Countries Most Prone to Urban Flooding

"Ghost forests are expanding along the East Coast due to a combination of drought conditions and tropical storms. Trees in wetland areas are dying at increasing rates because they are exposed to saltwater more often; a flood or storm surge that may have occurred once in 100 years in the past may now occur once every 20 years or more. This consistent exposure to saltwater can damage the roots of trees, keeping them from absorbing the freshwater and nutrients they need to grow and thrive."

"... Runoff from agriculture and wastewater ditches can also create pathways for saltwater to intrude upon wetlands and forests, contributing to their decline. This information is key for changing how agricultural workers, environmental managers, regional climate mitigation planners and others interact with one another and the environment that supports us all."

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 

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.

Increased Illegal Sewage Releases

Sea Walls

Floating Buildings?

Careful Choice in Relocation/Building Site Choices

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.

Coastal Defenses

Methods

Groups

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.

Groups by Country

Cambodia

• BirdLife International, Cambodia Program

• Cambodian Rural Development Team

• Department of Freshwater Wetland Conservation, Cambodian Ministry of Environment

• NatureLife Cambodia

• The Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust

Madagascar

• The Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust " We conserve, restore and create wetlands, and inspire everyone to value the amazing things healthy wetlands can do for us." "Since 1960, over 60% of Madagascar’s wetlands are estimated to have been lost. Those remaining are subject to an array of pervasive threats including sedimentation, pollution and over-harvesting." "Lake Sofia is a Ramsar site – an accreditation given to the world’s most important wetlands through the intergovernmental Ramsar Convention. It is one of 21 Ramsar Sites in Madagascar. Few have Management Plans and conservation managers have little capacity to assess the condition of, and threats to, their sites. Currently, those involved in the conservation and management of wetlands work in isolation, and the lack of a functioning National Ramsar Committee for wetlands has resulted in missed opportunities to influence decisions around planning and regulatory frameworks that can have a significant impact on the health of these vital ecosystems."

United Kingdom

• The Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust "We conserve, restore and create wetlands, and inspire everyone to value the amazing things healthy wetlands can do for us." They work in multiple countries, but mostly the UK to preserve and rehabilitate wetlands as well as the water ways that feed them. Projects include 

• Steart Salt Marshes 

• The Severn Estuary

United States

• Chesapeake Bay Foundation

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.

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.

Click here to see a list of existing buy out programs broken down by region.

Here is brochure explaining how Charlotte's Buyout Program benefits the community, protects assets, and the steps involved from applying for the program to vacating the property:  https://charlottenc.gov/StormWater/Flooding/Documents/FPBuyoutBrochure.pdf

Some important issues make these programs less effective than they could be. A major problem is that the average buyout process takes 5 years, which is far too slow for people facing homelessness, especially with the increasing rates and intensities of calamities including sea level rise which don't wait for bureaucracy. The other, and perhaps more concerning issue is the inequality that determines who is more likely to get financial support in this important strategy. Multiple studies have found that communities with higher wealth and population density are more likely to qualify, this often means white people may have a better chance at receiving aid than Native Americans or other ethnic groups who may have less community resources.

"One reason that wealthier counties might be receiving more buyouts is that it requires significant bureaucratic and monetary resources to apply for and distribute buyout funds. FEMA generally pays for 75% of the cost of a home, so local and state governments must find the remaining money elsewhere."

""Homeowners who want to relocate cannot apply to FEMA directly. They rely on their local government to apply on their behalf," explains A.R. Siders of the University of Delaware, who is one of the study authors. "If their local government doesn't have those resources, you're going to have people who are trapped in these at-risk places.""

...

"Miyuki Hino, a researcher at Stanford who also is one of the authors of the study. "That also provides a tax base where they can find a lot of money to invest in pumps, beach nourishment, things other than buyouts."" - https://www.npr.org/2019/10/09/767920427/sweeping-study-raises-questions-about-who-benefits-from-buyouts-of-flood-prone-h

Neighborhood buyout projects vs Individual buyout incentives

"Buying out multiple properties at once can serve as a demonstration project: Showing the benefits to other communities helps build support for similar projects in their own flood-prone areas. A neighborhood buyout eliminates the flood risk to a larger portion of the population and increases opportunities for reusing the property. Community-scale projects can also help us get the most out of our resources—funding, staff, equipment, maintenance, etc. Finally, individual buyouts can create a patchwork pattern and unintentionally diminish the character of the community."

Some examples include helping a trailer park owner carry out a buyout and restoration project, and removing multi-family structures from flood zones to relocate residents to safer areas. - https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/trust/archive/winter-2021/maryland-flood-risk-leads-property-owners-communities-to-accept-buyouts

Chesapeake and Coastal Grants Gateway - "a DNR program that provides resources for communities to plan and carry out nature-based risk reduction projects."

Promoting Equity in Retreat Through Voluntary Property Buyout Programs "... In this policy analysis, we first provide an overview of equity and justice issues in buyouts based on existing literature. We consider multiple relevant stakeholder groups: the communities in which buyouts occur, potential participants and relocating households, residents who choose to stay, and the destination communities. Second, we present policy options that may address and reduce existing social inequities in buyouts. Third, we outline how improved reporting on buyout programs by implementers can support buyout policy learning that will improve buyout outcomes and equity. Indicators can provide insight on who has access to buyouts, the effect of buyout implementation on outcomes, and the consequences of relocating—or not—for all affected. With increasing climate risks, voluntary property buyouts will remain an important means of reducing exposure to flooding and other hazards. For this method of retreat to occur effectively at greater scale, attention to social justice in program evaluation and policy learning is necessary."

