BRIDGETON TOWNSHIP FLOOD MITIGATION PLAN June 2008 WEST MICHIGAN SHORELINE REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION (WMSRDC) The WMSRDC is a regional council of governments representing 127 local governments in the West Michigan counties of Lake, Mason, Muskegon, Newaygo, Oceana, and northern Ottawa. The mission of WMSRDC is to promote and foster regional development in West Michigan… through cooperation amongst local governments. Evelyn Kolbe, Chairperson James Rynberg, Vice-Chairperson Robert Genson, Secretary Sandeep Dey, Executive Director Project Staff Nannette Emmer, Planning Director Stephen Carlson, Associate Planner Ben O’Connor, Planning Aide Bridgeton Township Rich Kooistra, Bridgeton Township Supervisor ON THE COVER Muskegon River looking east at the Maple Island Road Bridge. Prepared by WMSRDC in conjunction with the Bridgeton Township Planning Commission Picture Taken by WMSRDC Table of Contents A. PURPOSE AND PLANNING PROCESS 1 I. Purpose 1 II. Planning Process 2 III. Planning Approach 2 B. BRIDGETON TOWNSHIP COMMUNITY DESCRIPTION 5 I. Community Profile 5 II. History 7 III. Land Use and Development 7 IV. Infrastructure 11 V. Natural Resources 14 a. Water Features 14 b. Soils 18 c. Land Cover 20 VI. Climate 22 C. IDENTIFICATION OF FLOOD AND FLOOD-RELATED HAZARDS AND RISKS 23 I. Definition of Flooding 23 II. Flood Locations in Bridgeton Township 26 a. National Flood Insurance Program 26 b. Newaygo County Soil Survey 30 III. Historic Flooding Events 34 IV. Risk of Flooding 38 V. Flood-Related Hazards 38 a. Severe Thunderstorms 39 b. Snow/Ice/Sleet Storms 39 c. Dam Failure 40 d. Infrastructure Failure 42 e. Public Health Emergencies 42 f. Other Natural, Technological, or Human-Related Hazards 43 D. VULNERABILITY ASSESSMENT 44 I. Vulnerable Structures and Populations 45 II. Vulnerable Sections 47 a. Section 13 47 b. Section 14 48 c. Section 15 50 d. Section 20 51 e. Section 30 52 III. Estimate of Potential Damages 54 E. FLOOD MITIGATION GOALS AND OBJECTIVES 57 F. FLOOD MITIGATION TOOLS 59 I. Preventive Measures 60 a. Building Permits 60 b. Building Codes 61 c. Standards for Manufactured Homes 62 d. Planning 62 e. Zoning 66 f. Capital Improvements Planning 68 g. Subdivision Regulations 68 h. Stormwater Management 68 II. Corrective Measures 69 a. Site Modification (Keeping the Hazard Away) 70 b. Building or Site Modification (Retrofitting) 72 c. Insurance 73 d. Technical and Financial Assistance 74 e. Mandates 76 f. Summary 76 III. Resource Protection 76 a. Open Space Preservation 77 b. Wetland Protection 78 c. Soil Erosion and Sedimentation Control 78 d. River Restoration 79 e. Best Management Practices 79 f. Dumping Regulations 80 g. Farmland Protection 80 IV. Emergency Services 80 a. Threat Recognition (Watch) 81 b. Warning 82 c. Response 83 d. Recovery and Mitigation 85 V. Public Education and Awareness 87 a. Distribution of Existing Information 87 b. Distribution of Local Information 88 c. Technical Assistance 88 G. POTENTIAL FLOOD MITIGATION ACTIONS 89 H. EVALUATION CRITERIA TO SELECT AND PRIORITIZE ACTION ITEMS 97 I. PLAN IMPLEMENTATION 99 J. PLAN MONITORING, REVISIONS, AND INCORPORATION 104 I. Monitoring 104 II. Evaluating 104 III. Updating 105 IV. Continuing Public Involvement 105 V. Incorporation into Existing Planning Mechanisms 105 APPENDICES Appendix A – Soil Information 1a Appendix B – Hazard Identification and Assessment 7a Appendix C – Census 12a TABLES Table 1: Analysis of Equalized Valuations 6 Table 2: Population Projections 8 Table 3: Regional Roadways 11 Table 4: Wetland Class Definitions 16 Table 5: General Soils 18 Table 6: NLCD Land Cover Classification Definitions 20 Table 7: Temperature and Precipitation Summary 22 Table 8: Past Floods at Newaygo 34 Table 9: Floodplain Structure Estimates 46 Table 10: Estimated Floodplain Population 47 Table 11: Section 15 Floodplain Residential Structures 50 Table 12: Section 20 Floodplain Residential Structures 51 Table 13: Section 30 Floodplain Residential Structures 53 Table 14: Flood Damage Estimation Table 55 Table 15: Estimated Annual Residential Property Loss Due to Flooding 56 Table 16: NFIP CRS Credit Scale 74 MAPS Map 1: Location 5 Map 2: Municipal Neighbors 5 Map 3: Future Land Use 9 Map 4: Zoning 10 Map 5: Infrastructure 13 Map 6: Muskegon River Watershed 14 Map 7: Topographic 15 Map 8: Water Features and Wetlands 17 Map 9: General Soils 19 Map 10: Land Cover circa 1992 21 Map 11: National Flood Insurance Program (Newaygo County) 26 Map 12: 100-Year Flood Features 29 Map 13: Flooding Frequency of Soil 31 Map 14: Flooding Duration of Soil 32 Map 15: Flooding Months of Soil 33 Map 16: Muskegon River Warning Siren System 41 Map 17: Section 13 – Floodplain and Notable Features 48 Map 18: Section 14 – Floodplain and Notable Features 49 Map 19: Section 15 – Floodplain and Notable