Report Shows State's Significant Exposure To Flood Risk

On April 3, 2013, the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers released the public draft of California's Flood Future: Recommendations for Managing the State's Flood Risk. The draft report finds that $580 billion in assets are exposed to flood risk throughout the state, and 7 million Californians live in a floodplain. The report finds California is at catastrophic risk for devastating floods and flooding is a statewide problem.

The report includes seven strategic recommendations intended to inform local, state, and federal decisions about flood management policies and financial investments:

1) Conduct regional flood risk assessments to better understand statewide flood risk;

2) Increase public and policymaker awareness about flood risks to facilitate informed decisions;

3) Increase support for flood emergency preparedness, response and recovery programs to reduce flood impacts;

4) Encourage land use planning practices that reduce the consequences of flooding;

5) Implement flood management from regional, system-wide and statewide perspectives to provide multiple benefits;

6) Increase collaboration among public agencies to improve flood management planning, policies and investments; and

7) Establish sufficient and stable funding mechanisms to reduce flood risk.

The report is available through DWR's website.  There is a 45-day public comment period for the draft report.

Seventeen Central Valley Levee Systems Lose Eligibility For Federal Rehab Assistance

On August 23, 2012, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (“Corps”) announced that 17 Central Valley levee systems are now ineligible for federal rehabilitation assistance, after a temporary agreement between the Corps and the state of California extending eligibility for deficient levees expired in June.  The 17 levee systems received unacceptable maintenance ratings in their most recent Corps inspections.  To regain active status in the Corps Rehabilitation and Inspection Program, the California Central Valley Flood Protection Board, as the manager of levee systems, must either fix the deficiencies identified by the Corps or submit a system-wide improvement framework that outlines a long-term strategy for bringing the levees into compliance with the Corps’ standards.

As reported in one news article, approximately 180 miles of levees are now ineligible for federal rehabilitation assistance should they be damaged in a flood, including 40 miles of levees that protect most of the Sacramento area population.

For additional information regarding the affected levee systems, please contact Elizabeth Leeper or the KMTG attorney with whom you normally consult.

Related Story:
Central Valley Flood Protection Board Receives Public Draft 2012 Central Valley Flood Protection Plan