Connecting the Dots Flooding, Global Warming, Floodplain (Mis)Management, & National Legislation
Increased Flooding Risk Demands Better Choices to Manage Flood-Prone Areas
Washington,
DC (July 9) – The United States is getting more heavy storms and major floods
these days, detailed in a new report from the National Wildlife
Federation.
“Global
warming is partly to blame for these heavy rainfall events,” said Dr. Amanda
Staudt, climate scientist, National Wildlife Federation. “Warmer air simply can
hold more moisture, so heavier precipitation is expected in the years to
come.”
To
explain the bigger picture and provide recommendations for how to cope with
projected changes and how to avoid the worst impacts of global warming, National
Wildlife Federation’s mini-report Increased Flooding Risk: Global Warming’s Wake-Up Call
for Riverfront Communities details:
* How
global warming has caused more heavy rainfall events
* America’s
over-reliance on levees and other strategies for taming
rivers
* Communities
that are on the frontlines
* What
must be done to confront the realities of global warming
In
the Midwest and Northeast, big storms that historically would only be seen once
every 20 years are projected to happen as much as every 4 to 6 years by the end
of the 21st century. At the same time, shifts in snowfall patterns, the onset of
spring, and river-ice melting may all exacerbate flooding risks. In the Pacific
Northwest, snow melt discharge occurs 5 to 20 days earlier than it did 50 years
ago, and it could be an additional 30 to 40 days earlier by the end of the 21st
century if global warming pollution is not curbed.
The
last year has been no exception:
In
June 2008, the rain-swollen Cedar, Illinois, Missouri and Mississippi Rivers and
their tributaries topped their banks and levees, leaving hundreds of thousands
of people displaced across the Midwest. Over $15 billion of agricultural and
property losses were racked up and 24 people lost their lives.
In
January 2009, floods in the Pacific Northwest caused $125 million of damage,
evacuations of more than 30,000 people, and shutdown of major roads and rail
service.
And,
March brought record-high levels to the Red River bordering North Dakota and
Minnesota, following an unusually wet fall and winter. Fargo narrowly averted a
major disaster through a massive effort to build temporary sandbag levees and to
evacuate thousands of people.
Many
of our attempts to control rivers and our choices to live and farm in
floodplains only serve to compound the risk of flood-related damages. The
realization that the future will bring more flooding risk means that we need to
make better choices about how we manage the landscape in flood-prone
areas.
Grand
Forks, North Dakota has done just that. Following devastating floods in 1997,
the city took the bold action of buying out hundreds of properties in the
floodplain and converting the land to parks, public recreation and habitat
areas. They installed new grass covered levees and removable flood walls well
back from the river’s edge, thereby allowing more space for the river to swell
as it would under natural conditions. Grand Forks has absolutely reaped the
benefits of these investments. None of the major floods in recent years have
caused significant damages to the city.
“Now
is the time to confront the realities of global warming, including the
increasing frequency and intensity of heavy rainfall events across the country,”
said Dr. Staudt. “We must aggressively move toward a cleaner energy future and
reduce global warming pollution, thereby ensuring that we avoid the worst
impacts.”
Important
steps to reduce the risks to riverfront communities include discouraging
development in flood-prone areas and protecting the natural systems, such as
wetlands, that help to buffer against floods.
National Wildlife Federation is America's
conservation organization inspiring Americans to protect wildlife for our
children’s future.
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July 9, 2009
Connecting the Dots Flooding, Global Warming, Floodplain (Mis)Management, & National Legislation
Increased Flooding Risk Demands Better Choices to Manage Flood-Prone Areas
Washington,
DC (July 9) – The United States is getting more heavy storms and major floods
these days, detailed in a new report from the National Wildlife
Federation.
“Global
warming is partly to blame for these heavy rainfall events,” said Dr. Amanda
Staudt, climate scientist, National Wildlife Federation. “Warmer air simply can
hold more moisture, so heavier precipitation is expected in the years to
come.”
To
explain the bigger picture and provide recommendations for how to cope with
projected changes and how to avoid the worst impacts of global warming, National
Wildlife Federation’s mini-report Increased Flooding Risk: Global Warming’s Wake-Up Call
for Riverfront Communities details:
* How
global warming has caused more heavy rainfall events
* America’s
over-reliance on levees and other strategies for taming
rivers
* Communities
that are on the frontlines
* What
must be done to confront the realities of global warming
In
the Midwest and Northeast, big storms that historically would only be seen once
every 20 years are projected to happen as much as every 4 to 6 years by the end
of the 21st century. At the same time, shifts in snowfall patterns, the onset of
spring, and river-ice melting may all exacerbate flooding risks. In the Pacific
Northwest, snow melt discharge occurs 5 to 20 days earlier than it did 50 years
ago, and it could be an additional 30 to 40 days earlier by the end of the 21st
century if global warming pollution is not curbed.
The
last year has been no exception:
In
June 2008, the rain-swollen Cedar, Illinois, Missouri and Mississippi Rivers and
their tributaries topped their banks and levees, leaving hundreds of thousands
of people displaced across the Midwest. Over $15 billion of agricultural and
property losses were racked up and 24 people lost their lives.
In
January 2009, floods in the Pacific Northwest caused $125 million of damage,
evacuations of more than 30,000 people, and shutdown of major roads and rail
service.
And,
March brought record-high levels to the Red River bordering North Dakota and
Minnesota, following an unusually wet fall and winter. Fargo narrowly averted a
major disaster through a massive effort to build temporary sandbag levees and to
evacuate thousands of people.
Many
of our attempts to control rivers and our choices to live and farm in
floodplains only serve to compound the risk of flood-related damages. The
realization that the future will bring more flooding risk means that we need to
make better choices about how we manage the landscape in flood-prone
areas.
Grand
Forks, North Dakota has done just that. Following devastating floods in 1997,
the city took the bold action of buying out hundreds of properties in the
floodplain and converting the land to parks, public recreation and habitat
areas. They installed new grass covered levees and removable flood walls well
back from the river’s edge, thereby allowing more space for the river to swell
as it would under natural conditions. Grand Forks has absolutely reaped the
benefits of these investments. None of the major floods in recent years have
caused significant damages to the city.
“Now
is the time to confront the realities of global warming, including the
increasing frequency and intensity of heavy rainfall events across the country,”
said Dr. Staudt. “We must aggressively move toward a cleaner energy future and
reduce global warming pollution, thereby ensuring that we avoid the worst
impacts.”
Important
steps to reduce the risks to riverfront communities include discouraging
development in flood-prone areas and protecting the natural systems, such as
wetlands, that help to buffer against floods.
National Wildlife Federation is America's
conservation organization inspiring Americans to protect wildlife for our
children’s future.