Ed Hecker Retires After 38 Years with USACE By Jennifer Lynch, Headquarters Contents

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1 The purpose of this newsletter is to share recent Silver Jackets news and to provide a forum for team support, sharing successes, lessons learned, and resources. Contents Ed Hecker Retires After 38 Years with USACE...1 Spotlight on: Iowa SilverJackets...2 International Flood Risk Management Approaches...3 Silver Jackets in Virginia: Flood Risk Management Before a Charter...4 Save the Date: FRM-SJ Workshop Set for Nashville...4 Useful Links: U.S. EPA to Propose New Stormwater Rulemaking...5 Flood Plain Management Services Celebrates 50th Anniversary...5 Levee System Evaluation for the NFIP EC Published...7 Levee Safety Engineering Circular Developing: Opportunity for Input...8 Ed Hecker Retires After 38 Years with USACE By Jennifer Lynch, Headquarters After 38 years of service with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Mr. Ed Hecker retired on December 31st, 2010, as the Director of Contingency Operations. The series of floods in the Baltimore District shaped Hecker s interest in emergency management and flood risk management. Over the course of his career, he saw the need for the Corps and communities to get beyond repairing a levee system to managing flood risk throughout the lifecycle. He was instrumental in establishing the Corps Flood Risk Management and Levee Safety Programs, as well as the Silver Jackets Program. The origins of the Silver Jackets Program can be traced to a murder board for the Corps Civil Works Strategic Plan in After the devastating floods in the Midwest in 1993 and Sacramento in 1997, Hecker, Harry Kitch, and Ron Conner were looking at how to address the dynamics of a flood instead of the cycle of rebuilding what was damaged from a flood just to have it flood again. They wanted to bring planning, engineering, operations and emergency response elements together to look at flood risk as a lifecycle. They also needed to partner with FEMA and other federal agencies to collaborate with local and state agencies. During the same timeframe, Hecker was developing a program to repair the Corps relationship with FEMA resulting from the Corps poor execution of ESF #3 missions during Hurricane Georges. He developed the original Remedial Action Plan (RAP) in 1998 that enabled USACE and FEMA to address policy and procedural issues that came up during real-world incidents. RAP brought USACE and FEMA senior leadership together to discuss lessons learned and corrective actions before each hurricane season. The first meeting was held in 1999, the spring after Hurricane Georges. Everything took off from there, Hecker said. A collective light bulb went on when the division commanders sat sideby-side with FEMA regional administrators and USACE and FEMA senior leadership. The partnership, the plans to move forward, can all be traced back to that day." The next step toward Silver Jackets was to develop tools, including technical assistance, to support state and local teams in undertaking hazard mitigation measures. Hecker and his colleagues were invited to present this concept for hazard mitigation program at the National Emergency Management Association conference. The presentation was well received and they were invited to present at the NEMA s Mitigation subcommittee meeting, which was held on Sept. 10, However, the events that happened the next day changed the world. After 9-11, with the creation of the Department of Homeland Security, the National Response Plan became terrorist-centric, again causing USACE to adapt. USACE created the Homeland Security Office and created a Senior Executive Service position for it, which Hecker was selected for in It took three years to get back on track. Hecker found some kindred spirits in FEMA Region V and conducted flood risk education workshops in that region. The concept garnered interest from a few academics and state floodplain managers; that led to the initial program, called the Flood Risk Education Alliance. The growing need for a USACE Flood Risk Management Program was underscored by FEMA s Map Modernization effort to update flood maps in One of the sources of information in accrediting a levee system for mapping purposes was the Corps levee inspection records. At this point, there wasn t a USACE Levee Safety Program, said Hecker. Hecker and colleagues pitched the flood risk management concept at the USACE Summer Leader s Conference in 2005, and presented the concept at the National Association of Flood & Stormwater Management Agencies (NAFSMA) the Thursday before Hurricane Katrina made landfall. Hurricane Katrina changed how the world viewed levees and flood risk, and the Corps was ready to adapt to the change. 1

