From a press release:
The House of Representatives released their proposed capital construction budget on March 23, including $5 million for multi-benefit floodplain management projects in King County, including Renton, through the Floodplains by Design initiative.
If the Senate agrees with this level of funding, people in King County and nine other communities across Washington will be safer and salmon habitat will get a boost. The money would be administered through the Department of Ecology’s competitive Floodplains by Design grant program.
Funding would allow King County to acquire approximately 45 acres and remove of 14 or 15 homes from harm’s way in floodplain, while making way for future restoration on 232 acres.
The Cedar River corridor east of Renton was one of the top ranked projects this year, selected for the multiple benefits it will deliver, including flood risk reduction, fish habitat restoration and other community priorities. Floodplains by Design champions a collaborative approach to meeting multiple objectives with limited public dollars.
A coalition of advocates, from counties and cities to businesses, and The Nature Conservancy are seeking $50 million in state capital budget dollars for the innovative Floodplains by Design program.
“I am thrilled that the House recognized the tremendous benefits and long-term cost savings that Floodplains by Design and Cedar River Corridor represent to King County,” Mark Isaacson, with the King County Department of Natural Resources and Parks said in a press release. “I hope that the Senate supports funding for the flood risk reduction and habitat benefits that Floodplains by Design provides”
“As our climate changes and catastrophic flood events increase in both intensity and frequency, it is critical for Washington to take common sense steps that protect both communities and wildlife,” said Mike Stevens, Washington State Director of The Nature Conservancy. “That’s why the Conservancy, Department of Ecology and the Puget Sound Partnership developed Floodplains by Design – to support holistic, cost-effective approaches to floodplain management.”
Floodplains by Design is a public-private partnership working to reduce flood risks and restore habitat, while also supporting other floodplain priorities such as clean water, agriculture and recreation, along Washington’s major river corridors. Because Floodplains by Design projects are built collaboratively from the ground up and serve diverse interests, they enjoy broad support and deliver multiple benefits.
For more information visit www.floodplainsbydesign.org.
