RALEIGH, North Carolina, February 26, 2009 (ENS) – The Federal Emergency Management Agency is awarding $5 million to the state of North Carolina for a statewide risk assessment and mitigation strategy demonstration of the potential impacts of sea level rise caused by climate change.

Announcing the award on Tuesday, FEMA Regional Administrator Phil May said the information and results from this study may help formulate strategies to deal with potential effects of sea level rise along all of the nation’s coastlines.

FEMA also will use the results of this study to assess the long-term fiscal implications of climate change as it affects the frequency and effects of natural disasters.

Information from the study will be shared with other states to inform their climate change mitigation efforts.

“North Carolina has been very proactive in implementing and improving upon coastal zone management activities and policies,” May said. “Although the study is focused on just the state of North Carolina, the results of the study should be applicable to other coastal states as well.

In addition, the study will complement an existing study currently being performed by FEMA which focuses on the effect of climate change on the National Flood Insurance Program.

FEMA’s Mitigation Directorate administers the National Flood Insurance Program. This insurance, mapping, and land use program provides the availability of federally backed flood insurance to home and business owners located in participating communities.

Managing the study will be the North Carolina’s Office of Geospatial and Technology Management, part of the North Carolina Division of Emergency Management, the office that oversees the state’s floodplain mapping and management programs.

Hurricane Isabel washed away sections of North Carolina’s barrier islands. (Photo courtesy USGS)

Twenty North Carolina counties border the Atlantic Ocean, including 70 miles of low-lying barrier islands. While these counties hold just 10 percent of the state’s population, they host many thousands of tourists who support one of the state’s largest industries. In 2005, visitors spent more than $2 billion in coastal communities that are vulnerable to storms and hurricanes.

In September 2003, Hurricane Isabel breached one of the barrier islands in North Carolina. Damage in the state totaled $450 million, most of which was in Dare County where thousands of homes were washed away. The storm surge produced a 2,000-foot wide inlet on Hatteras Island, isolating Hatteras by road for two months.

Hurricane Floyd, in 1999, was a Category 2 hurricane when it hit Cape Fear, packing a 10-foot storm surge. Floyd claimed the lives of 56 people as it moved along the coast, and caused more than $6 billion in damage. Most of the deaths and damage were due to flooding rains that amounted to 19 inches in some parts of the state.

Recent studies show that hurricanes are becoming more powerful and more numerous, and this trend is expected to continue as the planetary temperature continues to increase. Coastal residents will experience sea level rise and higher storm surges that reach further inland.

The assessment North Carolina is conducting for FEMA will help to project how high the sea levels will rise and how much of the coastline will be inundated.

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DES MOINES, Iowa, February 20, 2009 (ENS) – Iowa Governor Chet Culver and Congressman Bruce Braley today announced that more than $5.1 million in federal and state funds has been identified and is in the final approval stage for two conservation related flood recovery projects in Iowa. These funds are part of the effort to help rebuild infrastructure following the historic floods of spring and summer 2008.

“Repairing our infrastructure after last years natural disasters means more than just roads and bridges. We must rebuild every facet of our state’s infrastructure, such as our conservation trails and bridges. These are essential to our state’s full recovery,” Governor Culver said. “I will continue to work with federal partners to ensure Iowans are aided in all aspects of the recovery effort.”

“I’m happy that northeast Iowa is receiving the resources needed to continue recovering from last year’s floods and tornados,” said Braley. “During these tough economic times, rebuilding Iowa’s infrastructure will save and create jobs right here in Iowa.”

One funding package would provide the Dubuque County Conservation Board with $2,957,400 to repair washouts to the Heritage trail surface between Cedar Ridge and Girl Scout Road.

Because of the governor’s actions to have FEMA fund 90 percent rather than the standard 75 percent of all recovery projects, the Board will save the 15 percent local match of $443,600. The remaining 10 percent of the project will come from state dollars.

The other funding package would provide the Black Hawk County Conservation Board with $2,230,000 to replace the Evansdale Bridge on the Cedar Valley Nature Trail. The 90 percent arrangement will save the agency $334,500.

These projects are part of an expected 10,600 projects that will be identified under the State and Federal Emergency Management Agency Public Assistance program designed to help public and some nonprofit agencies rebuild Iowa infrastructure and pay for response efforts.

Eligible entities in 84 counties qualify for public assistance under the state and FEMA program. To date, the state and FEMA have obligated more than $580 million in federal funds for public assistance for flood recovery projects in Iowa.

 Cedar Rapids resident stands before his flooded home. June 13, 2008. (Photo courtesy American Red Cross)

The state has allocated $20 million for recovery and reinvestment in the city of Cedar Rapids, which was hard hit by the 2008 floods. On February 2, Governor Culver signed the $56 million Rebuild Iowa Bill that expands the Jumpstart Housing Program, provides individual disaster grants and creates a community disaster grant program.