2 The team sees its primary continuing floodplain management and flood risk reduction goals and objectives as being: Supporting, State-wide, the identification, prioritization, and implementation of flood risk mitigation projects and related actions Advancing mapping, regulatory, and smart growth measures in support of improved floodplain management and reduced flood risk. Developing floodplain management and flood risk reduction training materials and promoting and carrying out floodplain management and flood risk reduction education Strengthening all aspects of interagency coordination, communication, and cooperation, especially where directly relevant to improved floodplain management and flood risk reduction. Focusing interagency authorities and resources upon selected pilot watershed planning initiatives (e.g. Turkey River) and the implementation of site-specific flood risk reduction projects (e.g. Missouri Valley and Willow Creek, Cherokee) 2 They quickly obtained $30 million in Supplemental Appropriations from Congress to survey and inventory levees. The Corps created the Levee Safety Program and the Flood Risk Management Program. With pilot teams in 2005 and 2006, the Corps began to support states in interagency flood risk management through the Silver Jackets program. Silver Jackets brings federal and state agencies together to manage the state s flood risk throughout the lifecycle. The strategy has been, if we have an event, the Corps will flood fight and will repair the system. The center of gravity has been with the Corps rather than with the sponsor and the community. Silver Jackets facilitates that change, said Hecker. The discussion of flood risk management continued to evolve. In response to flooding in Upper Midwest in 2008, Hecker supported the establishment of the Interagency Levee Task Force (ILTF) to find system-wide solutions on how to reduce future risks. The ILTF was comprised of local, state and federal agencies in the region to provide a uniform approach across the region impacted by the Midwest floods. This group has evolved into a permanent Regional Flood Risk Management Team. Hecker said that if there was one thing he could change, he would have started the Flood Risk Management Program earlier after the 1993 floods or the 1997 floods. It took way too long to bring planning, engineering and operations together, he said. His advice to those in emergency response: Get out of the preparedness and response model and become risk managers. The plan shouldn t be the flood fight it should be how to mitigate the risk to minimize the need to flood fight, he said. Mr. Hecker plans to continue working in public service during retirement. Spotlight on: Iowa Silver Jackets By Jerry Skalak, Project Manager, Rock Island District Corps of Engineers The Iowa Silver Jackets flood risk management team (IA SJ) evolved from the Iowa levee work group that was stood up in the State following the disastrous flooding of It was subsequently recognized that a need existed for a continuing interagency, State-centric, team focusing on improving floodplain management and reducing future food risks. Since its establishment IA SJ team members have continuously participated, sometimes extensively, sometimes more peripherally, in nearly all aspects of ongoing flood recovery efforts and floodplain management improvement and flood risk reduction initiatives. Here are just a few examples, major and minor: Team members were key participants in a high level committee, established following the flood of 2008, tasked with developing an array of floodplain management and flood risk reduction recommendations for legislative consideration. Team members were the core of a fusion team established to formulate non-structural alternatives to full levee repair at Louisa #11 L&DD. This same team coordinated and facilitated the implementation of a unique solution that became the locally supported, preferred alternative. Team members have continuously played a major role in coordinating efforts to sort out authorities and validate responsibilities for numerous post-flood events infrastructure, especially levees, repair actions Team members coordinated Corps assistance with determining appropriate riprap sizing for a FEMA-funded bridge approach repair project. Team members supported and coordinated funding to carry out post- Lake Delhi dam failure maximum downstream flood extent mapping. Louisa L&DD Inundation Map for the 1% flood event, following non-structural implementation.

