Times Newsweekly: Community Headlines

City Flood Mitigation Taskforce
Reveals Results Of Its Efforts

by Sam Goldman
The city’s Flood Mitigation Task Force, created in the wake of the August 2007 flooding, released an Emergency Flood Response Plan on Monday, Apr. 28, the day after activating it for the first time.

According to a press release, the plan, created by the Office of Emergency Management, includes the coordinated dispatching of emergency response teams, targeted catch basin grate cleaning on an emergency basis, the continual monitoring of recurring flood locations throughout a heavy rain event, and enhanced data capture related to property damage following a storm.

It was activated in response to a forecast of heavy rain on Sunday, Apr. 27.

According to the OEM’s Chris Gilbride, “everything went according to plan.”

A conference call was held on that day between various city agenices regarding pre-emptive measures to thwart flooding. A decision was made that the Department of Sanitation would aid the Department of Enivronmental Protection in cleaning catch basins in flood-prone areas.

Gilbride noted that follow-up calls were exchanged beetween agencies throughout Sunday and Monday.

Future flood mitigation efforts may include the activation of Community Emergency Response Teams citywide to assess flooding damage and help residents affected by flooding.

The Plan’s unveiling was part of a press conference on Monday where the Taskforce announced a summary of its findings since being created in September 2007.

In addition to creating an emergency plan, the Taskforce was charged with creating an education and outreach plan and with identifying areas of study to target for short- and long-term solutions.

Education

To that effect, the Taskforce has created a booklet that will be given out at local community board and civic group meetings as part of the city’s Ready New York series of emergency guides.

These guides can also be obtained by calling 311 or by visiting the OEM’s website (nyc.gov/oem).

The city’s Community Assistance Unit will also be holding what were referred to as “education sessions” throughout the city at civic association meetings from now through the end of 2008.

SMSAs

Ten areas—all in Queens were labeled Stormwater Mitigation Study Areas (SMSAs) by the Taskforce.

These areas are Elmhurst, Jackson Heights, Middle Village, Woodside, the Yellowstone Boulevard corridor in Community Board 6, Queensboro Hill, Hillcrest/Utopia, Jamaica, Cambria Heights and Flushing.

To select the pilot SMSAs, the Taskforce analyzed data from the past four “major rain events” in New York City—Sept. 8, 2004; Apr. 15, 2007; July 18, 2007; and Aug. 8, 2007.

They then worked with DEP engineers to review the initial SMSAs to see whether there was already a stormwater improvement plan for these spots. If an improvement plan was already in place for a neighborhood, that area was removed from the list of prospective SMSAs.

Finally, the Taskforce worked with CAU to identify areas where residents would be unlikely to call 311 despite experiencing frequent flooding.

Among the strategies the Taskforce will implement in the SMSAs are:

• The inspection and cleaning of local catch basins and sewers. According to a press release issued on Monday, over 50 catch basins and over 20 sewer lines have been cleaned throughout the 10 SMSAs.

In addition, the city is installing more catch basins where warranted. An example that was given is the installation of 10 new catch basins along Yellowstone Boulevard.

• Planting more trees to capture stormwater. As part of the city’s MillionTreesNYC initiative, two of the SMSAs (Jamaica and Cambria Heights) have been identified as having low tree stocking levels (below 80 percent), and planting in those areas has begun.

The release stated that trees will be planted in pits designed to maximize stormwater retention.

• A study to determine whether short-term sewer projects might help SMSAs handle more stormwater. Flow monitoring equipment will be installed in various SMSAs over the coming year.

• The continued building of new or larger sewers according to drainage plans.

• The installation of high-level storm sewers, which captured excess flow through sewer lines during heavy storms, in areas where it is deemed feasible.

“One likely impact of global warming is an increase in the intensity and number of the coastal storms that often hit New York,” said Mayor Bloomberg in the Apr. 28 release. “In the wake of three severe storms that struck the city last year—one which brought our subway system to a virtual standstill—I convened an inter-agency task force to improve our city’s flood preparation and response. Modernizing our sewer infrastructure is going to take decades.

“While we’re committed to making these long-term infrastructure improvements,” he added, “there is also a lot we can do in the short term to help safeguard our city against flash flooding.”

The flooding accompanying the Aug. 8 storms was so severe that Queens and Kings counties were declared disaster areas by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Notably, the storms featured a tornado in Brooklyn’s Dyker Heights neighborhood.

The event also led to the creation of the Taskforce, which consists of members of THE OEM, the DEP, the Buildings, Parks, Transportation and Information Technology departments, the Mayor’s Community Affairs Unit and the Mayor’s Office of Operations.