Challenges with risk and vulnerability analyses : Strategies for integration in risk and crisis management

Today risk analyses are commonly used by authorities at national, regional and municipal levels in their work to prevent and prepare for crises. The analyses provide information about types of incidents that can occur and the potential consequences of these events. In Sweden and Norway it is mandatory for local authorities to conduct risk and vulnerability analyses and use them as an input in their crisis management work. Research on public risk and vulnerability analyses often focuses on methodological issues and only to a limited extent on how findings are used by those who undertook or ordered the analysis. For the analyses to become inputs in work to improve societal safety and respond to crises it is important that findings are of sufficient quality and that they are applied or implemented. This paper focuses on strategies used by Norwegian and Swedish municipalities to integrate risk and vulnerability analyses in their current policy and planning processes. Examination of five Norwegian and four Swedish municipalities showed that municipalities vary in their focus on integration of risk and vulnerability analyses in long term planning processes, in their daily activities as well as in crisis management planning. They chose three main strategies to ensure integration of the analyses; some relied on formalized and highly structured procedures, whereas others emphasized that each leader and planner was responsible for taking risk and vulnerability analysis into consideration where necessary