King County taking steps to reduce threats from serious flooding to residents, region’s economy

County's flood management planning is among nation's best

Last November's record rains and historic flooding not only impacted thousands of residents and their property, it also caused $33 million in new damages to King County's flood protection infrastructure that was already in dire need of repair.

The flooding brought to King County its eighth federal flood disaster declaration since 1990 and has King County Executive Ron Sims re-doubling efforts to shore up the county's aging levee system.

"Last winter's flooding underscores that people's safety and our region's economy depend on sound flood protection," said Sims. "Our aging levees – many of them built of sand decades ago and nearing the end of their engineered lifespan – must be strengthened now to avoid the type of disaster that devastated the Gulf Coast."

To deal with last winter's flood damage, King County accomplished emergency repair projects on the Green and Snoqualmie rivers last year. However, Sims noted, critical work remains to repair the county's aging levee system.

Help in the form of funding for a new county-wide flood control zone district and, in turn, the county's flood protection infrastructure, is on the way.

The county's 2006 Flood Hazard Management Plan, which identifies $335 million in critical flood protection needs, was unanimously adopted by the King County Council this past January. The Council established a new countywide flood control zone district in April, and later this fall is expected to adopt a funding level for strengthening and maintaining the more than 500 flood control facilities across the county.

That funding is critical not only to citizens in floodplains, said Sims, but for the region's economy. He pointed out that a study released in October by the economic firm EcoNorthwest, Inc. that demonstrated a shutdown of economic activity within King County's floodplains would cost the region at least $46 million in lost economic output every day.

King County's flood protection system includes more than 119 miles of levees that protect tens of thousands of lives and more than $7 billion in economic infrastructure in the county's 25,000 acres of floodplain.

Sound flood protection infrastructure is the only piece missing from King County's nationally acclaimed flood hazard reduction efforts.

In fact, King County was honored in October with the highest rating of any county in the nation by the Federal Emergency Management Agency for its flood management planning.

Only two out of some 1,200 participating Community Rating System local governments in the nation have a CRS rating as high. Thanks to this new rating, flood insurance policyholders will receive a 40 percent reduction in their premiums – an average savings of $262 per year.

"It is important to understand that this rating evaluates our planning and our programs – things like public information and flood preparedness activities, our Flood Warning Center, floodplain mapping, elevating chronically flooded homes, or even purchasing those properties," Sims said.

"As honored as we feel for a best-county-in-the-nation CRS rating, I won't rest easy until we have the flood prevention infrastructure to match our floodplain management planning," said Sims.

To learn more about King County's Flood Hazard Management Plan, visit http://dnr.metrokc.gov/wlr/flood/fhmp/index.htm.