Resources and Publications
Getting Climate Smart
ISSUES: Climate Change, Floods & Floodplains, Stormwater & Sewage, Urban Rivers
This guide provides information for state governments, water managers and other stakeholders to use in preparing for the consequences of hotter temperatures, more variable and volatile precipitation events, and rising seas. By undertaking climate preparedness planning, states can better manage the impacts of climate change and protect the well-being of residents, communities, the economy and natural resources.
The Multiple Benefits of Floodplain Easements
ISSUES: Floods & Floodplains
This report provides a snapshot of a single round of successful and highly sought after Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) floodplain easements in the Upper Mississippi River Basin states of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, Illinois and Missouri. Floodplain easements are a cost-effective way to minimize flood impacts, reduce repeat damages, and store floodwaters for benefits of downstream residents and communities.
Weathering Change
ISSUES: Water Pollution, Floods & Floodplains, Climate Change, Water Supply, Stormwater & Sewage
Many federal policies still encourage the same backward-looking water management approaches that didn’t work in the past and are even less suited to the future. These ten reforms are some of the best ways we can change outdated federal policies and embrace a forward-looking approach to water management. They represent proactive steps Congress and the Executive Branch can take to address climate change.
Natural Defenses: Safeguarding Communities from Floods
ISSUES: Water Pollution, Floods & Floodplains, Climate Change
“Natural Defenses: Safeguarding Communities from Floods” calls on Congress and the Administration to adopt a 21st century approach to flood management. In a changing climate, our nation is in dire need of national flood risk management policies that protect and restore the nation’s natural defenses – our wetlands, rivers, floodplains, and upland areas.
A Citizen's Guide to the Corps of Engineers
ISSUES: Floods & Floodplains
“A Citizen’s Guide to the Corps of Engineers,” produced by American Rivers in partnership with the National Wildlife Federation, is a resource for individuals and organizations that care about the health of our waterways and want to improve the way the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers plans, constructs, operates, and issues permits for projects affecting the nation’s rivers, coasts, and wetlands.
Unnatural Disasters, Natural Solutions: Lessons from the Flooding of New Orleans
ISSUES: Climate Change, Floods & Floodplains, Water Supply
This report discusses the failings of structural flood protection as seen in the case of New Orleans and Hurricane Katrina. It makes the case for natural flood protection via eight case studies, where communities have chosen to protect themselves by protecting and restoring nature's own capacity to reduce the size and power of floods, and by simply moving out of harm's way.
Ecological Riverfront Design: Restoring Rivers, Connecting Communities
ISSUES: Floods & Floodplains
This PAS Report provides a set of planning and design principles that can be employed to ensure that, as we reclaim our urban river edges, we do so in the most ecologically sound and economically viable manner possible. The material in this report is intended to help planners, mayors, public works and environmental officials, river advocates, and the general public in their research about effective, ecological riverfront design. The report is structured to provide general information on a number of key topics related to ecological health and human interaction with rivers.
River of Renewal: A Vision for Reconnecting Communities to a Living Upper Mississippi River
ISSUES: Floods & Floodplains
The purpose of this report is to provide a vision for Upper Mississippi River communities to reconnect to the river and become more active stewards to protect their watershed’s unique habitats and the river as a whole. It examines the variety of habitats in the Upper Mississippi River floodplain, addresses restoration opportunities, and provides design principles for ecologically sensitive riverfront development, as well as resources for technical assistance and funding.