"No comprehensive overview of strategies to proactively promote social justice in buyout programs currently exists, so this compilation is intended to provide a synthesis of policy options for practitioners and analysts." Human rights organizations, ethnic councils, and buy out programs need to work together to assure these gaps are filled with science-informed, ethical practices.

"... based on existing evaluations of buyouts and other disaster and adaptation strategies, we outline a range of entry points for improved data reporting in buyout programs to allow for better assessment and evaluation of social justice and equity, which can support the development of additional strategies to improve equity in buyout programs. To date, successive buyout programs occurring over decades and across many different communities in the USA have shown no significant policy changes or improvements, indicating little policy learning has taken place (Greer and Binder 2017). We argue that improved data collection and evaluation practices could enable lessons from past experiences with buyout programs—their funding mechanisms, policies, implementation, and outcomes—to improve future efforts." - https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13412-021-00688-z

"Renters, however, are an overlooked population during implementation of post-disaster retreat programs that predominantly focus on homeownership. Racism is a substantial factor in homeownership disparities between black and white Americans that can be traced to the post World War II GI Bill-a law that delivered to returning veterans federally-backed home mortgage loans, loans that were largely denied to returning black soldiers. These inequities have not been overcome, leaving minority renters as some of the most vulnerable populations after a disaster. Indeed, some renters may be substantially worse off after a buy-out program is implemented in an area. Renters represent an atypical "trapped" population when it comes to relocation programs because they may be economically forced to move to even more climate vulnerable housing. " - https://europepmc.org/article/pmc/pmc8092994

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

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.

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.

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

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.

• STEEP "is a free Excel-based reference guide that can be used to make system assessments and identify potential areas for energy use savings in existing or planned water supply and wastewater facility projects."

North America

USA

• Anthropocene Alliance (A2) "has almost 300 member-communities in 41 U.S. states and territories. They are impacted by flooding, toxic waste, wildfires, and drought and heat — all compounded by reckless development and climate change. The consequence is broken lives and a ravaged environment.

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."

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

• Disappearing Cities on US Coasts (Study) "The sea level along the US coastlines is projected to rise by 0.25–0.3 m by 2050, increasing the probability of more destructive flooding and inundation in major cities1,2,3. However, these impacts may be exacerbated by coastal subsidence—the sinking of coastal land areas4—a factor that is often underrepresented in coastal-management policies and long-term urban planning2,5. In this study, we combine high-resolution vertical land motion (that is, raising or lowering of land) and elevation datasets with projections of sea-level rise to quantify the potential inundated areas in 32 major US coastal cities. Here we show that, even when considering the current coastal-defence structures, further land area of between 1,006 and 1,389 km2 is threatened by relative sea-level rise by 2050, posing a threat to a population of 55,000–273,000 people and 31,000–171,000 properties. Our analysis shows that not accounting for spatially variable land subsidence within the cities may lead to inaccurate projections of expected exposure. These potential consequences show the scale of the adaptation challenge, which is not appreciated in most US coastal cities."

• USA Flood Factor Interactive map can be used to find specific addresses, and see how historical flooding as affected existing roads and neighborhoods. Please scroll down in page to find the partial US map, or type in an address and scroll down to find the interactive map.

• NOAA Flood Map Check specific State and Country pages to see if there are more specific maps, tools, projects, and groups in your area. If you have suggestions, we would love to hear what else we can include. Some states have watershed, county, and city level maps. Other 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. 

• USGS Ground Water Depletion in the United States 1900-2008 (PDF) understanding which area are suffering worst from ground water depletion can help us build better water management systems which could convert flood and rain waters back into aquifers. This would both ensure drinking and irrigations for future generations, as well as stabilizing soil which increasingly threatens building, road, and dam foundations in water-depleted regions.

Tools & Apps

North America

USA

• USA Flood Factor Interactive map can be used to find specific addresses, and see how historical flooding as affected existing roads and neighborhoods. Please scroll down in page to find the partial US map, or type in an address and scroll down to find the interactive map.

Organizations

North America

USA

• Anthropocene Alliance (A2) "has almost 300 member-communities in 41 U.S. states and territories. They are impacted by flooding, toxic waste, wildfires, and drought and heat — all compounded by reckless development and climate change. The consequence is broken lives and a ravaged environment.

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

• The Office of Resilient Homes and Communities "strives to address communities’ most urgent needs, while also encouraging the identification of innovative and enduring solutions to strengthen the State’s infrastructure and critical systems. The office utilizes approximately $4.4 billion in flexible funding made available by the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development’s (HUD) Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) program to concentrate aid to four main areas. Paired with additional federal funding that has been awarded to other State agencies, the CDBG-DR program is enabling homeowners, small businesses and entire communities to build back even better than before. And in a State already known for its great resiliency and can-do spirit, the efforts are paving the way for a tremendous comeback– one that will reinvigorate New York and better prepare it for future extreme weather events that come its way."

Grants & Funding

Asia

• Livable Cities: Financing Partnership Facility "The urban operations of ADB benefits from the support of notable trust funds, which are collectively referred to as the Urban Financing Partnership Facility. Under this umbrella, strategic, long-term, multi-partner investments on innovative urban solutions are implemented. These investments help to achieve the vision of livable cities." These include:

  • ASEAN Australia Smart Cities Trust Fund

  • Cities Development Initiative for Asia

  • Urban Climate Change Resilience Trust Fund (UCCRTF) eligible countries include Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, and Vietnam.

  • Urban Environmental Infrastructure Fund (UEIF)