As a result of the 2008 Midwest floods, federal agencies in cooperation with state agencies in the impacted areas of Wisconsin, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, and Missouri have joined forces to find solutions on how to manage flood waters to reduce risks in the future. The Regional Interagency Levee Task Force approach to manage flood waters will explore both short- and long-term solutions.
Traditionally, structural measures such as levees and dams have successfully been used to control flood waters. Other efforts such as expanding floodways and enlarging natural habitat areas have also worked. Despite these efforts, homes, businesses and infrastructure continue to be impacted by raging floodwaters.
Future actions must deal with flood risk management actions and decisions made by those impacted by flooding (agricultural, commercial, and industrial interests along with the general public), in an integrated manner. No one person, department or agency can make this decision; rather it must be a decision based on a unified approach by all parties.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is leading the collaborative regional approach to the long-term restoration of flood management systems damaged by the June 2008 Midwest floods. The Corps is working with the Federal Emergency Management Agency and other federal, state and local agencies to provide a uniform approach across the region impacted by the Midwest floods.
The task force is an umbrella organization designed to look at floodplain management at a regional level. Interagency levee work groups have been established in each affected state at the joint field offices to review assistance requests from local entities, evaluate non-structural alternatives (creation of expanded floodways and ecosystems), and participate in the levee restoration process. Having the work groups at the joint field offices results in a coordinated “one-stop shop” for applicants seeking federal assistance for levee restoration, repair and other assistance.
Alternatives for reducing vulnerabilities will be considered for all levees to be repaired under the Corps Public Law 84-99 program, FEMA Public Assistance program and the Natural Resources Conservation Service, to include non-structural actions such as permanent evacuation of flood-prone areas, installation of flood warning systems and/or creation of natural and artificial flood water storage basins.
Meeting since August 2008, the task force has enhanced communication and coordination among federal, state and local agencies; employed collaborative problem-solving where issues overlap various agency authorities; and worked to fashion best-business practices for the future.
The task force is currently evaluating several potential non-structural alternatives for floodplain management: the Louisa County, Iowa, Levee District 11; the St. Charles County, Missouri, Kuhs Levee; the Grand Tower and Vandalia Drainage and Levee Districts in Illinois; and Gulfport, Illinois.