September 2011 - Parks & Recreation - 19

their former state as natural water storage areas.
As the Netherlands has turned to more
natural methods of dealing with water,
the Dutch government has reached out to
park leaders in this country to assist in addressing such water challenges as flood
control, hurricane protection, and rising
sea levels.

Missouri and Baton Rouge Make
Room for Their Rivers
William J. Bryan, Director of Missouri
State Parks, says his state has welcomed
advice from the Dutch government. The
natural solutions embraced by the Dutch
have influenced water management in
Missouri, Bryan explains. While only 10
percent of the state lies in flood-prone areas, more than half of Missouri's population lives in close proximity to either the
Missouri or Mississippi River. Missourians know something about living with water; and they have embraced the range of
solutions-from the natural to the highly
engineered-that the state park system
has implemented, Bryan says.
Sam Baker State Park, for example, is
a popular campground and recreation

see us in atlanta at booth #2507

spot that incorporates several different
water management features. From pervious parking lot pavement (for reducing

improving the situation promising. Federal funding to address
these types of infrastructure issues is likely to be greatly diminished. If anything, flood prevention infrastructure problems
could become far worse, due to federal deficit reduction plans.
There is a better way to coexist with our increasingly floodprone rivers and waterways and that is to let them flood in a designed, calculated way across natural floodplains. Floodplains
set aside as parks serve multiple purposes-not just as means of
flood control, but equally as areas dedicated to conservation and
public recreation. These areas at highest risk for flooding can
serve us best as public open space, designed to conserve natural resources, offer recreational opportunities, and contribute
to livable, sustainable communities. Parks can be one of the key
solutions to improving our nation's infrastructure, reducing property damage and loss, and saving billions of taxpayer dollars.
The United States must re-think longstanding public policies
that allow and encourage inappropriate development in floodprone areas. And we should replace these flawed policies with
a strategic vision that combines public land acquisition with
restoration of wetlands and natural floodplains. Our rivers and

flash flooding) to berms that allow flood
waters to flow in a controlled way through
the campground, the park is a case study

waterways can become assets and contributors to the health
of our nation's infrastructure, instead of increasingly expensive
liabilities.
The United States should take a page out of the Dutch model
known as " Room for the River, " in which flood-prone areas are
set aside for crops, conservation, and recreation. When the inevitable flooding occurs on these lands, it does not cause the
annual wrenching disruptions and loss of life and property that
occur here. In a country whose land is 60 percent below sea
level, the Netherlands has adopted a long-term vision that strategically allows flooding to occur, but with minimal damage to
valuable infrastructure and public safety.
The American Society of Civil Engineers offers five key solutions in its report card, one of which is to promote the sustainability and resilience of America's infrastructure. Parks in
floodplains are a critical component of this goal.
RICHARd J. dOLeSH is NRPA Chief of Public Policy. To read

the ASCE report card, visit http://www.infrastructurereportcard.
org/sites/default/fi les/RC2009_exsummary.pdf
www.NRPA .ORG

SEPTEMBER 2011

Parks & Recreation

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September 2011 - Parks & Recreation

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