The bill earmarks $9.5 million for the Jumpstart Housing Program and sets aside $10.5 million for the other Cedar Rapids programs. Community Disaster Grant Funds can be used for land acquisition, public infrastruction repair and replacement, replacement housing, and assistance to small businesses and nonprofits.

The state is currently creating an application process, and the funds will not be available until after April 2009.

A different kind of flood cleanup help also is coming to the city of Cedar Rapids. The University of Iowa is organizing an alternative spring break service project to do post-flood cleanup in Cedar Rapids, joining hundreds of volunteers from high schools, colleges and church groups across Iowa and the nation.

Hundreds of homes in Cedar Rapids remain in poor condition after the floods so the volunteers will clean and refurbish these structures over spring break next month.

Volunteers will be assigned to work in groups of up to 10 in flood-affected areas of Cedar Rapids, said Sue Driscoll of the United Way of Eastern Iowa, who is coordinating several of the flood clean-up projects.

Driscoll said she expects help from the UI College of Law, Iowa State University, and Grinnell High School in Iowa, as well as groups from Scranton, Pennsylvania, and Stout, Wisconsin.

Among those planning to assist in the cleanup are University of Iowa President Sally Mason and her husband, Ken, as well as Tom Rocklin, interim vice president for student services and dean of students.

Mason said, “My husband Ken and I very much look forward to helping our neighbors in Cedar Rapids who were affected by last year’s flood. I encourage members of the UI community to spend a little or a lot of time over spring break helping people get back on their feet in this important way.”

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DES MOINES, Iowa, October 7, 2008 (ENS) – “My family and I are not flood victims but flood victors,” blogged one Cedar Rapids man. “We refuse to let this flood victimize us. As many who returned to their homes that were flooded, we found an awful mess and stench. Mixture of home furnishings, belongings, sewer backup and mud from the river water,” he wrote, thanking church and community friends for their help in cleaning and salvaging, and providing hot meals during the ordeal.

More than 4,000 homes in Cedar Rapids were evacuated when the Cedar River overflowed its banks in mid-June. At least that blogger had a home to return to, but others were not so fortunate. Many had to rely on housing provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

As of October 1, all Iowans affected by this year’s storms, tornadoes and floods had been placed in FEMA temporary housing, and now the focus is shifting to long-range recovery.

This week the Rebuild Iowa Advisory Commission resumed meetings to prepare for its second report to Governor Chet Culver that will outline the commission’s long-term vision for rebuilding a safer, stronger and better Iowa. It will be submitted to the governor no later than November 17.

The commission’s first report, issued September 2, identified the critical importance of unmet housing and business needs.

It was used to develop the two new Jumpstart Iowa housing and economic development programs providing $40 million to help address the state’s immediate needs until federal funds become available.

Applications for the small business program became available September 30. The program makes $20 million in forgivable loans available to small business owners, who must reopen within 12 months from the time their Jumpstart applications are approved. Funding for homeowners is now being distributed.

Governor Culver said, “Money is going out the door as we speak, and these dollars will play a vital role in helping Iowans get back on their feet.”

On Friday, the governor was in Washington, DC, meeting with Bush administration officials on the latest round of disaster aid, which was signed into law last week.

The $23 billion federal measure included $6.5 billion for Community Development Block Grants for states to recover from the natural resource disasters this year – hurricanes, floods and tornadoes.

Flood debris on the curb in Cedar
Rapids, Iowa (Photo courtesy Linn
County Democrats)

The governor pressed for more federal funding for Iowa’s unmet needs. “Because of the large number of Iowans impacted by our floods and tornadoes, government bureaucracy cannot stand in the way of needed help,” said Culver. “I asked our federal leaders to be flexible and responsive in order to put the needs of people who have suffered first and foremost.”

Culver welcomed the $700 billion federal economic rescue package enacted Friday. “It is important that credit continues to be available for small businesses to meet their payrolls, families to afford their homes, and students to pay for their college education,” he said. “The financial package approved by Congress is about Main Street, not just Wall Street, and that will make a difference for hard-working Iowans statewide.”

“I am also pleased the legislation included measures to extend the wind production tax credit, which is vital to continuing Iowa’s leadership in creating new jobs and economic opportunities through wind energy production,” the governor said.

On Monday, Culver announced a new Green Iowa initiative that will be carried out in cooperation with the federally funded AmeriCorps.

The mission of this new program is to assess energy saving needs in communities and provide energy saving education and service through community outreach.

“AmeriCorps members are tackling our toughest problems, strengthening our communities, and improving the civic life of our state,” said the governor. “They have played an important role in helping Iowans recover from this year’s natural disasters, and their work continues through this innovative, new program.”

