Modern Flood Plain Management Standards Can Lessen Flood Impacts

On Jan. 27, 2022, The Pew Charitable Trusts submitted comments to the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s request for information on the National Flood Insurance Program’s (NFIP’s) flood plain management standards. Pew’s letter highlighted the need for updated regulations, policies, and programs to minimize flood impacts and reduce unsustainable development in flood-prone areas. With those goals in mind, the comments also outlined recommendations to modernize the NFIP standards, such as integrating flood-risk management into community planning and development, promoting watershed-scale approaches to reduce flooding, enhancing engagement with states, and incorporating future flood risk in land use decisions.