Project Final Report: Role of Coastal Bend Organizational Stakeholders in Regional Recovery and Resilience Efforts

Abstract

Severe storms such as Hurricane Harvey that battered the Texas Gulf Coast in August 2017 not only stretch resources related to short-term rescue, safety and health, but also generate extensive discussion and planning to manage the long-term recovery as well as to improve the resilience of Texas Coastal communities. Any future planning, policies, and resource allocation strategies will reflect key local and state stakeholders’ views regarding risk, cost, capacity, and policy options (see, for example, Alexander, 2000; Adger et al. 2005; Comfort, Boin and Demchak, 2010; Portney, 2015; and Wenger, 2017). The project team designed and deployed a targeted in-depth survey of key stakeholders in the Texas Coastal Bend Region to identify their views on problem sources, risk perceptions, planning goals, policy evaluations, resource allocations, and patterns of interaction across groups related to recent environmental stressors like Harvey. The findings from this survey are reported below.