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SELECTED PROFESSIONAL AND NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS ACTIVE IN FLOODPLAIN MANAGEMENT American Institute of Architects American Land Resource Association American Littoral Society American Planning AJSociation American Rivers Conservation Council American Socie!)' oj Civil Engineers American Waler Resources Association AHociation of Consewation Engineers AJJociation of Slate Dam Safet;' Officials Association of State Floodplain lo4anagers Association oj State River Alanagers Association oj Slate l-Vetland -,\tanagers The Coastal Sacid.;, Coastal Conservation Association Coastal States Organization Connecticut River Wak:rshtd Council The Consermtioll Foundation Conservation Law Foundation oj ':Ve1L' England Council oj State Governments Environmental Defense Fund The Environmental Law Institute Environmental PoliC)' Institute Freshwater Foundation Friends oj the Earth Friends oj the Ril;er Land Trust AUiana: League oj CanserlJation Vaters National AJJociatio.n of Consewation Districts .Nalional Associatio.n aJ Counties National Asso.ciatian aJ Home Builders National Asso.ciation af State Recreation Planners National Associatian of Urban Flo.od Alanage- mrnt Agencies lv'ational Audubon Society ;Vational Center Jar Urban Environmental Studies National EmergenC)' Alanagement Associatian National Fish and lVildlife Foundation National League o.f Cities National Organization for Rh'er Sports National Recreation and Parks Assaciatian ,Vationa! Trails Coalition National Trust for Historic Preservation National H/ater Resources AJSociation ,Vational H/aterwa)'s Conjerence ;Vatianal Wetlands Technical Council 11.,'atianal Wildlife Federation The Natural Areas Association lv'atural Resources Difense Co.uncil lv'ew England l'I,"atural Resources Center lv'orth American Lake Alanagement Sociel)' The Oceanic Saciel)' The River Conservation Fund Save the Dunes Council Sima Club Society Jar Range "Hanagement Soil and Water Conservation Society The Sounds Conservancy The Trust jar Public Land Urban Land Institute Wetlands Jar Wildlife The r.Vilderness Socie!)' lViIdlife }I,-[anagement Institute - 30 than 97 % of the country. They provide planning and technical assistance to individual landowners for controlling soil erosion and water pollution, and they implement swampbuster, wetland restoration, and erosion reduction portions of the Food, Agricultural, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990. The Private Sector Besides undertaking basic and applied research on floodplain manage- ment, academic institutions also provide education in the field, although so far no university offers a program of study specializing in floodplain manage- ment. Many states have \Vater Resources Research Institutes, as authorized by the "Vater Resources Act of 1964. Over 700 national and local land trusts exist throughout the nation. ~10st are nonprofit organizations that receive land, either through donations or purchase, and manage it as open space or for historic purposes. There are a large number of professional and nonprofit organizations involved in floodplain management. r..10st are national in scope and accom- plish their objectives through meetings, publications, lobbying, and fostering professional communication. The number of private conservation and water- shed organizations is even larger. Usually nonprofit with a broad public membership, they are typically directly involved in environmental issues with flood loss reduction as an indirect goal or benefit. These citizen-based groups serve a tremendous public education function, are largely unaffected by parti- san politics, and can usually respond to an issue more rapidly than govern- ment agencies. Individuals and for-profit corporations have become more involved in floodplain management since the 1960s, helping develop floodproofing tech- niques and materials, automated flood warning systems, geographic informa- tion systems, remote sensing techniques, and computerized information management. Modifying Susceptibility to Damages and Disruption r..10difying susceptibility to flood damage and disruption is the floodplain management strategy of avoiding dangerous, uneconomic, undesirable, or unwise use of the floodplain. The tools used to implement this strategy are regulations; development and redevelopment policies; disaster preparedness; flood proofing and elevation; and flood forecasting, warning systems, and emergency plans. Regulations Regulations have a potentially greater impact on flood loss reduction than any other single floodplain management tool and have been widely used over the last 15-20 years. Development that conforms to regulations is less prone to flood damage than pre-existing development. Regulation is largely a local government responsibility, but throughout much of the country there is still widespread resistance to any type of land use regulation and concern among jurisdictions that it ...vill be ruled an uncon- stitutional "taking" of private property. Effective enforcement often requires more training, personnel, and financial resources than many communities can provide. Regulations cannot provide full protection; they have a limited impact on existing buildings and infrastructure already subject to flooding, and they do not prevent development in floodplains. In addition, most floodplain regulations do little to protect the natural resources of floodplains. In fact, to the extent that floodplain regulations allow development in floodplains-even though it may not be subject to damage-they can contribute to the loss of natural and cultural resources. On the other hand, current regulations do provide a de facto prohibition on development in wetlands.