The Biden-Harris Administration has published a Final Rule with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) implementing the Federal Flood Risk Management Standard (FFRMS) which is intended to provide a flexible framework to increase resilience against flooding and help protect communities in a world where climate change is a very real and developing problem.
In recent years, the frequency and intensity of major flooding events have caused major damage across the country—due in part to climate change—and historical datasets which have driven past policy have become outdated. By using new data sets, which account for recent flood trends, the FFRMS strengthens FEMA’s standards to incorporate both current and future flood risk, making taxpayer-funded projects far more resilient to flooding, protecting federal investments and reducing the risk of damage and loss from floods. Additionally, FEMA will pay for the applicable federal cost share to implement the FFRMS which is often 75% or more.
“The human and economic cost of flooding is devastating and will only grow in the years ahead as the impacts of climate change grow more intense and reach more communities,” said Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas. “Taking forward-looking, effective steps to increase resilience before disaster strikes will save lives, property, critical infrastructure and taxpayer money. The Federal Flood Risk Management Standard ensures that FEMA-funded projects meet that mandate. We cannot be passive as climate change threatens the safety and security of the American people and our homeland.”
“Climate change has exacerbated flood risk across the country, especially when it comes to sea-level rise. The Biden-Harris Administration is taking action to address these heightened risks by getting this new standard over the finish line,” said FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell. “FFRMS will allow us to enhance resilience in flood-prone communities by taking future flood risk into consideration when we rebuild structures post-disaster. This is a huge win that will also allow us to end the repeat loss cycles that stem from flooding and increase the safety of families and save taxpayer dollars.”
“As climate change increases the frequency and severity extreme weather events, President Biden is taking bold action—mobilizing historic investments to protect communities before the storm strikes, upgrade critical infrastructure to reduce vulnerability and risk and boost our collective capacity to recover quickly after disasters,” said National Climate Advisor Ali Zaidi. “By using common-sense solutions like elevating or floodproofing critical infrastructure, today’s rule will help local communities harness the best in science and engineering to better prepare for flood risks from rising sea levels and damaging storms. This important step will help protect taxpayer-funded projects, including fire and police stations and hospitals, from flood risks and is an integral part of the Biden-Harris administration’s broader efforts to enhance climate resilience across the country.”
This rule allows FEMA to consider the best available science in making projects and communities more resilient to increased flood conditions. The standard applies to FEMA-funded actions involving new construction, substantial improvement, or repairs to substantial damage.
The FFRMS also applies to government-funded Hazard Mitigation Assistance projects such as elevating existing structures, fireproofing, and mitigation reconstruction. This new rule advances the National Climate Resilience Framework’s goal of building a climate-resilient nation. This higher standard considers both current and future flood risks associated with climate change and other threats.
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell, along with President Biden, have announced $1 billion for 656 projects across the country to help communities protect against disasters and natural hazards, including extreme heat, storms and flooding.
The expansion of the floodplain
The FFRMS will be used by the Departments of Agriculture, Defense, Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development, Interior, and General Services Administration.
According to FEMA, prior to the FFRMS, the agency required non-critical projects to be protected to the 1% annual chance (100-year) flood to minimize flood risk. Critical projects, like the construction of fire and police stations, hospitals, and facilities that store hazardous materials, had to be protected to the 0.2% annual chance (500-year) flood. This standard reflected only current flood risk.
The FFRMS will increase the flood elevation —or how high—and floodplain—or how wide—to reflect future, as well as current, flood risk for actions subject to the standard.
Implementing the FFRMS is an important step toward mitigating future flood risk that will benefit communities by allowing them to avoid or recover from future disasters more efficiently and effectively. Communities can protect against future flood risk by building outside of the floodplain, elevating, floodproofing, or using nature-based solutions.
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