Four years after the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, we still have a lot to learn as we prepare for a Cascadia Subduction Zone earthquake:

http://www.opb.org/news/article/four-years-later-japans-earthquake-still-offers-lessons-for-oregon/

DOGAMI recently released Yumei Wang’s analysis of how the Cascadia earthquake will impact hospitals and water systems. I suggest checking out the executive summary: http://public.health.oregon.gov/Preparedness/Prepare/Documents/oha-earthquake-risk-report-2014.pdf

The main takeaway for me: “Both pilot study hospitals have seismic vulnerabilities and are expected to incur significant hospital bed shortages for over 90 days after a Cascadia earthquake… Lincoln City hospital is estimated to incur significant damage due to its proximity to the Cascadia subduction zone and will slowly recover to operate at about 52% bed capacity in 90 days. A number of bridges that connect the community and hospital, including bridges crossing the Siletz River, are expected to incur major damage and impede citizen access to the hospital complex. Although the McMinnville hospital has modern seismic structural engineering, design, and construction, it is expected to have a severe reduction in function due to shaking damage. It is expected to recover to about 76% bed capacity in 90 days. A number of bridges that connect the community and hospital, including the Three Mile Lane bridge and nearby Highway 18 bridges to the west of hospital complex, are expected to incur major damage and impede citizen access.”

At approximately 9 p.m. Pacific Standard Time on Jan. 26, 1700, a magnitude 8 or 9 earthquake occurred on the Cascadia Subduction Zone, a 600-mile stretch between Vancouver Island, British Columbia and Cape Mendocino, California. 315 years later, we are preparing for another Cascadia Subduction Zone event to occur.  Check out these OPB articles to learn more:

Can Coastal Communities Survive a Tsunami?

Japanese Earthquake Holds Lessons For Oregon Coast

Jan. 26, 1700: How Scientists Know When the Last Big Earthquake  Happened Here

Why Would You Build A Hospital In A Tsunami Zone?

For this round, the SRGP has awarded 22 emergency service buildings a total of $13.4 million and 13 public schools a total of $14.7 million.  Complete lists of these awards are attached here (School Award List Names and Amounts & Emergency Service Buildings Awards), along with a press release from Oregon’s Senate President Peter Courtney(PR-seismicgrantawards).

See the exciting message below from Yumei Wang, Geotechnical Engineer at the Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries (DOGAMI):

Dear SRGP colleagues,

I am excited to inform you that the just-released 2015-2017 Governor’s recommended budget includes $100 million for earthquake safety of public schools and emergency response facilities (page 408 of http://www.oregon.gov/gov/priorities/Pages/budget.aspx). If approved by the next Legislature, this would mark a significant increase over the 2013-2015 budget of $30 million for schools and emergency response facilities.

Many more thousands of lives will be protected. Funds would be distributed to through the state’s seismic rehabilitation grant program (SRGP), which was initiated by Oregon Emergency Management and now administered by the Oregon Business Development Department. This grant program uses DOGAMI’s 2007 seismic needs database, available at http://www.oregongeology.org/sub/projects/rvs/default.htm.

To date, this grant program has funded 22 K-12 schools, which has helped to protect over 8,600 school children, 3 higher ed institutions and 18 emergency response facilities in our communities. It is slated to fund additional ~$30 million in grants on February 15, 2015. This critically important progress would not not have happened without many key players, especially Senate President Peter Courtney, OSSPAC, staff from OEM, OBDD and DOGAMI, Ted Wolf, SRGP committee members, as well as other partners including many of you.

In our future, we still have a whole lot of work ahead to meet the state deadlines of seismically safe schools and emergency response facilities. My hope is to make our school children safer and community resilience a reality.

The CIFA Conference was a success! Josh Bruce, Kent Yu, and Larry Eaton led a great plenary session, and Renee Loveland and Bruce Brown led us on an awesome tour of Portland’s sustainable infrastructure.  See some pictures below!

The deadline for the SRGP has closed, and we received a ton of applications. On December 11 and 12, we will be holding SRGP Committee meetings to discuss which projects will be funded.  We will discuss schools on the 11th and emergency services buildings on the 12th.  For more information about the SRGP, check out the new IFA website: http://www.orinfrastructure.org/Infrastructure-Programs/Seismic-Rehab/

It’s finally here! This November 11-12, the Council of Infrastructure Finance Authorities (CIFA) is holding their annual national conference in Portland, and the Oregon Infrastructure Finance Authority is doing their best to support this effort.  Specifically, I am helping to organize an Oregon-focused plenary session for the conference, as well as a tour of some of the sustainable infrastructure that exists around Portland.

For the plenary session that will take place on Wednesday November 12 at 9 am, we will be bringing together a number of excellent speakers to present the work they’ve been involved with in regards to Oregon’s natural hazards resiliency. Dr. Kent Yu (Former Chair of the Oregon Seismic Safety Policy Advisory Committee), Josh Bruce (Director of the Oregon Partnership for Disaster Resilience), and Larry Eaton (GSI Water Solutions, Inc.) will talk about the infrastructure issues associated with natural hazards and discuss what lessons other infrastructure professionals from around the country can learn from the work taking place in Oregon.

For the sustainable infrastructure tour taking place immediately after the plenary from 10 am – 1 pm, the entire tour will take place within the Pearl District’s Brewery Blocks. We will get a tour from Gerdling Edlen, the firm that designed this Eco-district, as well as a presentation from the Portland Water Bureau about some of the reservoir projects they are working on. On top of getting to see the nation’s first condominium to receive LEED Gold Certification and explore some of the most innovative storm water management strategies to date, tour attendees will also get to experience some local Portland culture by getting to explore the Brewery Blocks. Click here for more information about the tour.

The 2014 CIFA Conference is being held at the Hilton Double Tree. Click here for more information about the conference.