Hurricane Harvey Flooding: American Rivers Media Availability
August 30, 2017
Contact: Amy Kober, akober@americanrivers.org, 503-708-1145
While the rescue and relief effort in the wake of Hurricane Harvey is ongoing, many are asking why the flooding in Houston has been so severe, and how communities can protect themselves from disastrous floods in the future.
Experts from American Rivers, a national non-profit river conservation organization, are available for interviews to discuss how our nation can improve flood protection and public safety.
Specifically:
- Why giving rivers and floodways more room is the best approach for managing floods and keeping people out of harm’s way, particularly people who live downstream of dams.
- The benefits of moving people and infrastructure out of floodplains.
- The perils of relying solely on traditional infrastructure, such as dams or levees – which in many cases are aging and outdated.
- Why officials must factor climate change impacts into planning decisions.
- Why flood risk management is much more effective then flood control for protecting property and lives.
- How reauthorization of the National Flood Insurance Program poses an opportunity to improve our approach to flood protection.
- Why California’s new flood plan for the Central Valley is a major paradigm shift, and a positive model for other watersheds nationwide.
Resources:
Natural Defenses: Safeguarding Communities From Floods: https://www.americanrivers.org/conservation-resource/natural-defenses-safeguarding-communities-floods/
Weathering Change: Policy Reforms that Save Money and Make Communities Safer
https://www.americanrivers.org/conservation-resource/weathering-change/
California’s new Central Valley flood plan prioritizes expanding floodways to accommodate larger floods: https://www.americanrivers.org/conservation-resource/central-valley-flood-protection-board-new-flood-plan/
ABOUT AMERICAN RIVERS
American Rivers protects wild rivers, restores damaged rivers and conserves clean water for people and nature. Since 1973, American Rivers has protected and restored more than 150,000 miles of rivers through advocacy efforts, on-the-ground projects and an annual America’s Most Endangered Rivers® campaign. Headquartered in Washington, DC, American Rivers has offices across the country and more than 275,000 members, supporters and volunteers.
Rivers connect us to each other, nature, and future generations. Find your connections at AmericanRivers.org, Facebook.com/AmericanRivers and Twitter.com/AmericanRivers.