Enhancing Flood Resiliency in North Carolina: a Policy Proposal for Expanding the Flood Resiliency Blueprint Program
Year: 2026
Type: dissertation
Abstract: Inland and mountainous regions can be particularly susceptible to the impacts of flooding because certain flood effects, such as flood velocity, can be amplified by the geography of the region. Western North Carolina residents experienced historic flooding in the fall of 2024 after Hurricane Helene. Adverse health outcomes of the intense flooding brought by Helene include bodily harm and over 100 fatalities. The damage to infrastructure was also dramatic, with the flooding causing an estimated $59 billion worth of damage to the state, exposing a lack of floodplain resilience needed to resist severe economic and health impacts. After conducting a policy analysis, our team finds that it is politically feasible to help municipalities manage flood mitigation by appropriating more funds to the Flood Resiliency Blueprint Program. To sustain the program’s activities and expand its reach statewide, approximately $75 million will go towards staff, floodplain modeling, and flood resilience project grants.
DOI: 10.17615/qxmz-9j92
Author: Taylor Urban
Institution: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Language: English
Subfield: Global and Planetary Change
Field: Environmental Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
SDG: Climate action
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7155557770
Cites:
Cited by:
Related to: