Program Overview

The Disaster Mitigation Policy Program was established within the Australian Bureau Of Meteorology's Weather and Ocean Services Policy Branch in early 2003 and is managed by Linda Anderson-Berry. It is a cross-cutting program that links activities with the Bureau Of Meteorology's Severe Weather, Hydrology and Climate areas.

The primary goals of the program are:

• To expand the Bureau Of Meteorology's disaster mitigation services (in response to the shift in emergency management philosophy)
• To facilitate greater collaboration between the Climate, Hydrological, Weather and Oceanographic Services programs with regard to the Bureau Of Meteorology's disaster mitigation activities
• To facilitate greater collaboration with the Bureau Of Meteorology's regional offices in support of their collaborative disaster mitigation activities
• To ensure ongoing and effective interaction with other Commonwealth and State agencies with which the Bureau Of Meteorology may have a joint role in the provision of Disaster Mitigation services
• To engage with other agencies in support of disaster mitigation activities, recognizing that disaster mitigation activities are frequently most appropriately undertaken in association with other agencies
• To ensure warning services match and support community and agency action plans
• To engage in community and agency awareness programs
• To continue to investigate the implementation of new services in marine weather, air quality, human health and comfort, and enhanced community safety through a focus on natural disaster mitigation. To ensure ongoing and effective interaction with other agencies with which the Bureau Of Meteorology may have a joint role in the provision of these services
• To ensure the relevance and visibility of the Bureau Of Meteorology's disaster mitigation related services to the community
• To support international disaster mitigation activities - in particular those initiated by the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) and those supported as part of the International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (ISDR)