Framing Action Around a Watershed “This initiative aims to coordinate resources to increase resilience on the watershed level. It identifies strategies and actions that will increase the watershed’s ability to prevent, withstand and recover from severe storms and flooding.” - Baker United Strategic Recovery Plan , 2018, pg.18
In March and August 2016, Louisiana experienced two catastrophic rain storms. The rising August floodwaters in and around Baton Rouge took 13 lives and inundated more than 109,000 homes (LED 2017). In its wake there was an estimated $8.7 billion in damages requiring recovery efforts that will take years to complete. Though classified as a “one-in-1,000-year flood” this was the 3rd such event to hit the southeastern US in 2016, and one of a number since 2010. Climate scientists predict that these types of severe rain storms are likely to increase in frequency and intensity in the future (Prein et al. 2016). These two floods highlighted weaknesses in Louisiana’s approach to managing water and risk reduction. In response, the state has implemented the Louisiana Watershed Initiative, which coordinates state, regional, and local agencies in an effort to reduce flood risk by directly taking into account the flow of water and its natural boundaries, rather than focusing primarily on municipal boundaries. Actions taken in one community can have a downstream impact on the flow of water−increasing or reducing the risk of flooding in other communities. At the same time, decisions about community development across a region are often uncoordinated and may be inconsistent with preventing flooding. Considering how connected communities across a watershed are, this approach will help to coordinate decisions about land use and infrastructure investment at the watershed level to more effectively manage flood risk. When thinking about planning at a watershed scale, these concepts set this framework apart from traditional planning: Broad Scales, Complexity, and Dynamicism.
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Resilient & Healthy Baker