Described as a domestic Peace Corps, AmeriCorps is a federally funded program that enables Americans age 17 and over to commit time to service designed to meet community needs. In exchange for one year of service, AmeriCorps members receive a living allowance of at least $12,000 annually and an education award to help finance their college education, vocational training, or to pay back qualified student loans.

The Green Iowa Corps will be managed by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources through a combination of funding from AmeriCorps, the Iowa Commission on Volunteer Service and the Iowa Power Fund.

The DNR is seeking lead organizations for projects in two regions hit by flooding this spring and summer. One team will be located in Linn and Johnson counties in the eastern part of the state, where flooding devastated the communities of Cedar Rapids, Palo and Iowa City.

The other team will work in Black Hawk, Bremer and Butler counties, also affected by flooding.

The 56 Green Iowa Corps positions opening up to fill the new energy unit are in addition to the current 52 DNR AmeriCorps positions in conservation education, forestry, land management, and wildlife.

Project sponsor site organization and member application information is online at: www.iowadnr.gov.

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DES MOINES, Iowa, July 10, 2008 (ENS) – As he does his job of helping Iowans clean up and recover from the disastrous June floods, Governor Chet Culver is already thinking ahead to preventing the next flood emergency.

In a webcast interview with the Editorial Board of the “Des Moines Register” newspaper today, the governor said, “We’re going to have limited resources and every penny is going to be precious.”

“Let’s take steps right now to prevent devastation and destruction when the next floods hit the state,” Culver said.

Iowa Governor Chet Culver, left, and
Lt. Governor Patty Judge on their
webcast from the Des Moines Register.

Iowa rivers, swollen with rain, overflowed from June 8 to July 1, washing out everything in their path – roads, railroad bridges, power lines, crops, businesses, thousands of homes, and many public buildings.

In Cedar Rapids, damage estimates now stand at over $1 billion. About 1,300 blocks, including most of downtown, were flooded, with 3,900 homes affected.

Cedar Rapids City Manager Jim Prosser told the City Council Wednesday that the city will seek federal funds immediately to help cover the estimated $500 million recovery costs and $810 million costs to erect levees and floodwalls and possibly buy out properties in an attempt at prevention of future damages.

When the Iowa River topped its banks and inundated the University of Iowa’s campus, it caused damages worth at least $232 million, the university said Tuesday in a report to the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

To lead disaster recovery efforts, in June Governor Culver established by executive order the 15 member Rebuild Iowa Advisory Commission, which is a joint effort between the Iowa Legislature and executive branch.

Major General Ron Dardis of the Iowa National Guard heads the commission, which is now out learning about the needs of the flooded communities first-hand. Its initial report is expected in mid-August.

On the webcast this morning the governor thanked Iowans who have helped financially, including the Des Moines Register and said he has seen “an amazing outpouring of generosity from businesses” locally, across the country and around the world.

Culver says his office will be contacting people across the country who may be able to help raise funds for recovery. “We will engage foundations, Gates, Rockefeller,” he said.

U.S. Senator Tom Harkin of Iowa said today that he will seek to pass two more disaster assistance bills to help Iowa recover. Harkin is seeking more precise assessments of damage from state and local officials so that he will have a bottom line to propose.

Meanwhile, the ING Foundation today announced it is contributing $1 million to the Greater Des Moines Community Foundation for Embrace Iowa – the 2008 Iowa Disaster Fund to support flood relief efforts.

The ING Foundation is the charitable arm of the financial services company ING, a global financial institution of Dutch origin.

“The flooding has been devastating to the people in the Midwest,” said Rhonda Mims, president of the ING Foundation. “ING has strong ties to the Des Moines community, and we have a responsibility to help empower the communities in which we have business operations and our employees live. This contribution will benefit Iowans who have experienced significant hardship and help them to recover, rebuild and strengthen the area.”

Governor Chet Culver meets with
Iowans affected by the floods.
June 16, 2008 (Photo
courtesy FEMA)

Embrace Iowa [www.desmoinesfoundation.org] was launched with close to $2 million in contributions from Des Moines individuals and business organizations. Governor Culver today said that the Embrace Iowa website can help with unmet needs after federal, state programs are exhausted.

The Best Buy retail store chain is offering to collect and recycle thousands of consumer electronic goods, or e-goods, that were ruined by the Iowa floods.

An official partner of the U.S. EPA’s Plug-In To eCycling program since 2006, Best Buy has contracted with the Materials Processing Corp., which will recycle 100 percent of all e-goods collected from Iowa’s flooded areas.

The EPA says 5,544 pieces of electronic equipment will be put on 250 pallets for transportation to processing facilities in Egan, Minnesota. Six semi-trucks will be used to transport the damaged materials collected from several Iowa cities.

Since June 22, EPA Region 7 on-scene coordinators have been collecting household hazardous wastes, orphan containers, white goods and e-goods. They have collected some 107,200 pieces of household hazardous waste.

