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A draft 2022 Update to the Central Valley Flood Protection Plan (CVFPP) was released by the California Department of Water Resources this week. The plan is California’s strategic framework for reducing flood risk in the Central Valley, which has among the highest flood risk in the nation.
“The 2022 plan update focuses on creating a flood management system that is resilient to our changing climate,” said DWR Director Karla Nemeth. “This year we saw record rainfall in October and record snowfall in December, only to have it followed by record dry conditions from January to March. We need to be prepared for flooding to happen at any time, whether we’re in a drought or not.”
The CVFPP now goes to the Central Valley Flood Protection Board (CVFPB), which is responsible for adopting the plan and will host public hearings and review written comments to inform any changes to the public draft prior to adoption. The public comment period is open through June 6, 2022.
“It’s been a decade since the Board adopted the first Central Valley Flood Protection Plan,” said Jane Dolan, President of the Central Valley Flood Protection Board. “Since 2007, California has invested $3.6 billion in managing floods, with another $500 million recently committed. We’ve reduced flood risk, but we must double down. It’s not a matter of ‘if’ but ‘when’ we experience extreme flood, just as climate change has pushed us beyond the historical record on drought.”
The Central Valley Flood Protection Board will host three public hearings to receive comments.
May 12 from 6 p.m. – 8 p.m. (Stockton)
Robert Cabral Agriculture Center, Assembly Rooms 2 & 3
2101 E Earhart Ave Stockton, CA 95206
May 16 from 10 a.m. – 12 p.m. (Sacramento)
California Natural Resources Agency
First floor auditorium
715 P Street Sacramento, CA
May 19 from 6 p.m. – 8 p.m. (Virtual)
Virtual meeting https://www.cvfpbfloodplanhearings2022.org/
For more information and to access the public draft, visit https://water.ca.gov/Programs/Flood-Management/Flood-Planning-and-Studies/Central-Valley-Flood-Protection-Plan.
