intended to catalyze the development of a better service delivery system.

For more information about DCRA's Community Risk Assessment and Resilience Planning Partnership, contact:

Sally Russell Cox

Local Government Specialist 5 / Resilience, Planning, & Land Management Section Manager
Division of Community and Regional Affairs
Department of Commerce, Community, and Economic Development
550 West 7th Avenue, Suite 1640
Anchorage, AK 99501
Phone: (907) 269-4588
Fax: (907) 269-4539