Comprehensive Disaster Risk and Vulnerability Assessment for City of Tshwane | What we do-CPPs

Comprehensive Disaster Risk and Vulnerability Assessment - City of Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality

March – August 2019

"If a sufficient number of management layers are superimposed on top of each other,

it can be assured that disaster is not left to chance." - Norman Ralph Augustine

DMS NPC and AGES Alpha (Pty) Ltd were appointed jointly by the City of Tshwane to conduct a comprehensive disaster risk and vulnerability assessment for the Metropolitan Municipal area. The project also involves the incorporation of current research data and findings on similar assessment types undertaken within the city area, with the aim of producing a detailed report on priority disaster risks in the City and the development of a Municipal indicative disaster risk profile.

While DMS NPC has extensive knowledge regarding the disaster risk management continuum, AGES have the GIS capacity, as well as geological expertise, required to complete this project with the capabilities of developing an interactive indicative disaster risk profile that can be regularly reviewed and updated.

The first step in the process required an assessment of the current reality, taking applicable legislation, including the Disaster Management Act as amended and the National and Municipal Disaster Management Frameworks, as well as the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals and Disaster Risk Reduction in the City, into account.

Following the establishment of the status quo within the City of Tshwane, the disaster risk assessment focuses on the following areas:

Technical assessment of available data collected relating to significant disaster risks identified by the City, which includes data on floods, watercourses, dolomite, geological and radiological risk. This also involves the simultaneous plotting of data on GIS; and
Community based disaster risk assessment, which includes the verification of priority disaster risks where available data exists, as well as the identification of new disaster risks (focusing on communities at risk, conditions of vulnerability and capacity).

The next phase in the project will focus on:

Contingency plans and mitigation options for priority disaster risks and high-risk areas identified in the disaster risk assessment process;
Practical implementation procedures for the disaster management centre and all departments considered primary agents for priority disaster risks identified; and
Integration of results, with recommendations for inclusions in the Municipal Integrated Development Plan and review of the Municipal Disaster Management Plan and Framework.