Planning for Future Floods

A ‘new normal’ of flooding and extreme weather events is prompting cities around the country to reevaluate their water infrastructure and flood risk models, writes Carl Smith in Governing. Smith notes that “floods are the most common and widespread weather-related disasters. Estimates of their annual cost range from $180 billion to $496 billion a year.”

Daniel Swain, a University of California, Los Angeles climate scientist, says “Virtually all of the infrastructure that we have built was built for a climate that no longer exists.” To address this, a new report from the US Water Alliance, Water Rising: Equitable Approaches to Urban Flooding, identifies priority areas for resilience and equity planning and encourages cities to assess their own local challenges and infrastructure.

In Hampton, Virginia, the Hampton Roads Sanitation District (HRSD) produced a report that highlights risks and resources in the region, offering local officials “an opportunity to look at exposure to climate hazards among the more than 150 facilities in the HRSD system and possible floodwater levels now and in the future.”

According to Swain, “Localities must gather and heed this kind of data as they plan for infrastructure improvements.” Mami Hara, CEO of the US Water Alliance, suggests a more regional approach to water infrastructure, such as a “regional resilience entity that brings together water and climate issues.”