Although county officials agree with the
San Mateo County Civil Grand Jury that they need to beef up their efforts to
combat sea level rise, they are not sure yet exactly how to approach it.
The grand jury recommends that the
county, each city in the county and relevant local special agencies should
identify a single organization, such as a new joint powers authority or an
expanded Flood Control District, to undertake countywide sea level rise
planning.
The San Mateo County Flood Control
District only governs Colma, San Bruno and San Francisquito creeks, however.
The district also generates little tax
revenue from Colma and San Bruno residents. About $40 million in improvements
to San Francisquito Creek in Menlo Park and East Palo Alto is being mostly paid
for by the Santa Clara Valley Water District.
The grand jury issued the report
“Flooding Ahead: Planning for Sea Level Rise” in June.
The report found that the county is at
severe risk for flooding of up to 65 inches by the end of the century and that
it is a threat to the entire county especially considering it nor any of its
cities has adopted sea level rise projections or maps for specific land use planning
purposes.
In a response letter to the grand jury,
county officials agree with most of the recommendations in the report although
they say some need more analysis, such as creating a single entity to lead sea
level rise planning.
The grand jury also found that the county
needs to better educate the public on the threats of sea level rise.
Much of the public education work to date
has been spearheaded by Supervisor Dave Pine and his office in partnership with
the offices of U.S. Rep. Jackie Speier, D-San Mateo, and Assemblyman Rich
Gordon, D-Menlo Park.
The three have held three public forums
in the last year or so and the county has since hired a new climate resiliency
specialist to coordinate its sea level rise planning and outreach efforts,
according to a report to the Board of Supervisors by County Manager John
Maltbie.
By the end of this year, the county
suggests the formation of a stakeholder committee comprised of city officials,
the Flood Control District and City/County Association of Governments of San
Mateo County to study the grand jury’s recommendation to form a countywide sea
level rise organization.
The grand jury also recommends that the
single organization be sustainably funded through member contributions and even
corporations threatened by sea level rise.
San Mateo County is particularly susceptible
to the impacts of sea level rise — more so than any other county in the state,
according to the grand jury report. According to the report, about 120,000
residents are at risk of losing their homes. Nearly $24 billion worth of
infrastructure including six wastewater treatment plants and three airports are
in potential flood zones and hundreds of miles of roads could be gravely
impacted by the end of the century, the report said.
More levee construction will likely be
needed to prevent flooding but other solutions would be less costly, Pine said
when the grand jury report was first released.
Although rising seas may not be a reality
for many decades, the risk of severe flooding in the county is a reality now,
Pine said Wednesday.
The county has put its own resources
toward the problem but raising local money to combat sea level rise will
require a more formal structure, Pine said.
“When we think about flooding and sea
level rise, the challenge is to reduce risks and there are a number of things
we can do to reduce risks that don’t require major construction projects. For
example, I think it makes sense for us to adopt zoning and building rules for
the Bayshore that would cover new construction so that it’s more resistant to
flooding. There are certain things that we could tackle that aren’t as
financially daunting as building big levees,” Pine previously told the Daily
Journal.
Federal, state, county and local
officials did gather Friday, Aug. 29, to discuss a levee project in Foster City
aimed at adapting to sea level rise. The catalyst of that multi-million effort
is to meet the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s standards for a
100-year-storm and prevent nearly 9,000 Foster City properties from being
subject to costly flood insurance. FEMA’s pending coastal flood map indicates
the city’s nearly 8-mile levee system is no longer adequate and officials are
moving toward extensive upgrades estimated to cost between $35 million and $65
million.
The county is required to reply to the
grand jury although it is not required to follow any of its recommendations.
September
3, 2015
The
Daily Journal
By Bill
Silverfarb
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