Wildfire World
If wildfires are your world, or even if they’re not, you’ll appreciate this new website offered by the International Association of Wildland Fire. Launched just ahead of Global Wildfire Awareness Week, the site aggregates wildfire news, resources, and initiatives from around the world, while a community forum and profile postings help those working with wildfire connect no matter where they are.
FracFocus
On first blush, the FracFocus Chemical Disclosure Registry might not seem to fit the natural hazards bill, but there’s plenty of information on this site that might come in handy to disaster researchers. With hydraulic fracturing as a suspected cause of some earthquakes, and oil and gas exploration known to lead to technological disasters, this site helps keep an eye on both the industry and where it operates. Get the latest on fracing policy, find active wells in the United States, and learn what chemicals lurk where.
National Water Resources Challenges Facing the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
It’s a tough time to be the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and times are going to get tougher according to this National Research Council report. The report—one of five that will look at corps strategy and planning—found a conundrum facing the organization as it balances declining budgets with the need for more and increasingly complex infrastructure. Even while the corps’ focus will shift from building infrastructure to maintenance, it will need to continue hydrologic services such as flood control and coastal protection, the report states.
Flood Manager Game
It’s springtime and only natural that young folks’ thoughts turn to floodplain management. Now we can all be flood managers thanks to the Association of State Floodplain Managers Foundation, which worked to develop a fun exercise that lets you make decisions about development in your hometown floodplain. Just enter where you are, what type of structures you want to build (and how you plan to mitigate), and in what risk zones. After some randomly generated weather, you’ll be able to see if your decision made you a hero or cost your people big time.
Handbook for Campus Safety and Security Reporting
While events such as the Virginia Tech and University of Texas shootings remind us that college campuses can be dangerous places, there are dozens of other more mundane but equally serious threats lurking. The Handbook for Campus Safety and Security Reporting gives colleges and universities an easy framework for addressing them. Released this year as an update to the 2005 Handbook for Campus Crime Reporting, the newer version explains the latest federal mandates on emergency disclosures, evacuations, and fire safety reporting.