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Flood Control = Keeping flood waters away from people AND keeping people away from floodwaters. There are no greater challenges for our Natural Resources District than flood prevention and control. Many cities, towns and lowland agriculture in our NRD are susceptible to occasional, yet severe flood damage. Our district is bordered on the east by the mighty Missouri River and on the south and west by the Platte and Elkhorn Rivers. The Papio-Missouri River NRD also includes the entire Papillion Creek watershed, one of the most flash flood-prone areas in the State of Nebraska. A comprehensive approach to flood prevention and control is both STRUCTURAL (keeping flood waters away from people and property) and NONSTRUCTURAL (keeping people and property away from flood waters) Structural Flood Control Keeping the Missouri, Platte, and Elkhorn Rivers plus the Big, Little and West Branches of the Papillion Creek away from our doorsteps often requires the construction of dams, levees, or channel improvement projects. Often working hand in hand with the US Army Corps of Engineers and other agencies, the NRD has sponsored and cost shared effective flood control efforts throughout the most flood - prone areas of our district. LEVEES AND CHANNEL IMPROVMENTS Levees and channel improvements increase the capacity of creeks and streams to carry floodwaters downstream while reducing damage to adjacent properties. These types of structural flood control measures are typically utilized in the lower portion of a watershed to prevent too much flood water from reaching the same place at the same time. The Papio-Missouri River NRD currently owns and/or operates more than 80 miles of levees and channel improvements. Click to view a map of the levees and channel improvements which protect the Omaha area. Also, below is a description of currently ongoing levee and channel improvement projects undertaken by the NRD. WEST PAPILLION CREEK FLOOD CONTROL PROJECT A levee and channel widening project on the West Papillion Creek in Sarpy County, from approximately 36th Street to 96th Street, was completed in 2001, and has already provided flood protection to the City of Papillion. A new channel improvement is planned to reduce flooding from 96th Street to Giles Road and is currently being constructed by the NRD.
BIG PAPIO CREEK FLOOD CONTROL CHANNEL PROJECT Completed from West Center Road downstream to "L" St. at a cost of $13 million, this cooperative project with the Corps has greatly reduced the flood potential through one of Omaha's most flood-prone areas. In addition, the NRD has extended this project upstream by improving the section of the Big Papio Creek from West Center Street north to Blondo Street. Completion of this flood control improvement and adjacent hiking/biking trail was accomplished in 2002 at a total cost near $6 million.
PLATTE RIVER LEVEES The 9.5-mile Union Dike was rehabilitated by the NRD and completed in 1991. Increased protection from ice jam and open-water floods was achieved for the City of Valley and thousands of acres of prime farmland along the river in western Douglas County. Downstream, the 2.5-mile No-Name Dike was completed in 1993. Both projects included wetland wildlife enhancement and tree plantings. After the 1993 floods, the river reach upstream of Highway 6 in Sarpy and Saunders County was identified for a levee improvement project by the Corps of Engineers and the adjoining NRDs. This 19 million dollar project includes the construction or improvement of nearly 16 miles of levees on both sides of the river, as well as the elevating or removal of impacted cabins. Environmental and wildlife enhancements are also being made as part of the project. OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE All flood control structures require continuing maintenance to remain safe and effective. Unbridled flood waters possess a destructive power unmatched by other forces in nature. Containing high water flows can best be accomplished with often-inspected, well maintained flood control structures. Our crews now inspect and maintain over 80 miles of flood control improvements. DAMS AND RESERVOIRS Flood control reservoirs typically store flood waters in the upper reaches of a watershed and then release them slowly to reduce runoff and change the timing of peak flood flows. These dams and reservoirs provide multiple benefits; including water quality protection, wildlife habitat, and recreational opportunities. Structural Flood Control dams and reservoirs are used throughout the Papio-Missouri River NRD. The District currently maintains over 70 structures in six counties, and more and more dams are proposed and built each year. Below are examples of ongoing NRD dam and reservoir projects. PAPILLION CREEK WATERSHED Similar to Lincoln and the Salt Creek Watershed, the Corps of Engineers devised a plan for flood control reservoirs in the Papillion Creek Watershed after devastating floods in 1964 and '65. The plan included 21 proposed dams throughout the 400 square mile watershed. Of these 21, 5 were built by the Corps before the project was deauthorized due to heavy landowner opposition in the mid-1980s. These 5 are known today as Cunningham, Zorinsky, Standing Bear, Candlewood, and Wehrspann Lakes. In addition, 2 other dams have been completed by the Papio-Missouri River NRD, one with public cost-share and one with private development cost-share. Today, these projects are known as Walnut Creek just south of Papillion and Newport Landing just west of Bennington. The remaining 14 dams were reevaluated in a 2004 report titled "Multi-Reservoir Analysis Papillion Creek Watershed". For a look at the report and detailed maps of each potential dam and reservoir, CLICK HERE. As part of this project, the District is currently working with a developer through a public/private partnership to implement Dam Site 13, located just west of 192nd Street between West Dodge Rd and the new Blondo St. At a total project cost around $6.4 million, the construction of Dam Site 13 is scheduled to be completed by the fall of 2006. Following completion of the dam, the City of Omaha is planning to develop a large regional park along the southern shoreline of the lake and northwest of 192nd and West Dodge.
