Flooding

Table of Contents

Countries Most Prone to Urban Flooding

Sea Level Rise "By 2100 in the USA, coastal population growth and sea level rise could put between 4 and 13 million people at risk of inundation"

Pollution Major storms and floods can damage buildings, overload sewers, farms, and chemical storage facilities. Waste is picked up from damaged buildings, road ways, and tipped bins sending a huge array of unknown chemicals, bacteria, and other microbes into people's drinking water, soil, and air.


Floating Buildings?

Solutions

Managed Retreat

"... the purposeful movement of people, buildings and other assets from areas vulnerable to hazards—has often been considered a last resort. But Siders said it can be a powerful tool for expanding the range of possible solutions to cope with rising sea levels, flooding and other climate change effects when used proactively or in combination with other measures."  - Managed Retreat: A Must in the War Against Climate Change 

Careful Choice in Relocation/Building Site Choices

5 Best (and Worst) Places to Build a Home or Village

This 10:33 minute video talks about how different locations can be more dangerous in respect to floods and fires, or advantageous in respect to view, resources, and utility efficiency.

We need to reduce the chance of failed relocation due to predictable threats such as sea level rise. New communities and buildings need to be built with flood mitigation as a primary concern, to reduce the chance of themselves flooding, or flooding neighbors down stream, thereby perpetuating the need to relocate or rebuild between current buy-out/evacuation zones and currently habitable ones. 

One idea that may help revitalize deteriorating communities inland would be to invest in rebuilding their infrastructure in preparation of sea level and flood evacuees' arrival. Investments for eco-friendly, passive, and renewable infrastructure would help protect the new and old inhabitants against climate change while providing jobs such as food production, circular economy, energy production (such as solar, thermal, wind) from the beginning, rather than the messy rush to retrofit out cities which will cost our current communities millions or more. 


Some locations are experiencing population decline due to aging populations combined with lower birth rate. In response they are paying people to move in, live in those areas. Some offer free land or rebates for fixing up historical properties such as farm houses. Some countries even pay parents to have children, so families may find these easier places to resettle. Organizations focusing on helping communizes move should consider these welcoming opportunities, with careful considerations to the evacuees' needs and the terms of the invite. For example: "Antikythera, Greece offers money to families with children with homes and farms deemed acceptable, however priority is given to Greek citizens. Other locations have stipulations about previous felonies, or requiring people live on the land for a set amount of time before qualifying."

Create and Enforce Legislation Banning New Developments in Flood Zones

In areas without this type of legislation, many people have been sold home in known flood zones, within 100 year flood zones, and other unsuitable places. These homes are prone to repeated flooding which can push families into a poverty situation where they are unable to sell their homes (because they flood repeatedly) which leaves them without the funds to leave or keep rebuilding. Governments need to offer buy-out programs and work with conservation organizations to clear the badly-placed buildings. The land can function as both wild space and as permeable land to help absorb future flood waters, protecting nearby communities.

Man-Made Defenses

Sustainable Drainage Systems or (SUDs) help slow and safely divert water away from homes and businesses, preferably into wetlands, underground storage, or other places where it can do good instead of harm.

Dams or seawalls may also be useful depending on the nature of the flooding, though solutions such as living shorelines provide better, long-term solutions compared to hard engineering.

Preserve Wetlands, Waterways, and Mangroves

Mangroves not only help prevent soil erosion, but help protect communities against hurricanes and other extreme weather. They have unique biodiversity, and serve many functions but are under threat from climate change, and human activities. Wetlands provide vital flood prevention with large spaces for overflow and absorption to take place. The vegetation both helps water sink into the soil and respirate back into the atmosphere. These wild areas also play a massive roll in preserving biodiversity for migrant and native species of fish, birds, and other wildlife. These in turn provide economic opportunities to the communities that preserve those ecosystems, while absorbing pollution so that it can do less harm.

Mangroves

Tree Planting

Establishing and protecting riparian borders can be a very powerful tool to protect water quality, mitigate flooding, control erosion, increase biodiversity, create wildlife corridors, protect ground water, and even improve water respiration to provide vital rain for crops.

Methods

Ensure legislation has consequences when pollution or other terms are not met. Legislation should bar new construction projects other than ones designed to manage water and protect us from climate change.

Install low-head dam for saltwater wedge and freshwater pool separation "Rising sea levels, combined with reductions in freshwater runoff due to drought, will cause the salt water-freshwater boundary to move further upstream in tidal estuaries. Upstream shifts of this boundary can reduce the water quality of surface water resources. Installation of low-head dams across tidal estuaries can prevent this upstream movement." - 

Sustainable Drainage Systems (SUDS)

SUDs passively reduce flooding down stream by slowing the flow of water, letting it spread out in safe places so that it can better infiltrate the soil. This has many benefits from reducing erosion and siltation, to recharging ground water and making the landscape more resilient against droughts, fires and heatwaves. 

