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Step 4: Choose Your Community’s Solutions

Decision-makers engaged in a transparent analysis of all possible solutions to address flooding and stormwater challenges will be on the path to selecting a suite of strategies suitable for your community’s unique conditions, priorities, visions, and goals. Assessing various alternative scenarios may also help your community respond to unexpected situations that may arise during project implementation by providing readily available alternatives. 

To put your community on this path, Navigate the Flood Step 4 offers a series of example flood and stormwater management solutions ranging from conventional options such as levees and floodwalls to nature-based solutions that harness natural processes such as stream restoration and green stormwater infrastructure. This step also identifies criteria technical staff can apply to each potential solution to inform objective evaluation and selection. Among these evaluation criteria are “triple-bottom line” considerations, i.e., social, economic and environmental considerations. Explore Subsections (a)-(f) below to take Step 4 towards navigating the flood. Each Subsection includes case studies and technical and financial resources that will help you choose your community’s flood and stormwater management solutions.

Completing Step 1, Step 2, Step 3, and Step 4 means your community is ready to get to work and build sustainable, resilient, and equitable flood and stormwater systems. See more on implementing your plan at Step 5.

(a) Evaluate various possible solutions or a combination of solutions for flooding challenges (short list).

  • Dams, reservoirs
  • Dikes, levees, floodwalls
  • Stream channel alterations/restorations
  • High-flow diversions and spillways
  • Land treatment
  • Onsite detention
  • Coastal protection measure
  • Upstream Buffers
  • Open space preservation and land conservation

Technical

Financial

(b) Evaluate various possible solutions or a combination of solutions for the impact(s) of flooding on the community (short list).

  • Floodplain regulations
  • Development and redevelopment of policies
  • Disaster preparedness, assistance, and recovery
  • “Floodproofing” 
  • Flood forecasting and warning/emergency plans
  • Information and education 
  • Flood insurance 
  • Tax adjustments 
  • Post-flood recovery
  • Build trust, contemplate relocation 
  • Raise utilities out of basements 
  • Consider the danger of “no act alternative”  
  • Possible relocation of assets

Technical

Financial

(c) Evaluate various possible solutions or a combination of solutions for stormwater runoff and its impact(s) on the community (short list).

  • Green stormwater infrastructure
  • Grey infrastructure improvements/replacements
  • Open space preservation and land conservation
  • Construction and retrofits 
  • Community projects
  • Conservative agriculture practices
  • Stormwater regulations via municipal stormwater systems    
    • Ensure public health considerations are at the forefront of decision making 
    • Reduction of impervious surfaces at the city and individual household level
    • Reduction of rooftop runoff via redirection of downspouts to vegetated areas

Case Study

Technical

(d) Focus on environmental, social, and economic ("Triple Bottom Line") criteria and whether various solutions meet a regulatory endpoint.

  • Consider the full life-cycle of proposed solution, including the cost of implementation 
  • Consider additional technical and operational criteria
    • Reliability
    • Maintainability
    • Accessibility 
    • Public Acceptance
  • Consider compliance as a floor not a ceiling 
    • Strive to maximize environmental and social benefits while minimizing costs

Case Study

Technical

(e) Conduct a cost benefit analysis for top solutions, evaluate the alternative solutions against any additional criteria (4d), and determine the best solution (or set of solutions) based on alternatives analysis.

  • Alternative analysis conducted by the responsible entity, community members, and/or other stakeholders
    • Rank the importance of goals established in Step 3 and acknowledge associated metrics to measure achievement of such goals and scale those metrics
    • Evaluate alternative solutions established in Step 4 (a-c), while considering Step 4d
    • Determine the best solution
    • Clearly communicate the best solution, as well as the process of arriving at the chosen solution, to the rest of the community

Technical

(f) Develop a strategic (and/or master) plan that is flexible and remains current.

  • Combine efforts (data/document compilation/analysis and goal development, from steps 2 and 3 (a-b)) into a strategic plan  
  • Continue to revise as you begin to implement solutions
  • Build-in a mechanism to evaluate stakeholder feedback
  • Consider EPA standards for integrative planning and adaptive management

Case Study

Technical

Financial

All Step 4 Resources

The Water Center at Penn and WaterNow Alliance Flood and Stormwater Management Guide

With support from the Kresge Foundation

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