Other efforts to detain flood waters in the Papillion Creek Watershed include the Shadow Lake and Midlands Lake project just south of Highway 370 in Papillion, between 72nd and 84th Streets. By working in unison, these two reservoirs will reduce flooding on Midlands Creek and improve water quality. PIGEON JONES CREEK WATERSHED Located entirely in Dakota County, the Pigeon-Jones Creek Watershed flows out of the bluffs near Hubbard, Nebraska and then across the floodplain into the Missouri River. Controlling floodwaters and sediment from these steep and erosive bluffs is an important conservation effort. Currently, several structures have been completed, however, one of the dams remaining is only a mile southeast of Hubbard and is being planned as a multi-purpose reservoir to control flooding, detain sediment, and provide recreation. Nonstructural Flood Control (Keeping people away from floodwaters) Historically, our nation's floodplains have been places for commerce and settlement. These broad, flat areas of land adjacent to our rivers and streams were naturally suited for building and travel. However, these same areas are also NATURALLY prone to flooding - nature's way of reclaiming the river's or stream's total environment. There are numerous Nonstructural Flood Control programs utilized by the NRD, see below: FLOODPLAIN MANAGEMENT Technical Assistance is available through our NRD to cities, counties, other zoning jurisdictions, developers, insurance agents and individuals seeking flood hazard information and recommendations on proper uses of our floodplains. More information on floodplain management throughout Nebraska can be found at http://www.dnr.ne.gov/floodplain/floodplain.html. New Flood Insurance Rate Maps issued in December of 2005 for Douglas and Sarpy County are available for viewing at Sarpy County GIS Viewer: http://sarpy.com/gisviewer/ Douglas County GIS Viewer: http://www.dogis.org/ NRD Map Maker: http://www.nrdmapmaker.org/mapmaker/viewer.htm FEMA Flood Map Viewer: Flood Insurance Rate Maps for other counties can be found at: FEMA Map Service Center: ELECTRONIC FLOOD WARNING SYSTEM As part of the Big Papio Channel Project, a Flood Warning System for the Papio Creek Watershed was installed in 1994 to better monitor rainfall and high water in the Big, Little and West Papio Creeks. Now, up to the minute readings along streams are monitored by the National Weather Service and aid in flood detection and early warning. To view these readings, please visit http://www.crh.noaa.gov/oax/alert/papio-sites.php. ICE JAM MONITORING AND REMOVAL Every winter, Papio NRD staff joins several other agencies across the state to monitor ice jam conditions along the Platte and Elkhorn Rivers at key locations. This monitoring produces weekly reports during the months from December to March which can be viewed at http://dnrdata.dnr.ne.gov/Icejam/index.asp
In the event an ice jam occurs, the Papio NRD is coordination with other local, state, and federal agencies may elect to use explosives to try and break-up the ice jam. This method has been effective on ice jams in 1999 and 1997 and has prevented flood damage like that experienced in 1993. FLOODWAY PURCHASE The Floodway Purchase program, begun in 1990, reduces future flood damage through the purchase of land and property from willing sellers. This effort has already been highly successful in removing flood-prone buildings along the Missouri River south of Bellevue, NE. Once structures have been removed, the area is allowed to return to its natural floodplain functions. Over 100 structures along the Missouri River in Sarpy County have been removed as shown in the map below. In addition, the City of Omaha in cooperation with the NRD has acquired several flood-prone properties in South Omaha and also along Cole Creek.
FLOOD MITIGATION PLANNING AND MAPPING ASSISTANCE Being prepared for floods also means taking precautions ahead of time to prevent flood damage. However, most communities today don't have plans for such precautions. That is why the NRD has cost-shared with several communities throughout the District to study and prepare plans which will help them improve drainage-ways, remove flood-prone properties, or simply educate their citizens. During the last year, the NRD worked with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the State Department of Natural Resources to prepare a comprehensive All-Hazards plan for the entire District, including separate reports for each community and county. In addition to these plans, the NRD has assisted Tekamah and Blair to update their floodplain studies and maps. Most recently, the USGS and NRD are working together with Homer to determine updated flood hazards. FLOOD MAP MODERNIZATION The Papio NRD has also been working with FEMA as part of their Map Modernization Program to update Flood Insurance Studies using federal grant funds. This partnership combines local knowledge and experience with current national standards to produce highly accurate floodplain maps. Updating floodplain maps for the West Papillion Creek and its tributaries is the NRD's first project due to the need for updated maps to manage the intense development occurring in northern Sarpy County and western Omaha. For a fact sheet explaining the project, CLICK HERE. After more than 2 years of modeling, draft floodplain maps have been submitted to FEMA for preliminary mapping and will soon be made available to the public for review. For more information on FLOOD CONTROL PROJECTS contact:Paul Woodward, Water Resources Engineer, 402-444-6222 pwoodward@papionrd.org or Martin Cleveland, Construction Engineer: 402-444-6222 or mcleveland@papionrd.org |
