Natural Hazards are a potential risk to Benton County small businesses. However,
little has been done to help prepare, respond, recover or resume business following a
significant disastrous event. 93 small businesses in Benton County responded to a
mailed survey, and 10 additional small businesses participated in both mailed surveys
and interviews. Information collected from the surveys and interviews were used to
assess current disaster preparedness of Benton County small businesses, gauge
business owner knowledge about risk reduction tools and techniques, and to better
understand small business needs in reducing risk and loss from natural hazards.
Overall, businesses were concerned about the potential impacts of natural disasters,
but few have taken steps to mitigate these hazards. Trends were identified in
interview responses that add valuable information about why businesses have not
taken appropriate steps to mitigate hazards. Most small business owners/managers are
more concerned about day-to-day activities than they are about planning for natural
disasters. Businesses that practiced environmental stewardship and other sustainable
business practices tended to be more interested in protecting their business and in
training management and employees to prepare, respond, recover, and resume
business. Overall, business owners weren't sure how to protect their business from
large-scale hazards. The cost versus benefit of emergency and disaster preparedness
was of concern for many business owners. Lastly, businesses that provided nonessential
services, such as screen-printing for clothing or a furniture store were less
prepared for an emergency or disaster event than those who provided a more essential
service. / Graduation date: 2004
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ORGSU/oai:ir.library.oregonstate.edu:1957/30429 |
| Date | 03 December 2003 |
| Creators | Chona, Tiffany L. |
| Contributors | Veltri, Anthony T. |
| Source Sets | Oregon State University |
| Language | en_US |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis/Dissertation |
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