3 Increasing community participation in FEMA s Community Rating System (CRS) Establishing a robust State chapter of the Association of State Floodplain Managers. 3 The IA SJ team meets on an as-needed basis. This continues to translate into nearly monthly meetings due to the ongoing flood recovery efforts and the many State flood risk management initiatives underway. Meeting agendas are jointly developed and continue to be very comprehensive. Meetings typically open with a presentation on future flood potentials. From there an array of site-specific and State-wide floodplain management and flood risk reduction topics are reported out on and discussed. For example, at its most recent meeting the team addressed the following: Formulation and implementation of a non-structural alternative to levee repair at the Green Island Levee and Drainage District (L&DD) Continuing support to the development of floodplain management and flood risk reduction education materials and identification of opportunities to provide training and education Ongoing assistance with standing up the Iowa Floodplain and Stormwater Management Association (IFSMA) Options for expanding community participation in FEMA s Community Rating System (CRS) Technical requirements of and funding for a State-wide levee database Participation in the upcoming Regional Flood Risk Management Team flood event exercise Advances in inundation mapping Jerry Skalak (USACE Rock Island District) and Tom Oswald (Iowa Homeland Security and Emergency Management) are pleased to implement a nonstructural alternative at Louisa #11. An on-site meeting of Fed/State/local govt reps with affected land owners to discuss Green Island levee NSA options. The team has and continues to evolve. Initially the team s most active members came from NRCS, IA Homeland Security and Emergency Management Division (HSEMD), FEMA, Rebuild Iowa Organization (RIO), and IA Department of Economic Development (DED). More recently IA DNR, USGS and NWS have also become increasingly active participants. At the team s last meeting, NWS not only provided the team with a great meeting location but also an informative tour of its facilities, a briefing on its mission responsibilities, and a demonstration of its weather tracking and prediction capabilities. The IA SJ team recognizes that increasing interagency familiarity with the facilities, capabilities, and staff of their counterparts has inherent value and will prove to be very beneficial come future flood events. The Iowa Silver Jackets team clearly demonstrates the significant value of simply putting faces to names and continuously building relationships to improve flood risk management. International Flood Risk Management Approaches In conjunction with FEMA and international steering committee partners, USACE hosted approximately 100 people from nearly 20 countries in international policy-oriented discussions on flood risk management approaches with an emphasis on the movement from theory to practice. Most participants were government officials responsible for developing policy and practicing flood risk management. Participants shared their progress in developing and implementing flood risk management approaches, learned what others have accomplished internationally and identified the strengths of those achievements, and highlighted areas where partnerships can provide mutual advantage. Jo Ellen Darcy, Assistant Secretary of the Army (Civil Works), provided opening remarks that defined flood risk management, noted connections with Integrated Water Resources Management, and highlighted recent actions in the United States to better address flood risks including recognition of progress achieved through improved collaboration with specific recognition of the Silver Jackets program. Silver Jackets was also the subject of a plenary presentation. Discussions concluded with consideration of common challenges, what is transferable from one country to another, and issues that would benefit from being addressed through partnerships. Presenters' papers and slides, as well as a report synthesizing major issues, insights and challenges, are available at the event's website at

4 4 Silver Jackets in Virginia: Flood Risk Management Before a Charter Many Silver Jackets teams actively manage their state s risk, but have not signed a charter. The Virginia Silver Jackets Team has not allowed absence of a formal charter to delay team activities. The 2010 Flood Risk Management Workshop in St. Paul, MN, provided a perfect opportunity for the Team to hold its first small-group meeting, with representatives from the Virginia Department of Emergency Management (VDEM), USACE districts with jurisdiction within the Commonwealth of Virginia, and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Region III in attendance. Since then, the Team has developed an action plan, hosted an Invitational Kick-Off WebEx for potential core team members and other interested parties, established an active team within Virginia, hosted a face-to-face meeting, published articles in two newsletters, and conducted a joint interagency field visit to Giles County to discuss recent flash flooding issues. Giles County was one of two counties greatly impacted by a rain event in southeast West Virginia and western Virginia in mid-march The area experienced a near-record snowpack which, thanks to the warmer temperatures, began to melt and saturate the ground. Beginning on the evening of March 12th and continuing through the morning hours of the 13th, a storm system contributed two- to three- inches of rain to the already saturated ground. The precipitation could only run off the hilly terrain, quickly overwhelming creeks and rivers, causing flash flooding. One such river, Wolf Creek, which begins in Bland County and winds through Giles County until its confluence with the New River at the Town of Narrows had significant flooding. The flooding measured its third highest discharge nearing 1-percent annual chance flood levels. In April 2010, the Giles County Administrator