Jane Nees BOP Regional Councillor www.janenees.co.nz

Last year gave us a good reminder that disasters can and do happen. The Christchurch earthquakes, the Pike River mine collapse, the extreme flooding events and the Rena grounding remind us that we cannot be sure what is around the corner.

Recently, a review of our civil defence planning for the Bay of Plenty was undertaken and an updated Bay of Plenty Civil Defence Emergency Management Draft Group Plan 2012-2017 has been released for public consultation.

The aim of the update is to strengthen the four key areas of emergency management – reduction, readiness, response and recovery. We hope it will result in a more effective and efficient civil defence emergency management capability here in the Bay of Plenty.

The draft plan identifies and quantifies the hazards present throughout the Bay and looks at ways to actively manage these hazards over time to minimise consequences and reduce risks.

It includes actions like the development of a mass evacuation plan, a risk reduction programme, a hazards research programme, a new public education strategy and the development and implementation of a regional alerting and communications system strategy. It also identifies who is responsible for what and how the key emergency management agencies will work together.

It is worth checking out. You can view it at council offices or public libraries in our region or you can download a copy of the plan at www.boprc.govt.nz/news-centre/public-notices.

Submissions can be made in writing and posted or done online. The deadline for submissions is 4pm on Wednesday, February 29.

If you have any views on this or any other issue, please phone 07 579 5150, email [email protected] or visit www.janenees.co.nz