Drafter
Clerk 08/29/2024
Title
A MOTION directing the development of a planning process for the Lower Green River Corridor Flood Hazard Management Plan based on the Final Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement.
Body
WHEREAS, The King County Flood Control District ("District") desired to conduct a corridor-wide analysis of the cumulative impacts and benefits of possible flood reduction activity in the Lower Green River Corridor ("Corridor"), and
WHEREAS, FCD Resolution 2016-05 directed the preparation of a work plan for a Lower Green River Corridor Flood Hazard Management Plan ("Plan") and for a State Environmental Policy Act ("SEPA") Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement ("PEIS") for the Plan, and
WHEREAS, FCD Motion 18-01 initiated the planning process for the Plan in accord with SEPA requirements, and it defined alternatives and flood facility project types, and
WHEREAS, FCD Motion 20-07 (Multibenefit Motion) reaffirmed the District's commitment to integrated floodplain management and a set of multibenefits and convened a committee of governments and interested parties to advise the District on flood management on the Lower Green River. The multibenefits are as follows: equity and social justice, environmental justice, habitat protection and salmon recovery, jobs and sustainable livelihoods, open space conservation, productive and viable agriculture, recreation and other opportunities to connect people to nature, resilient communities and ecosystems, sustainable and clean water, and sustainable development, and
WHEREAS, FCD Motion 21-03 revised the name of the Plan to the "Lower Green River Corridor Flood Hazard Management Plan" and directed that the PEIS evaluate three new alternatives, and
WHEREAS, while each of the three new alternatives evaluated substantially reduce flood risk in the Lower Green River, Alternative Three, the so-called Enhanced Systematic Implementation of Multibenefits Alternative policy framework and decision making hierarchy received overwhelming support from those who commented on the Draft PEIS, and
WHEREAS, the development of the PEIS included extensive outreach to interested parties including Tribes, non-governmental organizations, and members of the community directly impacted by flooding, and
WHEREAS, FCD Motion 24-02 accepted the Final PEIS, and
WHEREAS, the District desires to create a Lower Green River Corridor Flood Hazard Management Plan and Capital Investment Strategy based on the information and analysis contained in the Final PEIS;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT MOVED BY THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS OF THE KING COUNTY FLOOD CONTROL ZONE DISTRICT:
A. The District directs the executive director to prepare a work plan and budget for a Lower Green River Corridor Flood Hazard Management Plan and Capital Investment Strategy based on information and analysis contained in Final PEIS. The planning process shall incorporate the extensive community outreach and collaboration framework used by King County in the creation of its updated Draft Flood Hazard Management Plan, including but not limited to:
1. Seeking input and advice from Tribes, jurisdictions, agencies, and community members, and other interested parties; and
2. Working with Community Navigators to increase the input from residents in the Corridor directly impacted by flooding and flood risk reduction activities.
B. The work plan shall include the topic areas of the Plan based on the information and analysis contained in the Final PEIS, including but not limited to:
1. The elements common to all PEIS alternatives
a. Actions by the District must be related to flood hazard management needs.
b. The District would continue to fulfill its duty under Chapter 86.15 RCW to plan, construct, acquire, repair, maintain and operate all necessary equipment, facilities, improvements and works to control, conserve and remove flood and storm water as well as take action necessary to protect life and property from flood water damage.
c. The District would honor and respect tribal and treaty reserved rights.
d. The District would continue to rely on a system of flood facilities that include levees, revetments, and floodwalls to protect people, jobs, and property on the Lower Green River.
e. The District would use the provisional 18,800 cfs, plus three feet of freeboard, or 500-year level of protection, to evaluate and design potential flood hazard management measures. Should the US Army Corps of Engineers adjust the 500-year flood level in the Lower Green in the future, the District would evaluate and design potential flood hazard management measures to the new flow level.
f. The District would maintain enrollment in the US Army Corps of Engineers PL 84-99 program for those facilities that are currently enrolled.
g. The District would protect and not isolate housing and neighborhoods with flood hazard management facilities.
h. The District would protect housing and community facilities used by historically disadvantaged populations (low-income and people of color).
i. The District would prioritize the design and implementation of multibenefit floodplain management projects as described in FCD Motion 20-07.
j. The District would follow the policies included in the adopted County-wide Flood Hazard Management Plan including the policy to ensure that its actions will not have an adverse flooding impact on upstream or downstream property owners.
k. The District would continuously use best available science for climate change in its flood hazard management planning, adaptive management, and facility design.
2. The District would design facilities to improve habitat and water quality (e.g., vegetation to provide shading or large woody debris) when practicable. The Plan will incorporate the decision-making hierarchy outlined in the Enhanced Systematic Implementation of Multibenefits Alternative in the PEIS as the paradigm for the District when establishing project prioritization and implementation including project design.
3. The Plan will require the District to pursue flood reduction activities and systematically pursue habitat protection and restoration while pursuing all of the multiple benefits in the Multibenefit Motion where practicable.
4. The Plan will require the District to look for opportunities to set levees and floodwalls further from the river, enhance habitat , open space, and recreation opportunities where practicable. The District will work with jurisdictions to identify areas where redevelopment might happen.
5. The Plan will require all relevant and updated scientific modelling and assessment during the implementation of District flood risk reduction activities in the Corridor including, but not limited to the effects of sea level rise due to climate change, dynamic river conditions (e.g. flows, bathymetry, and topography), overtopping and level breach scenarios, changes to the USGS gauge rating curve, and the ecological connectivity for wildlife and plants, the analysis of current hydrologic conditions as they may have changed based on the natural processes of the Green River or actions of jurisdictions or partners including WRIA 9.
6. The Plan will require the District to study protecting agricultural lands from more frequent, lower flow events while allowing inundation to occur, thereby preserving flood storage at higher flow events including the potential impacts to property, productive agricultural lands, and habitat prior to implementing a flood risk reduction project intended to protect agricultural lands.
C. The work plan and budget for a Lower Green River Corridor Flood Hazard Management
and Capital Investment Strategy shall be based on information and analysis contained in the Final PEIS shall be transmitted to the board of supervisors by October 15, 2024.