requested assistance from the Commonwealth of Virginia to install additional rain and stream gauges on three creeks, including Wolf Creek. While Wolf Creek is currently gauged, the gauge is located near the Town of Narrows, and provides more information for water flowing into the New River than warning for the town. A new stream gauge has been proposed further upstream to provide additional warning time and capture as much of the flow as possible, allowing the town to respond accordingly. The Virginia Silver Jackets Team met with Giles County Administrator and toured impacted areas. The Team discussed alternatives, and developed a draft action plan utilizing available programs. The goal of the plan is to address the locality s need and to explore other mitigation opportunities to reduce their risk. The Team is currently in the process of providing a response to Giles County. The relationship building during the early stages laid the groundwork for formally establishing the Team with the signing of a charter. On December 22, 2010, the Virginia Silver Jackets Team hosted a charter signing ceremony in Richmond. Signatories present included USACE, Norfolk District, VDEM, Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation, NOAA National Weather Service and U.S. Geological Service. After the signing ceremony, the Charter was forwarded for signatures from Natural Resources Conservation Service, FEMA, Region III, and USACE District Commanders with Baltimore, Wilmington, Nashville, and Huntington. I am very enthused about the signing of the Virginia Silver Jacket charter. The collaborative approach among federal, state and local agencies will better prepare us all for floods and other potential disasters. This is what good government looks like--agencies working closely together toward the common purpose of serving the public," said Norfolk District Commander Col. Andrew Backus. i Corrigan, Peter. March 12 13, 2010 Flash Floods in Southeast West Virginia and Western Virginia. National Weather Service, Weather Forecast Office Blacksburg Save the Date: FRM-SJ Workshop Set for Nashville The 2011 Silver Jackets and Flood Risk Management Program Workshop: Sharing Experience to Achieve Success in Buying Down Flood Risk has been scheduled for the week of August in Nashville, Tennessee. As always, partner participation at this workshop is critical to our success and is greatly encouraged. We are extremely intent on tailoring the agenda and training offerings to the specific interests and needs of participants, both internal and external to USACE. With that in mind, all potential participants are invited to complete the survey at Preconference_Survey by February 4 so we can build the best program for all. A call for abstracts will follow.

5 5 Useful Links: U.S. EPA to Propose New Stormwater Rulemaking To better control stormwater discharges from new development and redevelopment and to make other regulatory improvements to strengthen EPA s stormwater program, the Agency has initiated a national rulemaking. EPA is considering ways to reduce existing stormwater impacts in urban areas, where it is a significant contributor to water quality impairments. EPA is considering developing performance standards for discharges from new and redevelopment that promote practices that mimic natural processes to infiltrate and recharge, evapotranspire, and/or harvest and reuse precipitation. A potential ancillary benefit to this type of stormwater management would be to reduce the increased runoff volume, and resulting flash flooding, that can occur from new impervious surfaces. In addition to establishing more specific performance standards for stormwater discharges from new and redevelopment, EPA is also considering the rulemaking to include: Expanding the universe of federally regulated municipal separate storm sewer system (MS4s), Exploring the desirability of establishing different standards for transportation facilities, Evaluating options for establishing retrofit requirements on MS4s, and Evaluating additional provisions specific to the Chesapeake Bay EPA intends to propose a rule in September 2011 and to take final action by November Additional information can be found at Flood Plain Management Services Celebrates 50th Anniversary By 1960 the Corps of Engineers had begun participating in comprehensive interagency, basin-wide, water resource project planning. While the agency enjoyed decades of water resource management experience dating back to the 1920s, the planning process had grown more complex in the ensuing decades with the addition of recreation, pollution control, water supply, and wildlife features. The pace of federal water project construction was beginning to slow for a variety of economic and environmental reasons while the nation s flood problems grew more acute. Recognition of these trends led, ultimately, to an evolving consensus in the Eisenhower Administration that greater attention be paid to floodplain management. The first substantial steps in that direction came with the creation of the Floodplain Management Services (FPMS) Program under Section 206 of the Flood Control Act of The FPMS program pursued several flood proofing initiatives in the 1970s. These included efforts to develop residential flood proofing systems and flood proofing materials at the Waterways Experiment Station (WES) and initiatives to produce a flood proofing primer and developed standards of flood proofing in buildings. Over the ensuing decades, FPMS played a major role in an ongoing national effort to alleviate flood damages by promoting wise use of the nation s floodplains. The program currently operates in all domestic district and division offices with nationwide coverage. Its purpose is to make available federal, state, and local governmental agencies information, guidance, and advice on the flood hazard which will permit them to proceed with such planning, engineering studies, construction, and other actions necessary for wise use of floodplains. Following are three examples of current FPMS activities. District Successes Papillion Creek Watershed Study, Douglas and Sarpy County, Nebraska Point of Contact: Randall Behm, Omaha District The Omaha District Floodplain Management Services Program currently assists in the Papillion Creek Watershed Study, a hydrologic assessment of the. This Papillion Creek Watershed Study is a joint effort among the Omaha District, the Papio-Missouri River Natural Resources District, the Nebraska Department of Natural Resources, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Region VII, with an estimated cost of 2.3M. It developed out of a need to identify how

