Collaboration between Water Utilities and Emergency Management Agencies

Online Course to Enhance Coordination

This free, online course covers how to enhance coordination between water and wastewater utilities and emergency management agencies (EMAs) by sharing best practices, real-world examples, and useful resources. This entry-level course is offered through the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Emergency Management Institute and is intended for water sector and emergency services sector personnel. The course provides information on coordination measures including:

• Building relationships and enhancing information sharing;
• Utilizing interstate and intrastate mutual aid;
• Conducting of joint messaging; and
• Implementing cross-sector coordination to develop and maintain emergency response plans.

Internet Explorer and Firefox are recommended for viewing and accessing course materials. Further technical guidance can be found on FEMA’s System Requirements page for Independent Study (IS) courses. Users can access the course through the link below.

• IS-553: Enhancing Coordination Between Water and Wastewater Utilities and Emergency Management Agencies

Collaborate with State and Local Emergency Management

These documents focus on collaborative opportunities between water and emergency management personnel at the state and local level.

• Connecting Water Utilities and Emergency Management Agencies (pdf) (4.03 MB)
  This document summarizes best practices for how drinking water and wastewater utilities can work with emergency management agencies to increase coordination and better respond to emergencies.
• Bridging the Gap: Coordination between State Primacy Agencies and State Emergency Management Agencies (pdf) (535.74 KB)
  This document provides information on opportunities for increased collaboration between state drinking water programs and state emergency management agencies.