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<br />2. REFINE POLICIES, PROGRAMS, AND COORDINATION <br /> <br />Numerous federal and state laws, policies, and programs are in place to help manage the nation's <br />floodplains, but not all of them operate effectively. In addition, some primary links are missing, <br />Improved overall direction can be set, in large part, by the shifts described below. <br /> <br />· A National Floodplain Management Policy should be established. It should include a national <br />riparian zone policy of protecting, maintaining, and restoring riverine areas in order to preserve <br />them as sustainable ecosystems for future generations. Buffer zones along rivers, streams, and <br />smaller waterways need to be encouraged. The Continuous Conservation Reserve Program could <br />be converted to a pennanent nationwide easement program for riparian buffers, Emphasis should <br />be placed on maintaining the natural flood storage capacity within all watersheds, <br /> <br />. A coordinated, watershed-based, multi-objective approach for all water resource activities must <br />be adopted, It should include coordination with water quality improvement efforts, the creation <br />and maintenance of upland storage, and coordinated planning among upstream, downstream, <br />rural, and urbanized localities within the same watershed, <br /> <br />· Systemic biases need to be removed from program guidelines and benefit/cost analyses so that <br />nonstructural altematives can move forward on their own merits. The benefits of proposed <br />nonstructural projects must be calculated in the same way as those of structural projects-to <br />include avoided damage as an additional benefit. Land and easements should be considered part <br />of the total project cost, not a local sponsor requirement. <br /> <br />· National standards should be developed for the design and placement of infrastructure to avoid <br />damage from flooding and other hazards, <br /> <br />· Better methods for quantifying the economic benefits of natural and cultural resources must be <br />developed, adopted, and applied, <br /> <br />· A water resources coordinating mechanism needs to be re-established at a high level within the <br />federal government. It could include responsibility for the Unified National Program for <br />Floodplain Management, and have oversight to ensure that all federal policies and programs are <br />supportive of the National Flood Insurance Program. Upgraded Executive Orders or other <br />measures are needed; they should tie flood disaster relief and other federal funds to a community's <br />participation in and compliance with the National Flood Insurance Program, as well as to the <br />maintenance of flood insurance, <br /> <br />· Several regulatory standards of the National Flood Insurance Program should be strengthened. <br />The ASFPM believes that the three most critical needs are for a no-rise floodway with no impact <br />on water surface or velocity; freeboard above the base flood elevation to the lowest floor; and <br />clear standards and procedures for detennining when a structure is deemed to be "substantially" <br />damaged or improved, thereby triggering both a requirement that it be upgraded to be flood- <br />resistant and also eligibility for financial assistance to do so, It is recommended that these latter <br />standards include assessing improvements and damage cumulatively over time, and using the <br />market value to evaluate the threshold for what constitutes "substantiaL" <br /> <br />Association of State Floodplain Managers <br /> <br />-IV- <br /> <br />National Flood Programs in Review 2000 <br />