California Department of Water Resources Floodplain Mapping Contract



California Department of Water Resources (DWR) web site

Location:

California

Client:

California Department of Water Resources (DWR)

PBS&J is providing floodplain management and mapping services to California’s Department of Water Resources (DWR). Tasks are designed to improve statewide floodplain management practices, with much of the initial work focused on geographic information system (GIS) development and implementation.

PBS&J has identified 13,000 miles of levees throughout California and developed a spatial inventory of flood control features. A database—the first of its kind— is being developed. to support spatial location, maintenance inspections, engineering, and planning information in a single location.

This activity requires interviewing federal, state, and local agencies involved with floodplain and levee maintenance. PBS&J is working with DWR, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) to incorporate design elements from USACE’s data standard, DWR’s Levee Information System, and FEMA’s Federal Levee Information System (FLIS).

Building on FLIS, the database not only stores data, but is also designed for ease of use by a wide range of users. Based on the latest geodatabase design technologies, the levee database promotes integration with other applications. It also enhances the management of maintenance programs for this critical infrastructure by facilitating communication between multiple organizational sectors.

Other PBS&J tasks include:

Drafting a plan to establish more accurate floodplains for the entire Central Valley.
Updating an Executive Order on Floodplain Management Practices.
Assisting unmapped, developing areas make development decisions through California’s Awareness Mapping Program.

California’s levee database represents a state-of-the-art application of GIS technology. Given the number of levees across the nation, it is projected that California’s levee database will serve as a model for other states, regions, and Cooperating Technical Partners (CTPs).