Features 51 Map 20: Section 20 – Floodplain and Notable Features 52 Map 21: Section 30 – Floodplain and Notable Features 54 Map 22: Soil Limitations for Dwellings With and Without Basements 64 Map 23: Soil Limitations for Septic Tank Absorption Fields 65 Map 24: Greenbelt Zone and 100-Year Floodplain Delineations 67 PART A PURPOSE AND PLANNING PROCESS I. PURPOSE The Bridgeton Township Flood Mitigation Plan was created to protect the health, safety, and economic interests of residents by reducing the impacts of floods through mitigation planning, awareness, and implementation. Flooding carries the potential for repetitive and often severe social, economic and physical damage. Flood mitigation is any action taken to permanently eliminate or reduce the long-term risk to human life and property from flooding. It is an essential element of emergency management along with preparedness, response and recovery. This plan serves as the foundation for flood mitigation activities within Bridgeton Township. Implementation of the plan’s recommendations will reduce injuries, loss of life, and destruction of property attributable to floods. The plan provides a path toward continuous, proactive reduction of vulnerability to flooding; one of the township’s most damaging natural hazards. Ideally, this plan will spur total integration of flood mitigation activities, programs, capabilities and actions into day-to-day governmental functions and management practices. Some of the mitigation activities recommended in this document are inexpensive to carry out while others require funding. The Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA’s) Flood Mitigation Assistance Program (FMAP) can assist with funding for many activities, as can the related Pre-Disaster Mitigation (PDM) program and the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP). FMAP was created as part of the National Flood Insurance Reform Act (NFIRA) of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 4101) with the goal of reducing or eliminating claims under the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) through flood mitigation planning and activities by states and communities. FMAP is administered by the Emergency Management and Homeland Security Division of the Michigan State Police and offers three types of grants: planning, technical assistance, and project. The preparation of this document was partially funded by FMAP planning and technical assistance grants, made available after the floods of 2004. Bridgeton Township was eligible for such funding due to flood damages sustained by properties along the Muskegon River. It provided matching funds as required. FMAP also provides project funds to states, communities, and Indian tribal governments so that cost-effective measures are taken to reduce or eliminate the long-term risk of flood damage to buildings, manufactured homes, and other structures insurable under the NFIP. Eligible communities must be participating in, and in good standing with, the NFIP. Eligible property owners must have current flood insurance policies on the structures to be mitigated. To be eligible for project grants, a community must also develop, and have approved by the FEMA Regional Director, a Flood Mitigation Plan in accordance with 44 CFR Part 78.5 prior to grant award. The plan must address flood issues; serve as a cost-effective way to reduce both direct damage and subsequent negative impacts from future floods; be the most practical, effective, and environmentally sound alternative; foster feasible long-term flood relief and protection; consider long-term changes; and provide manageable future ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ BRIDGETON TOWNSHIP FLOOD MITIGATION PLAN – JUNE 2008 1 maintenance and modification requirements. Adoption and approval of the Bridgeton Township Flood Mitigation Plan (2007) allows Bridgeton Township to apply for project grants for activities identified in the document, as funds become available. II. PLANNING PROCESS The planning process followed in the development of the Bridgeton Township Flood Mitigation Plan required the use of many sources of information and input and consisted of the following steps. • Identification and mapping of flood hazards, risks and vulnerabilities; • Identification and definition of goals and objectives; • Identification of alternatives for solving problems; • Selection of evaluation criteria to prioritize alternatives; • Selection of potential flood mitigation actions; • Preparation of a draft flood mitigation plan; • Preparation of the final flood mitigation plan; • Implementation of the flood mitigation plan; and • Monitoring and periodic revision of the flood mitigation plan. Documents reviewed during the formation of the Bridgeton Township Flood Mitigation Plan included the Bridgeton