Laserfiche WebLink
1 in some cases involving hundreds of acres of sensitive salmon habitat. These areas were removed <br /> 2 from the floodplain through map changes. Id. at 10. <br /> 3 NFMS also expressed concern that FEMA can take land out of the SFHA based on flood <br /> 4 control structures like levees. Id. at 10. As long as a levee meets FEMA's standards for design, <br /> 5 operation and maintenance(which generally require it to protect against the 100-year flood),FEMA <br /> 6 will"map out"the area protected by the levee from the flood zone, eliminating FEMA regulation <br /> 7 and the obligation to purchase insurance. While levees offer flood protection,they also impose a <br /> 8 range of environmental harms to aquatic habitat and hence FEMA mapping policies encourage <br /> 9 behavior that harms salmon and other species. NMFS also emphasized how out of date most Puget <br /> 10 Sound maps are and observed that map modernization efforts generally result in identification of a <br /> 11 more expansive floodplain area. Id. at 11. <br /> 12 As a result of FEMA's mapping practices, "there is an inherent incentive for property <br /> 13 owners to place sufficient fill to elevate their buildings above the[base flood elevation]. By <br /> 14 allowing individuals to remove their property from regulation by artificially filling it,FEMA is in <br /> 15 effect encouraging filling . . . ." Id. at 84; id. at 12 ("The usual purpose of placing fill is to enable <br /> 16 construction and property development"). Once property is removed from the floodplain, it <br /> 17 "become[s] available for land use development and construction that might have otherwise been <br /> 18 prohibited or constrained by community floodplain regulations,"which in turn adversely affects <br /> 19 habitat and habitat forming processes. Id. at 83. Moreover, FEMA's re-categorization of properties <br /> 20 out of the flood zone"creates a false sense of security that results in more floodplain development." <br /> 21 Id. The FEMA BiOp also concludes that FEMA's mapping creates an incentive to build, expand, <br /> 22 and replace levees and other flood control structures. Id. at 83. All of these actions damage salmon <br /> 23 habitat,by decreasing important off-channel habitat,impairing natural floodplain processes, <br /> 24 reducing flood water storage,and increasing downstream water velocities and erosion. Id. at 85. <br /> 25 <br /> 26 <br /> 27 Earthjustice <br /> PLAINTIFF'S MOTION FOR PRELIMINARY 705 Second Ave.,Suite 203 <br /> Seattle, WA 98104 <br /> 28 INJUNCTION(Case No. 2:11-cv-02044-RSM) -3- <br /> (206)343-7340 <br />