Best Buy’s activities in support of the flood cleanup are at no cost to the federal government. They also reduce costs for disposal because the collected e-goods will not be taken to landfills.

On the webcast, Lt. Governor Patty Judge paid tribute to the Iowa spirit, saying, “Iowans are extremely resilient people. But it’s now up to us to figure out what we can contribute, what the federal government can do and go to local people to find out what they need.”

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DES MOINES, Iowa, June 17, 2008 (ENS) – Raw sewage is flowing into rivers and streams across central and eastern Iowa as one after another wastewater facilities are inundated by the record floods that have swept the state during the past two weeks.

Livestock manure is also part of the nasty mix, along with spilled fuel and chemicals, all heading to the flooding Mississippi River and down to the Gulf of Mexico.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is warning people to avoid contact with floodwater that may be contaminated with sewage or hazardous substances because exposure to the waste could transmit intestinal illnesses and skin infections.

Do not wade, swim, or enter floodwaters and immediately wash hands and bare skin that comes in contact with floodwater with soap and hot water, health officials warn.

It could be weeks before hundreds of damaged sewage treatment plants are operating again, say officials with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources.

Flooded road north of Vinton, Iowa
(Photo courtesy Iowa DOT)

In southeast Iowa, sewage plants at Keosauqua and Bonaparte are flooded, and Ottumwa is allowing some wastes to flow into streams, DNR officials said. Officials in Burlington shut down the city’s sewage treatment plant and all Burlington sewage is now entering the Mississippi River.

The rising Mississippi burst its banks Tuesday morning, breaking a levee near the village of Gulfport and forcing the closure of the Great River Bridge that connects Gulfport to Burlington, Iowa via U.S. Highway 34.

Meanwhile, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, FEMA, is planning for expected flooding in Illinois and Missouri later this week, with water and generators being pre-positioned as flood waters flow down the Mississippi River. Peak cresting along the Mississippi is expected on Thursday.

Right now, major flooding is occurring or forecast over most of Iowa, closing highways, washing out road and rail bridges, and snarling rail traffic across much of the Midwest.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has been asked by FEMA to coordinate hazardous material and oil-related response in flooded areas throughout Iowa.

The EPA will retrieve orphaned hazardous containers and drums, such as fuel and propane tanks, respond to chemical and oil releases, collect and dispose of flood-damaged household hazardous waste, and conduct monitoring and sampling of air and water. To report orphaned hazardous containers or chemical/oil releases, citizens should call the EPA Region 7 24-hour Response Line at (913) 281-0991.

President George W. Bush is scheduled to tour the flooded areas on Thursday. Speaking to reporters today, the president said he wants to ensure that Congress appropriates enough money to cover this emergency and any others that might arise before the end of the year. The Atlantic hurricane season is just two weeks old, and will not end until November 30.

Floodwaters overtake the Iowa town of Columbus
Junction (Photo courtesy Iowa DOT)

For all the thousands of people who have lost their homes to the flooding, the president said he asked Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff to set up a housing task force to assist them.

“I fully understand people are upset when they lose their home,” said President Bush. “A person’s home is their most valued possession. And we want to work with state and local folks to have a clear strategy to help people find – get back into a place that – where they can live.”

“I, unfortunately, have been to too many disasters as President. But one thing I’ve always learned is that the American citizen can overcome these disasters,” said Bush. “And life, while it may seem dim at this point in time, can always be better because of the resiliency and care of our citizens.”

Speaking to reporters on his plane today, presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Illinois Senator Barack Obama said, “Thank goodness that we didn’t see significant casualties, but in terms of the economic losses in that state and the prospects of rebuilding, it is mind boggling. You’ve got the second largest city in Iowa that is gonna be under water for at least another four, five days. You have three million acres of corn that are effectively destroyed, losses are going to be in the tens of billions of dollars potentially and, we’re not done.”

“We’re gonna be seeing problems spill over as the Mississippi rises, it’s about to crest,” Obama said. “I was in Quincy, I think you joined me this weekend, to fill some sand bags and get an assessment of what’s going on there. Burlington along the Mississippi River, some of the river towns in Missouri are all gonna be impacted by this, and so I just wanted to assure [Iowa] Governor [Chet] Culver that we’re gonna do everything we can to get aid there rapidly.”

Presumptive Republican presidential nominee Arizona Senator John McCain said only, “Our thoughts and prayers go out to all those impacted by the flooding throughout the Midwest. Cindy and I would like to extend our sympathies to all those who have lost loved ones, and stand ready to help those in the Midwest to recover and rebuild.”

During the past two weeks over 10 inches of rain have fallen in the vicinity of Des Moines, Iowa, and over large areas of northeastern Iowa, southern Wisconsin and west central Lower Michigan, eight inches more than normal, according to the National Weather Service.

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