WASHINGTON, D.C.—The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) awarded a technical contract to a consortium of four national engineering firms—PBS&J, CDM, Greenhorne & O’Mara, and Stantec—to help undertake the agency’s flood risk mapping and planning program, Risk MAP. The five-year, $600 million contract is one of three contracts FEMA has awarded to support its efforts to create safer communities by providing more accurate flood and risk data.

The four firms are working together in a joint venture called Strategic Alliance for Risk Reduction (STARR) to provide production and technical services for large-scale updates to FEMA’s flood maps. These services include producing new digital flood hazard data; creating maps and other Risk MAP products; and promoting partnerships with local communities, states, and other groups to help reduce the risk of floods and improve flood planning across the country.

"The STARR joint venture team is proud to have been selected by FEMA to work on such an important program," says Vince DiCamillo, a certified floodplain manager and STARR program manager. "Our world-class team is passionate about making our country a safer place, especially in light of the record-breaking damage from storms in recent years."

Under the Risk MAP program, FEMA is working to provide reliable, easy-to-access digital flood risk data that can be used to better assess and plan for flood damage throughout the United States. As part of this effort, the STARR team said it will collaborate with FEMA and other organizations to better define and mitigate risk from flooding in critical areas throughout the nation.