Large-scale flood study in metro Detroit begins amid extreme weather
DETROIT, MICHIGAN, UNITED STATES - 2021/06/28: Detroit residents observe a stretch of I-94 that is still under several feet of water following heavy weekend rains which flooded parts of Metro Detroit.After a weekend of heavy storms beginning on Frida
DETROIT (FOX 2) - The agency that regulates metro Detroit's water supply has begun what officials are calling an "unprecedented" study on flooding in the region and how it can best prepare for the 100-year and 500-year storms that have soaked Michigan in the past.
In the wake of historic flooding in the Southeast U.S., including in western North Carolina where Hurricane Helene brought "biblical" rainfall, the Great Lakes Water Authority says it has partnered with the U.S. Army Crops of Engineers to come up with solutions to future high water events.
"Although we're never going to be able to handle a huge disaster like what we just saw, we want to be better, we want to be tougher, we want to make sure the system is as prepared as it can be," said Suzanne Coffey the CEO of GLWA.
Announcing the partnership this week, Coffey said she got the idea Southeast Michigan needed a regional plan for flood events after storms in 2021 left highways and homes underwater.
She argued the investments that GLWA uses to mitigate future natural disasters and other extreme weather wrought by climate change will be around for the next 75–100 years - and will need the input of all stakeholders to best map out how those investments should be added to the region.
"Affordability for us means when we invest in assets - because that money is scarce - that it is the right next investment," she said.
The study will take advantage of the Army Corps' engineers, who have experience in mitigating flooding and are knowledgeable in the hydrology of the Great Lakes.
Research will take years and begin with community meetings to best understand the needs of residents. The first year will be funded with $500,000 in funding already approved from Congress and $600,000 for the second year.
"This project - it's going to succeed when we work together," said Lt. Col. Wallace Bandeff, with the army corps.
The breadth of the study is due to the complexity of the problem: managing the watersheds of the Detroit River, Clinton River, Rouge River, as well as Lake St. Clair.
Michigan's artificial shorelines are making its lakes sick. Can they be healed?
Michigan's lakes have been severed from the landscape as the state's shorelines are increasingly developed. The consequences stretch beyond the beach.