Building Resiliency in the Lumber River Region

Public Comment Period open November 22 through December 5

Communities across our state are on the frontlines of flooding, extreme storms, record temperatures, stronger wildfires, and landslides. A resilient North Carolina depends on our communities, economies, and ecosystems being able to rebound, positively adapt to, and thrive amid changing conditions and challenges. Improving resilience requires leaders with hometown knowledge, planning and technical expertise, and an understanding of funding opportunities. To help regions in the eastern half of North Carolina advance long-term resilience, the  North Carolina Office of Recovery and Resiliency  (NCORR), in partnership with  North Carolina Rural Center , has launched the Regions Innovating for Strong Economies and Environment (RISE) Regional Resilience Portfolio Program.

NCORR invites leaders of local community groups and small and large businesses; local public health, public safety, transportation, planning, and elected officials; public and private infrastructure managers; environmental scientists, floodplain managers, and coastal management officials; and members of socially vulnerable groups to participate via regional Stakeholder Partnerships. These local leaders and technical experts together will:

• Conduct regional vulnerability assessments, combining science with local knowledge to identify hazards and analyze the exposure of community assets (e.g., housing, public health, infrastructure, ecosystems, economy) in need of protection.
• Prioritize 5-10 projects that improve long-term regional resilience and develop clear and realistic pathways to implementation.
• Prepare local governments, regional organizations, and other kinds of agencies to submit funding opportunities for project implementation. There are many public funding opportunities available now and coming soon. The program itself will provide seed funding (~$65K per region) for one priority project in each region.

The Lumber River Region will continue to build inclusive and resilient communities through collaborative, innovative and forward-thinking sustainable practices that identify and reduce risk to natural hazards in order to protect the economy, health, safety, quality of life, and environment of this unique and culturally significant region.

The Lumber River Stakeholder Team is made up of approximately 30 members whom all share a passion for resiliency planning in the region.  All Team members live and/or work in any one of the five counties that make up the Lumber River Council of Governments (COG) region: Bladen, Hoke, Richmond, Robeson, and Scotland counties. These members set aside their time monthly to collaborate and provide valuable input for the final products of the program, the Vulnerability Assessment and Project Portfolio. The Stakeholder team includes representatives from a diverse cross section of the region’s population and professional backgrounds. Stakeholders are from public/private/non-profit entities such as emergency management, military, land conservation, educational centers, community organizers, land use administrators, economic development, and other professions. 

The map below depicts the natural and built environment of the Lumber River region of North Carolina. Familiarize yourself with its key features and flood impacts.

User tips: Zoom in and out using the plus and minus signs in the bottom right corner. Labels will appear as you zoom in. The legend can be found in the bottom left corner (white circle with list icon) and you can search for a specific address using the search tool (magnifying glass) in the top left. The blue shading indicates areas within the floodplain.

Send your comments (by Dec 6) via email to Julia Maron at jmaron@kleinfelder.com

 Regions Innovating for Strong Economies and Environment Program | ReBuild NC 

 Lumber River Regional Resilience Portfolio | ReBuild NC 

 Lumber River Council of Governments 

If you have any questions, feedback, or recommendations for this project (or the RISE program, generally) please email project manager, Michael Hicks at  mhicks@kleinfelder.com 

General inquiries or questions specific to the NCORR program can be directed to program coordinator, Amanda Martin at  amanda.martin@ncdps.gov