While we are still waiting for Congress to pass reforms to the National Flood Insurance Program that will expire at the end of May, the good news is that leaders in Vermont convened to help bring attention to the need for reforms to flood policy at the local, state and national levels.
On April 20, the Vermont Law School brought together an impressive group of experts for their “After Irene: Law and Policy Lessons for the Future” symposium. True to "natural" disasters, there are often many lessons to be learned. While the damages from Irene were costly and devastating to communities in Vermont, it actually wasn’t a “storm of the century”, as Mike Kline who directs the state’s river management program said, but instead a storm of the decade. Over the last 50 years, climate scientists estimate that heaviest rain events have increased on average by 20% across the United States and for New England by a whopping 67% (see USGCRP 2009 Report).
Candace Page's article “Entrenched ideas targeted at conference to consider lessons of Irene” in the Burlington Free Press helped showcase some of the lessons learned and the reforms needed. Unfortunately, these entrenched ideas that rivers and floods can be controlled aren’t unique to Vermont. Bob Irvin, President of America Rivers, succinctly stated why this notion is so wrong when he said “Nature bats last”.
Instead, as the speakers highlighted – regulatory and financial incentives are needed to invest in allowing rivers to spread out to reduce the flood risk to humans and to keep them safe while also protecting the environment. Such solutions include moving people out of harm’s way, conservation easements, flood insurance rates that reflect the actual flood risk, strong regulatory policies to ensure that neighbors upstream don’t fill in the floodplain and transfer the flooding to their neighbors downstream, among many others.
2011 was a record year for flooding for many regions throughout the nation yet the impact of the damages to lives and property have, incredibly, not pushed our leaders into action mode to get badly needed reforms to flood insurance passed. Here’s to Vermont for leading the way in constructive solutions to reducing flood risk. It’s time for Congress to show some leadership by passing real reforms to the National Flood Insurance Program before the program expires on May 31. Follow this link to see SmarterSafer.org’s release: SmarterSafer.org Urges Real NFIP Reforms Over Extending Current Program.
For more information about Vermont and their flood work, go to http://vtstrong.vermont.gov/ . Photo Credits: FEMA & NASA Earth Observatory
