2025 Five-Year Update

Onondaga County Multi-Jurisdictional Hazard Mitigation Plan

The Onondaga County Department of Planning is leading the 2025 five year update of the Onondaga County Multi-Jurisdictional Hazard Mitigation Plan for the County and its municipalities.

The Plan was originally adopted by the Onondaga County Legislature and participating municipalities in 2013, and updated in 2019.

Hazard mitigation, or pre-disaster planning, provides an opportunity to identify key local actions to be taken to reduce or eliminate the long-term risk to human life and property from natural hazards. It is also a wise investment because FEMA cites that every $1 spent on hazard mitigation before a natural disaster impacts a community saves $6 on future disaster losses.

The primary hazards of concern to Onondaga County identified in the 2019 update include drought, earthquake, flooding, geological hazards (i.e., landslide, land subsidence, mudboils), harmful algal blooms, invasive species and infestation, severe storms, and winter storms. The 2025 update will also likely include extreme heat and wildfire as new hazards of concern.

Ultimately, this Plan will identify mitigation projects and actions that will be implemented to reduce vulnerability and enable communities to become more resilient to disasters. The Federal Government requires local and state governments to have a FEMA-approved Hazard Mitigation Plan, as established by the Disaster Mitigation Act of 2000, in order to qualify for hazard mitigation assistance grant funds. These programs are critical sources of Federal funding, especially for a community that intends to proactively initiate mitigation projects using mitigation grant dollars.

Public Comment Period

A draft copy of the 2025 update to the Multi-Jurisdictional Hazard Mitigation Plan is available for public review and comment. Interested residents and business owners are invited to review the draft update and provide comments by May 30, 2025.

Multi-Jurisdictional Hazard Mitigation Plan

Please use the following comment form to submit your feedback on the plan to the Onondaga County Department of Planning: Public Comment Form