The town has gained federal approval for the Newtown Natural Hazard Mitigation Plan, a planning document which the town will use in preparing to reduce the potential damage caused by natural disasters.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has endorsed the plan, which has been six years in the making, said Rob Sibley, town deputy director of planning and land use. Mr Sibley also is a town deputy director of emergency management.

The town and nine other communities in the region have participated in creating such preparedness documents.

Milone & MacBroom, Inc of Cheshire performed technical work on the project for the 10-town Housatonic Valley Council of Elected Officials (HVCEO). The town is now a member of the 18-town regional planning agency known as Western Connecticut Council of Governments.

Mr Sibley said Newtown’s plan is being submitted for state review. After a state endorsement is received, the 444-page document would be posted on the town’s website, Mr Sibley said.

While natural disasters may be unavoidable, the severity of their effects in terms of loss of life, personal injury, and property damage can be lessened through coordinated planning and preventive measures. Through such planning, the town seeks to reduce the potential damage caused by natural disasters.

Types of disasters that the plan would cover include situations such as the March 2010 floods, the winter snow-loading and collapsing roofs of January 2011, Tropical Storm Irene in August 2011, Tropical Storm Lee in September 2011, Winter Storm Alfred in October 2011, Hurricane Sandy in October 2012, and Winter Storm Nemo in February 2013.

The primary natural hazards facing Newtown include floods, hurricanes, tropical storms, summer storms, tornadoes, winter storms, nor’easters, earthquakes, wildfires, and dam failures.

Mr Sibley said the town plan will be reviewed every five years to ensure that it is current.

The planning document which received FEMA approval in late May is the first such plan fashioned for Newtown, he said.

The plan stems from the US Disaster Mitigation Act, which was approved by Congress in 2000. That law creates a national program for “pre-disaster mitigation” or physical measures which can be taken before natural disasters occur to lessen the damage caused by natural disasters. Such measures are intended to reduce or eliminate the long-term risk to people and property caused by natural disasters.

According to Milone & MacBroom, general steps to lessen hazards posed by natural disasters include “elevating roads and bridges to facilitate evacuations during floods, elevating residential structures to reduce property damage, (and) acquiring open space along watercourses to prevent development in flood-prone areas.”

Municipalities are required to develop hazard mitigation plans for eligibility to seek grants from  FEMA to cover up to 75 percent of the costs stemming from preventive projects designed to lessen the damage from natural disasters.

FEMA grants may be used for acquiring buildings or elevating buildings above projected flood levels, replacing culverts, performing drainage improvement projects, doing riverbank stabilization, performing landslide stabilization, retrofitting against damage caused by wind, earthquakes and snow-loading, as well as installing backup electric supplies for critical facilities.

Hazard mitigation planning does not address incidents such as terrorism and sabotage, or certain human-induced emergencies, such as some fires, hazardous material spills and the contamination caused by such spills, as well as the spread of diseases, among other incidents.