Among these threats is the rise of severe floods which increasingly impact Washington’s rural and urban communities, and landscapes both coastal and riverine, requiring significant investment in climate adaptation through floodplain management. In total $17.4 million of CCA funding has been allocated to Washington’s Floodplains by Design program to advance three significant projects, from Methow to Skagit Valleys, the Pacific Coast to the Columbia River estuary, reducing flood risk, making communities healthier and helping them recover faster in the face of more frequent and destructive floods. Together, these projects will reduce flood risk for 62 homes and businesses, while restoring 865 acres of floodplain, and 9.6 miles of salmon streams. These are more than statistics; these are the real-world impacts of climate adaptation.
On the Olympic coast, the Quileute Tribe is experiencing sea level rise, changes to the river and floodplain, and declining salmon populations. The Historic Oxbow Project on the Quillayute River will restore the natural bend (oxbow) of the river and create stream diversions that slow the water, diverting the path of water away from the Quileute community and enhancing habitat that is critical for salmon habitat restoration. CCA will also support the Lower Columbia Estuary Partnership, whose East Fork Lewis River Reconnection Project will protect critical infrastructure, local homes and businesses, and provide a lifeline to struggling salmon. By leveraging CCA dollars, restoration of these lands and waters will save these communities and the state nearly $122 million in prevented damages, since every $1 invested in flood-resilience saves $7 in disaster recovery (National Institute of Building Sciences 2022).
