Report outlines options
Breached Levee along the Missouri River, June 2011. Courtesy, USACE/ Eileen Williamson
When it comes to mitigating flood risk, the brunt of the construction, management and administration falls to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to protect communities from extreme events. Levees, dams, floodwalls, floodgates and even hurricane barriers all fall under its responsibility. The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) has just released a report highlighting 14 options for the Corps to further enhance the resilience of our federally funded flood risk management infrastructure. They are:
- Create clear institutional authority to mainstream climate resilience.
- Research the feasibility of innovative approaches.
- Expand technical assistance for planning.
- Update climate information for planning.
- Update planning guidance.
- Integrate climate resilience into project-level benefit cost analysis.
- Expand the use of adaptive management in projects.
- Update engineering standards and regulations.
- Conduct climate screening assessment of authorized but unfunded projects.
- Prioritize projects that incorporate climate resilience.
- Update manuals for operation and maintenance.
- Expand technical assistance to nonfederal sponsors for operations and maintenance.
- Conduct climate vulnerability assessments of existing infrastructure.
- Establish process for retrofitting existing infrastructure to account for climate change.
As stated by the GAO, each option has its strengths and limitations – namely additional costs as each is implemented effectively. Options are either informatory, conducting feasibility or vulnerability assessments, or integrating findings – retrofitting existing infrastructure or augmenting current engineering practices for future construction. GAO states that implementing any of these changes could help both response to catastrophic storms and limit the federal government’s fiscal exposure when one of these events occurs, which the Corps concurred with. Congress is expected to pass a new Water Resources Development Act in 2024, presenting an opportunity for a number of these changes to find their way into legislation, something that would help ease the burden on all involved parties.
GAO was asked to review climate resilience in federally funded flood projects by the Corps, as the organization spent at least $19 billion from 2014 to 2023, with Congress providing another $46.1 million in supplemental appropriations to respond and repair damages to flood management infrastructure. Corps’ documents, officials, and 21 knowledgeable stakeholders were referenced to finalize this report.
LMA Newsletter of 2-26-24
