Government
BY HANNAH NORTON
Texas’ rst statewide ood plan says 5 million people at risk
Over 5 million Texans live or work in areas vulnerable to ooding, according to a draft of the state’s rst ood plan. State lawmakers tasked the Texas Water Devel- opment Board with creating the plan in 2019, in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey. The 267-page draft, published in early May, recommends over $54.5 billion in funding from various sources to reduce ood risks. The board discussed the plan during a May 30 public hearing in Austin. Board members are expected to adopt a nal ood plan in August and submit it to the Legislature by Sept. 1. The details The plan includes ndings from 15 regional ood planning groups, which have been working since October 2020, and makes several recom- mendations for state and local ood policies. “Although ooding has certain benets, like recharging groundwater and providing vital
nutrients to ecosystems and agricultural lands, it remains a signicant threat to the health and safety of Texans,” the plan reads. “Each of the state’s 254 counties has experienced at least one federally declared ood disaster, proof that oods can aect all areas of Texas.” The plan noted roughly 70% of ood-related deaths occur on roadways, particularly during the night and at low-water crossings. The planning groups identied nearly 64,000 miles of roads in areas susceptible to ooding. The board asked the Texas Legislature to expand early warning systems for oods, create minimum building and infrastructure standards to reduce fatalities and property damage, improve low-water crossing safety, and enhance dam and levee safety programs. “We want to put out a state ood plan that does what it is tasked to do, and that is to save lives and save property,” board Chair Brooke Paup said.
Flood risks Around 1 in 6 Texans live or work in ood- prone areas, the Texas Water Development Board found. Over one-fourth of Texas’ land area is vulnerable to ooding.
5.22M people
1.66M buildings
63,900 miles of roads
1.29M homes
12.65M acres of agricultural land
6,258 hospitals, EMS departments, re stations, police stations and schools
SOURCE: TEXAS WATER DEVELOPMENT BOARD COMMUNITY IMPACT
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