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<br />Section One <br /> <br />Flood~lain ManaQement Forum Issue Pa~ <br /> <br />The Floodplain Management Forum Issue Paper was written by FEMA and distributed to the <br />participants prior to the Forum. This issue paper articulates the goals and objectives of the <br />Forum and was designed to capture some of the floodplain management issues and guide <br />discussion at the Forum. <br /> <br />Background <br /> <br />Floodplain management in the United States has undergone a significant change during the <br />20th century. For more than the first half of the century, the Federal Government attempted to <br />control floods through structural methods. This strategy proved unsuccessful as the cost of flood <br />damage increased and the ecological integrity of the Nation's watercourses were negatively <br />impacted. Therefore, in 1968 the U.S. Congress created the National Flood Insurance Program <br />(NFIP) to reduce the escalating costs of flood disasters that are borne by taxpayers. The NFIP <br />marked a significant shift from traditional structural methods of flood control toward floodplain <br />management and shared responsibility. Through the NFIP, all units of government, the private <br />sector, and individual citizens share the responsibility for managing the Nation's floodplains. <br /> <br />In the past decade, considerable progress has been made in taking a more holistic approach to <br />floodplain management. The concept of sustainability brings a relatively new approach to <br />environmental, economic, and social thought. Sustainability is development that maintains or <br />enhances economic opportunity and community well-being while respecting, protecting, and <br />restoring the natural environment on which people and economies depend. <br /> <br />Federal, State, and local units of govemment are now beginning to incorporate sustainability into <br />floodplain management. It is widely understood that we cannot view floodplain management in <br />a vacuum. To fully protect the natural integrity of floodplains and protect people and property <br />from floods, we must integrate floodplain management into land use planning, economic <br />development, habitat protection, flood insurance, cultural preservation, and many other locally <br />driven activities. <br /> <br />The NFIP currently provides significant protection against flood losses. The NFIP has saved an <br />estimated $1 billion per year in flood damage, and has reduced flood damages to individual <br />buildings by approximately 77 percent. Although the NFIP has reduced flood damage, the <br />number and severity of catastrophic flood events and the costs of disasters continue to rise at an <br />alarming rate. Riverine flood damage now exceeds $5 billion annually. <br /> <br />Hurricane Floyd is the most notable recent example. The flooding caused by Hurricane <br />Floyd approached or exceeded the 500-year flood in some areas, devastating properties and lives <br />and disrupting many communities along the east coast of the United States. The damages from <br />Hurricane Floyd are estimated to exceed $700 million. Moreover, a majority of the residents <br />living inside and outside the special flood hazard area did not have flood insurance. <br /> <br />Floodplain Management Forom <br /> <br />1 <br />