Recharging ground water also means salt water intrusion can be reduced along coastal areas, while guaranteeing safe ground water for future generations.

Click the SUDs button to learn more about these systems.

Beavers are a keystone species that naturally lives throughout the northern hemisphere in North America, Europe and northern Asia from Russia down to at least Mongolia. These natural engineers were perhaps the first major designers of SUDs, and can provide many of the same benefits without requiring paychecks. Click the Beaver button to learn more about how to help these animals return to the places that need them, or to find out which organizations near you might help remove and rehome some that are causing unwanted flooding.

Green Space Expansion

Green space is our greatest natural defense against flooding. These green spaces can be renovated to de-compact the soil and build flood mitigation infrastructure including reservoirs and swales. Ecologically these areas increase biodiversity, and can help expand our range of wildlife corridors which will further protect wildlife against the threats of extinction caused by fractured habitats. Keystone species, particularly beavers should be allowed to colonize these areas, providing flood protection in areas where human/animal interactions can be minimized.

Examples of Green Spaces

Green spaces can perform a number of services, and incorporating green spaces in flood prevention plans can even boost their success and biodiversity.

Greenbelts and greenways are strips of green areas connecting communities while tamping down excessive urban sprawl. These spaces reduce air pollution, provide connectivity for wildlife, and if properly designed can provide connectivity to humans instead of forcing everyone to drive in private vehicles. Greenbelts can absorb flood water, but this may result in people having to take alternative routes such as roads until the waters recede.

Wetlands are vital for many migratory and stationary species. Seasonal rains can turn deserts, grasslands, and other biomes into vibrant space for pollinators as well as other species who feed on them. Flooding may negatively impact tourism, but should be less likely to destroy homes unless indigenous communities or park rangers live in the area.

Wetlands

Wetlands are natures sponges, and have been under threat from farmers and urban developers draining these natural resources. By restoring wetlands we both buffer land and communities from storms and floods, but we'll also restore biodiversity for millions of species who rely on wetlands to reproduce, eat, and find refuge year round or on their migration routes.

Tools

Organizations

Africa

Madagascar

Asia

Cambodia

Europe

United Kingdom

North America

United States

Buy Out Programs

Buyouts help protect our most vulnerable citizens who, especially after many floods and damaging storms may not have the funds to keep rebuilding, nor to move away from dangerous, flood-prone areas. From a fiscal standpoint buyout programs reduce flood risk which reduces government liability and increased poverty which in turn increases strain on public funding.

Pollution Sites Must be Maintained and kept far from Places that are expected to experience Flooding based on history or the proposed flood/sea level rise forecasts.


Sewage Facilities Need to be Revamped to Withstand or Work with Nature


Illegal sewage releases are becoming more common thanks to more frequent flooding and larger populations than some of these sewage facilities were designed to serve. Sewage releases during floods threatens water safety, and can spread deadly diseases to rescue workers, flood victims, wildlife, and domestic animals.



Finance & Facilitate Systems to Recycle Water

"Recycling greywater frees up more finished water for other uses, expanding supply and decreasing the need to discharge into receiving waters. Receiving water quality limitations may increase due to more frequent droughts. Therefore, to limit wastewater discharges, use of reclaimed water in homes and businesses should be encouraged." - https://www.epa.gov/arc-x/climate-impacts-water-utilities#tab-3

Click the Grey Water button to learn more about recycling gently used water for uses including flushing toilets and watering gardens.

Click the Harvesting Water button and scroll or click in the Table of Contents to navigate down to the Water Recycling section where we have info about Tap to Toilet Water Recycling and Grey Water.

Practice Conjunctive Water Use

"Conjunctive use involves the coordinated, optimal use of both surface water and groundwater, both intra- and inter-annually. Aquifer storage and recovery is a form of conjunctive use. For example, a utility may store some fraction of surface water flows in aquifers during wet years and withdraw this water during dry years when the river flow is low. Depending on whether natural or artificial aquifer recharge is employed, the required infrastructure may include percolation basins and injection wells." - https://www.epa.gov/arc-x/climate-impacts-water-utilities#tab-3

Plant Based Shift

Altering Our Farming Priorities via Diet Shifts, Wiser Distribution of Farming Subsidies to Help Farmers Transition to Sustainable Alternatives Away from Those Causing the Most Water Stress and Pollution How we raise our food is deeply tied to water shortages, flooding, water pollution, and poor land management including deforestation and draining wetlands to create artificial grazing land can add significant, costly complications to these issues. With most of our land used to raise livestock which give a relatively tiny percentage of protein and calories in return, critically rethinking our dietary systems and land use practices could relieve significant amount of room to rehome people, grow enough food for our growing population, AND perhaps even return damaged land to the wild for better flood mitigation. Below are some key issues that can provide the most impactful returns at the least cost to consumers or policy makers.

