Ferndale Road flooding
Flooding in Acme community
South Fork Nooksack River farmland
Fish Camp Community Workshop
Floodplains by Design is a public-private partnership working to reduce flood risk, restore habitat, and create naturally resilient communities along Washington’s major rivers . Funding from Washington State supports large-scale, multiple-benefit projects through the Department of Ecology’s Floodplains by Design grant program. The Floodplains by Design approach is locally-driven and based on collaboration and partnership to find solutions that work for all. It’s a new way to think about floodplains and how to manage them.
Visit the Floodplains by Design website to learn more. Watch this short video highlighting Floodplains by Design projects across the state.
The Nooksack River: Floodplains that Work is the name of our community-driven Floodplains by Design approach to managing the Nooksack River floodplain. The Whatcom County Flood Control Zone District is leading this effort, bringing diverse interests together to find mutually agreeable solutions that work for the community and achieve project goals to:
Whatcom County is seeking $6.5 million in funding for the Nooksack River: Floodplains that Work Phase 2 in the 2021-2023 Washington State budget. Phase 2 builds on work currently underway in Phase 1. The county received over $6 million from a Floodplains by Design grant in 2019 to fund Phase 1 projects with a $1.5 million (20%) local funding match from the Flood Control Zone District. The Floodplains by Design grant funding allows the county to develop and implement integrated floodplain management projects at a scale that is not possible with local funding alone.
Paula Harris, P.E.
River and Flood Engineering Manager
pharris@co.whatcom.wa.us
(360) 778-6230