FRAMING THE CHALLENGE OF
URBAN FLOODING
IN THE UNITED STATES
Committee on Urban Flooding in the United States
Program on Risk, Resilience, and Extreme Events Policy and Global Affairs
Water Science and Technology Board
Division on Earth and Life Studies
A Consensus Study Report of
THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS
Washington, DC
www.nap.edu
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This activity was supported by a contract between the National Academy of Sciences and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Award No. HSFE20-16-C-0211). Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the view of the organization that provided support for the project.
International Standard Book Number-13: 978-0-309-48961-4
International Standard Book Number-10: 0-309-48961-X
Digital Object Identifier: https://doi.org/10.17226/25381
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Suggested citation: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Framing the Challenge of Urban Flooding in the United States. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: https://doi.org/10.17226/25381.
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COMMITTEE ON URBAN FLOODING IN THE UNITED STATES
Members
DAVID R. MAIDMENT (Chair), University of Texas at Austin
CHAD BERGINNIS, Association of State Floodplain Managers, Madison, Wisconsin
LT. GEN. (RET.) THOMAS P. BOSTICK, Intrexon, Germantown, Maryland
SAMUEL BRODY, Texas A&M University, College Station
JEFFERY CZAJKOWSKI, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, and National Association of Insurance Commissioners, Kansas City, Missouri
DARA ENTEKHABI, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge
HARRIET FESTING, Anthropocene Associates, Chicago, Illinois
KATHERINE GREIG, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia
JO ANN HOWARD, H2O Partners Inc., Austin, Texas
CONOR JENSEN, Renegade Science, Oswego, Illinois
ERIC TATE, University of Iowa, Iowa City
CLAIRE WELTY, University of Maryland, Baltimore County
JAMES L. WESCOAT, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge
Study Staff
LAUREN ALEXANDER AUGUSTINE, Study Director
ANNE LINN, Scholar, Board on Earth Sciences and Resources
ERIC EDKIN, Program Coordinator, Board on Earth Sciences and Resources
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Acknowledgments
This Consensus Study Report was reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in making each published report as sound as possible and to ensure that it meets the institutional standards for quality, objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the study charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the deliberative process.
We thank the following individuals for their review of this report: Philip Bedient, Rice University; Timothy Collins, University of Utah; Kimberly Grove, Baltimore City Department of Public Works; Eric Klinenberg, New York University; Ning Lin, Princeton University; Jay Lund, University of California, Davis; David Miller, Electric Infrastructure Security Council; Doug Plasencia, Moffatt & Nichol; and P. Kay Whitlock, Christopher B. Burke Engineering, Ltd.
Although the reviewers listed above provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the conclusions or recommendations of this report nor did they see the final draft before its release. The review of this report was overseen by Michael Kavanaugh, Geosyntec Consultants, and David Dzombak, Carnegie Mellon University. They were responsible for making certain that an independent examination of this report was carried out in accordance with the standards of the National Academies and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content rests entirely with the authoring committee and the National Academies.
A central part of this study was stakeholder workshops, meetings, interviews, and site visits in four metropolitan areas: Baltimore, Chicago, Houston, and Phoenix. The participants in these activities are listed in Appendixes B through E, and the committee thanks them for their insights on urban flooding in their area. The committee also thanks the following individuals for making maps, compiling data, carrying out literature searches, or making other contributions to the report: Federico Antolini, University of Iowa; Oronde Drakes, University of Iowa; Wesley E. Highfield, Texas A&M, Galveston; Asif Rahman, University of Iowa; Jayton Rainey, Texas A&M, College Station; and Oliver Wing, University of Bristol.
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Contents
2 INSIGHTS FROM FOUR METROPOLITAN AREAS
Local Reflections from Baltimore, Maryland
Local Reflections from Houston, Texas
Local Reflections from Chicago, Illinois
Local Reflections from Phoenix, Arizona
Commonalities and Differences Among the Four Metropolitan Areas
Magnitude of Flooding in the Case Study Areas
4 A WAY FORWARD ON URBAN FLOODING
Physical Dimensions of Urban Flooding
Social Dimensions of Urban Flooding
Information Dimensions of Urban Flooding
Actions and Decision-Making Dimensions of Urban Flooding