Click the Plant Based button to learn more about switching to plant-based alternatives.

Return Land Drained for Grazing to it's Natural State

Reducing the consumption of animal products such as beef, wool, dairy, etc. will help reduce or even reverse our encroachment into wild places that traditionally acted as sponged for rain water. Some of these areas were actively pumped dry to allow grazing at the expense of valuable wetlands and forests, then over time compaction from animal hooves had mad many of these places suffer from increased erosion and soil compaction which stops water from penetrating. This means that fields can become prime causes of pollution and erosion, adding to flooding problems instead of working naturally as undisturbed wild places to do mitigate flooding.

Grazing uses the most land, is less efficient, meaning that "grass-fed" livestock take longer to reach slaughter-size while using more resources, and generally does not provide all of the benefits often touted by the livestock industry. For example carbon sequestration through well managed grazing, even in the best circumstances cannot reach a point of neutrality. The manure ends up directly on the ground where it can wash into water ways without any type of processing to reduce disease risk. Grazing is also the greatest cause of deforestation, which is problematic since trees are vital to water sequestration, fighting erosion, and reducing flood risk.

Ending subsidies to these operations would help prevent further destruction and expansion from this sector, while programs designed to support ranchers as they convert to plant-based agriculture will ensure that these people are supported in their time of need, while food and water security is ensured for everyone.

Click the Alternatives to Livestock button if you are a farmer who wants to find a more planet-friendly alternatives to raising animals or animal feed.

Model and Reduce Agricultural & Irrigation Water Demand

"Agriculture represents the second largest user of water in the United States in terms of withdrawals. In order to forecast and plan for future water supply needs, agricultural (irrigation) demand must be projected, particularly in drought-prone areas. For example, to reduce agricultural water demand, utilities can work with farmers to adopt advanced micro-irrigation technology (e.g., drip irrigation)." - https://www.epa.gov/arc-x/climate-impacts-water-utilities#tab-3

Vertical Farms

These are perhaps best known for reducing water use in food production, however they can also provide resiliency against major events such as flooding. Crops left soaking in wet soil can become weak, or simply die and rot which threatens us with food insecurity while farmers and farm workers lose valuable income. Vertical farms are best suited for the types of crops eaten by humans: leafy greens, herbs, as well as fruits including berries, tomatoes, and cucumbers. They are not suited for crops commonly fed to livestock such as corn or other grains.

Eliminate Feed Lots, Factory Farms, and Manure Lagoons in Flood Prone Areas

Along water ways or in flood prone areas, these facilities endanger water safety. During major storms, farmers were unable to drain manure lagoons ahead of major storms which caused fecal mater and other contagious materials to flood into people's homes. Factory farm buildings filled with thousands of chickens and pigs were left to flood with the animals un-evacuated, meaning that after the flood waters receded, they were filled with rotting animal corpses, presenting further threat of dangerous diseases to nearby communities. - https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2016/11/04/500701098/manure-happens-especially-when-hog-farms-flood

At the absolute least, any farmers already in these areas or applying for building approval should be required to submit their plan for full animal evacuation in the event of these storms as well as infrastructure to eliminate the risk of flooding manure into waterways or nearby communities. Similarly zoos, dog boarders, and other such facilities should be discouraged in flood-prone areas or areas that may contaminate waterways.

Tools & Apps

Water Pumping

The pumping of water takes a larger amount than many people realize. Pumping ground water for agricultural, industry, or public use, moving it between facilities, etc. all require energy since water is a fairly heavy substance.

Maps & Tools

Maps by Region Check specific State and Country pages to see if there are more specific maps, tools, projects, and groups for specific areas. If you have suggestions, we would love to hear what else we can include. Some states and countries have more detailed watershed, county, and city level maps. Other topic sections such as plastic, agriculture may be worth checking to understand how pollution enters our water ways, and how industries might endanger water sources without proper regulation, mitigation, or clean up systems to protect communities from these threats.

North America

USA

Organizations

North America

USA

The goal of A2 is to help communities fight back. We do that by providing them organizing support, scientific and technical guidance, and better access to foundation and government funding. Most of all, our work consists of listening to our frontline leaders. Their experience, research, and solidarity guide everything we do, and offer a path toward environmental and social justice.

Supported by outstanding partner organizations with expertise in engineering, hydrology, public health, planning, and the law, A2 leaders have successfully halted developments in climate-vulnerable areas; implemented nature-based hazard mitigation strategies; organized home buyouts; and pushed for clean-ups at superfund sites, toxic landfills, and petrochemical plants.

We support everyone we can, but our special priority is people who have suffered the worst environmental impacts for the longest time; that usually means low-income, Black, Latinx, Native American and other underserved communities.

To learn about our policies, read our A 10-Point Platform on Climate Change."

New York

Grants & Funding

Asia