The Great Lakes Water Authority (GLWA) is pairing up with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to launch a multi-year study to improve flood resiliency in Southeast Michigan. Focus areas will include flooding reduction and enhancements to existing infrastructure, with financial commitments for the study totaling $500,000 for this fiscal year and an anticipated $600,000 for the next. Cognizant of the severe weather events that have beleaguered the region, and the nation—GLWA's Chief Executive Officer, Suzanne R. Coffey underscored the urgency: "The extreme rain events we continue to see in southeast Michigan, as well as across the United States and the world are real-life examples of the devastating impacts that climate impacts are having on people and the communities in our region," as reported by The Detroit News.
Climate conditions have resulted in heightened precipitation levels across the Great Lakes area, increasing by 16% since 1951, while extreme precipitation events surged by 37%. Further, an analysis by GLISA, a collaboration involving Michigan State University, University of Michigan, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, suggests these trends are expected to persist or intensify by the century's end. To kick off this endeavor aimed at mitigating such risks, a signing ceremony was held yesterday, solidifying the partnership, and echoing the Army Corps' commitment to engaging with the community in the affected counties, as noted by ClickOnDetroit.
In an unprecedented bid to avert future flooding, the GLWA and the Army Corps intend to solicit federal and non-federal funding following the completion of the study, which is set to draw upon various pieces of feedback. Susan Rusinowski, the Army Corps' lead planner for the study told The Detroit News, "Addressing flooding in southeast Michigan is important to so many people in our region, given the damages and impacts communities have faced over the last decade."
With its infrastructure strained by climate change and aged systems, the GLWA is also independently advancing projects to buttress its current capacities. As part of the process, solutions may include constructing additional pipelines, retention basins, and leveraging green infrastructure. According to a michiganpublic report, CEO Coffey stated, "We are continuing to do all that we're doing to make our system resilient. This is about what's next." In light of the devastating floods of 2021, where parts of the region received as much as eight inches of rain in just 24 hours, yielding presidential disaster declarations, the need for a strategic, more robust approach to flood management appears unequivocally clear.
This partnership initiative arrives on the heels of assessments that have underscored the vulnerable state of the GLWA's current wastewater systems during extreme weather events. Todd King, GLWA System Resiliency Officer accentuated the significance of the study in bolstering regional flood resilience: "It's an exciting opportunity for us to partner with the highly skilled and knowledgeable professionals at the USACE to develop comprehensive solutions that will help the region build flood resiliency and protect the communities we serve," he conveyed in a statement obtained by The Detroit News.
