Floodplain Management into the 21st Century: A Blueprint for Change—Sharing the Challenge

ABSTRACT

The article is a summary of the Interagency Floodplain Management Review Committee's Report to the Clinton Administration's Floodplain Management Task Force. The author was a member of the Committee, which proposes a better way to manage the nation's floodplains. The report not only describes the nature and extent of 1993 flooding and government efforts to cope with the event, but also presents a blueprint for change. This blueprint is directed at both the upper Mississippi River Basin and the nation as a whole. Its foundation is a sharing of responsibilities and accountability among all levels of government, business, and private citizens. It provides for a balance among the many competing river and floodplain uses; it recognizes, however, that all existing floodplain activity simply cannot be discarded as inappropriate. The Committee believes that, if implemented, the recommended approach will bring about changes necessary to reduce flood vulnerability to both the infrequent major flood events and the more frequent smaller ones. Implementation also will reduce the environmental, social, and economic burdens imposed by current conditions on both public and private sectors. The Committee's report includes an action plan delineating proposed responsibilities and time lines for execution of recommendations, a fiscal impact statement, and the findings of the preliminary Scientific Assessment and Strategy Team (SAST) report.