Floodplain Management Association held their annual conference in Long Beach last week. The Central Valley Flood Protection Plan 2017 Update won an FMA award for Excellence, which was presented on Wednesday, September 6, 2017. The FMA Award for Excellence seeks to find and recognize outstanding floodplain management projects, programs and/or activities. Eligible entries include local, State and national government programs, as well as private consulting engineering firms. Winners epitomize the best in floodplain management. On hand to accept the Award were Michael Mierzwa, Flood Planning Office Chief at DWR, Board President Bill Edgar, Board Secretary Jane Dolan and Board Executive Officer Leslie Gallagher.
Board Members and staff members also participated in the conference. Board President Bill Edgar provided opening remarks and was a panelist for the Central Valley Flood Protection Plan session, and Board Secretary Jane Dolan participated as a panelist for Realizing Efficiencies for Flood Projects and O&M through Programmatic Permitting.
CVFPB FMA Conference Participation:
Board President Bill Edgar participated in several panels, including:
- The Central Valley Flood Protection Plan: Moving from the 2017 CVFPP Update to the 2022 Update and Beyond. The Moderator for this program was the Board’s new Acting Chief Engineer Mary Jimenez. Panelists included Romain Maendly, Anthony Deus and Christopher Williams from DWR.
- Statewide Flood Planning – Investing in California’s Flood Future. Bill provided opening remarks, insight and experiences with the CVFPP adoption process. DWR Flood Planning Office Chief Mike Mierzwa and DWR’s Jason Sidley also participated.
- CVFPB: Flood Projects – Continuing the Discussion. Other panelists included Mike Inamine, executive director of the Sutter Butte Flood Control Agency, Robin Brewer, Assistant Chief Counsel at DWR, Paul Brunner, executive director of the Three Rivers Levee Improvement Agency and Betty Andrews, Principal at Environmental Science Associates.
Board Secretary Jane Dolan drew upon her years of experience as a Butte County Supervisor as well as her State experience when she participated in a panel on regional permitting entitled, Realizing Efficiencies for Flood Projects and O&M through Programmatic Permitting. Other participants included moderator Debra Bishop from H.T. Harvey & Associates and panelists Sunny Williams, Santa Clara Valley Water District, Bonnie Robergs, USACE, Los Angeles District, Paul Brunner, TRLIA, and Thomas Fayram, Santa Barbara County Public Works Dept.
Andrea Buckley, CVFPB Environmental Services and Land Management Branch Chief, was a panelist on the Sacramento area Southport Setback Levee Project – Multi-Benefit Project Delivery Model or Outlier? Other panelists included Greg Fabun, WSAFCA, Derek Larsen, Larson Wurzel Associates, John Cain, American Rivers, and Howard Browne, National Marine Fisheries Service.
CVFPB staff Engineer Alison Tang (who has since left the Board) was a panelist for: Trials and Tribulation of System-Wide Improvement Frameworks – Are They Worth It? The Moderator was Claire Marie Turner, MBK, and panelists were Tina Anderson, MBK, Alison Tang, CVFPB, and Brigid Burdock, USACE Sacramento District.
Jane, Bill and CVFPB Executive Officer Leslie Gallagher also attended the Silver Jackets Team session and meeting on Friday morning with Mary Jimenez. For more information about the Silver Jackets Team session, please watch Item 8E from our September 22, 2017 business meeting.