(Washington, DC) — The July-August 2009 issue of the National Wetlands Newsletter provides a detailed look at how our floodplain management affects flooding. “The Great Flood” is a term often ascribed to the destruction and devastation of human society, but floods are “great” in another sense, as they perform valuable natural functions that provide tremendous benefits to nature and society. Wetlands, in particular, are a valuable part of floodplains for storing floodwater, as well as receptacles for the nutrients delivered by sediments in floodwaters that sustain plant life. Dave Fowler and Jaquelyn Monday from the Association of State Floodplain Managers focus on how national floodplain policy fails to account for these natural functions of floodplains and what we should do to work with the benefits of floods, while minimizing our risks to life and property.
In addition to “Floodplain Management: More Than Flood Loss Reduction,” Kathleen Mulder of the Environmental Protection Agency addresses the role of holistic planning in reducing the damages caused by flooding, while also improving water quality, through incorporating the natural functions of intermittent and ephemeral streams, wetlands, and floodplains into the planning process. Additionally, the July-August issue features “Sustainable Finance for State and Tribal Wetland Programs,” a how-to guide that looks at the creative ways in which programs are improving their funding base—from government efficiency and coordination to ecotourism destinations.
Worrying losses of coastal wetlands, as documented by the 2009 Status and Trends report by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, means including wetland type and function into mitigation sequencing will be increasingly vital to guarding against wetland losses. Sandra Nichols, staff attorney at ELI, addresses the responses from the regulatory community on this challenge, part of a recent ELI report, Wetland Avoidance and Minimization: Perspectives from Experience.
For three decades, the nationally recognized National Wetlands Newsletter has been a widely read and esteemed journal on wetlands, floodplains, and coastal water resources. The Newsletter, published by the highly respected Environmental Law Institute®, analyzes the latest issues in wetland regulation, policy, science, and management through feature articles written by local, national, and international experts from a variety of perspectives.