Iowa Levees Have a New Source of Interagency Support
Release Date: August 18, 2008
Release Number: 1763-164
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DES MOINES, Iowa -- Levee sponsors and owners who would like help decreasing their flood risk can receive assistance from the newly-formed Interagency Levee Work Group (ILWG).
The ILWG is operating out of the Iowa Joint Field Office to provide support to floodplain risk management efforts as a result of the 2008 Midwest floods.
The work group offers the expertise of multiple federal and state agencies in levee repair and maintenance as well as floodplain recovery efforts. It provides a coordinated "one-stop shop" to help manage present and future flood risk in vulnerable areas. The ILWG will analyze both short- and long-term recovery solutions, including non-structural alternatives such as the creation of expanded floodways and ecosystem restoration projects.
Levee sponsors such as counties, incorporated communities and private levee owners who have already applied for assistance will have their requests automatically reviewed by the work group. The ILWG will assess each situation to see which of several different federal programs for rehabilitating floodplain management systems might be available. The major sources of federal assistance include the Federal Emergency Management Agency Public Assistance Program, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Public Law 84-99 program, the Natural Resources Conservation Service Emergency Watershed Protection Program, and the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) assistance programs.
Iowans interested in levee assistance who have not yet applied for assistance can contact the Iowa Interagency Levee Work Group by calling (515) 251-3501.
This work group is part of a larger multi-agency umbrella organization, the Regional Interagency Levee Task Force, which is looking at floodplain risk management through a uniform approach across the entire region impacted by the 2008 Midwest floods. More Information on the Regional Interagency Levee Task Force can be found at www.iwr.usace.army.mil/ILTF/
Members of the Iowa Interagency Levee Work Group include the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, FEMA, the U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service, SBA, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Economic Development Administration, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and representatives from the state of Iowa.
FEMA coordinates the federal government's role in preparing for, preventing, mitigating the effects of, responding to, and recovering from all domestic disasters, whether natural or man-made, including acts of terror.
Last Modified: Tuesday, 19-Aug-2008 12:34:23