Although it requires additional work by city staff, the Pamlico Sound Regional Hazard Mitigation Plan was approved by the Washington City Council earlier this month.

The plan was presented to the council for action in May, but council members wanted more time to study the document, which has a little more than 350 pages.

“The last time we discuss this, I indicated I had read about half of it. I have since finished reading it. There are any number of requirements on the city contained within this plan that are going to require the city to publish notices, provide information, have information available, have maps available, and it looks like to me it’s a substantial amount of work,” Councilman Doug Mercer said. “However, at the same time, I understand if we don’t adopt the plan that we’re jeopardizing our relationship with FEMA, so I move we adopt the Pamlico Sound Hazard Mitigation plan as presented.”

The motion was approved by a unanimous vote.

Participation in a certified plan is required for the receipt of annual FEMA grants and public-assistance funding in the aftermath of a declared natural disaster such as a hurricane or tornado.

The plan was prepared with assistance from Holland Consulting Planners, which works with many counties in eastern North Carolina.

Such plans are required to be updated every five years. The change to the regional approach is expected to reduce the cost and burden placed on communities in regard to the update process, according to a memorandum from Rodman to the mayor and City Council.

Hazard mitigation focuses on preventing, or at least minimizing, natural disasters.

By approving the plan, the council could be could be helping property owners in the city possibly receive another break on their flood insurance rates, according to John Rodman, the city’s director of community and cultural services. Currently, Washington property owners are receiving a 15-percent discount on their National Flood Insurance Program premiums because the city has one of the best floodplain-management programs in North Carolina. In 2012, Washington was recognized for operating a top-notch floodplain-management program. Washington residents have some of the lowest flood-insurance premiums in North Carolina.

Beaufort County received a request from N.C. Emergency Management to participate in a regional hazard mitigation plan that includes the county and its municipalities, along with Craven, Carteret and Pamlico counties. The plan, which cost the city no money to develop, received preliminary approval by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which recommends all jurisdictions covered by the plan adopt it.