6 flood risk in the watershed is changing as a result of urbanization. The goal of the Papillion Creek Watershed Study is to produce detailed digital floodplain mapping products that will enable floodplain administrators at the local, county, state, and federal levels to provide accurate flood risk information to residents and business owners. To achieve this goal, the study uses state of the art technology, such as LiDAR, to develop digital terrain models and incorporates surveys of approximately 430 bridges into hydraulic computer models. In addition to flood maps, the study will result in other types of critical water resources information, including water surface elevations, depth of flooding, and velocity of flood flows. 6 Ultimately, the study will provide flood risk management information to the National Flood Insurance Program for use in reducing flood risk throughout the project area. The project team expects that the information and tools will be used by all levels of government to educate the community on current flood risks, restrict future development in significant flood hazard areas, and contribute pertinent information to potential mitigation actions. Spatially Enabled FPMS Call Log Database for Ohio, Kentucky, West Virginia, and Virginia Point of Contact: Joseph Trimboli, Huntington District In 2008, the Huntington District Floodplain Management Services Team created a Spatially Enabled FPMS Call Log Database to process calls received by the District s toll-free number. In addition to calls about its FPMS program, the District receives inquiries about floodplain impacts on large development projects, federal property rentals, FEMA Digital Flood Insurance Rate Map determinations, base flood elevation requests, miscellaneous map requests, and general questions about the Corps and the National Flood Insurance Program. The database s spatial component allows caller addresses to be geocoded and linked to GIS software. The District uses information on where the calls originate from to help determine outreach activities and program direction. Additionally, the database includes links to mapping resources available on the internet and interacts with Microsoft Office applications. Walla Walla District FPMS Special Study Minnie Creek, Spokane County, Washington Point of Contact: Tracy Schwarz, Walla Walla District In 2004, a great need existed for better information about the Minnie Creek floodplain within the city s urban growth boundary. The Federal Emergency Management Agency had yet to map over 60% of the study area s floodplain, resulting in a considerable knowledge gap. While a retail chain planned to break ground on a parcel adjacent to Minnie Creek, the city withheld a key commercial permit pending results of the study. In addition to the Washington State Department of Ecology, which served as the project sponsor for the $97,000 FPMS Special Study, several government agencies, including the City of Cheney and Spokane County, were very supportive of the project and interested in using the study for planning future developments. Given the pressing need for more information, this is an excellent example of stakeholder cooperation and collaboration. The District maintained continuous contact with both the city and the engineering firm representing the retail chain. The city used the final product to guide changes to the pending retail development. The study will have a lasting influence beyond this particular retail development. The Washington State Department of Ecology submitted the study to FEMA, and in 2010 it was adopted as the effective map for the community. The City of Cheney and Spokane County now use the study s results to better administer development regulations meant to keep structures and citizens out of harm s way. FPMS - Supported Programs In addition to Silver Jackets, the FPMS program supports Hurricane Evacuation Studies (HES) and the National Nonstructural and Flood Proofing Committee. Through FPMS, the Corps participates in interagency HES with FEMA, NOAA and state emergency management agencies. HES address hurricane planning and impact assessments. These

7 studies look at the vulnerability of populations to hurricane threats and provide guidance to local emergency managers. Hurricane Evacuation Studies include six separate analyses: Physical hazards, population vulnerability, human behavior, shelter, transportation, and coordination. The studies include storm surge analyses and evacuation requirements for hurricanes of different intensities and directions. Emergency planners use the information from the HES to devise checklists of steps to take during a hurricane. Decision makers, following these checklists, can decide what to do when meteorological conditions are met, based mostly on information from the National Hurricane Center, and National Weather Service local Weather Forecast Offices. The National Nonstructural and Flood Proofing Committee has been very active programs since its official inception in The NFPC has released numerous publications on flood proofing, published flood proofing technical guidelines, and provided direct technical support to Corps districts and localities on nonstructural flood mitigation. The NFPC conducts workshops and courses on nonstructural measures for the Corps and the Association of State Floodplain Managers (ASFPM), and it is continually spreading the word about nonstructural measures. To find out more about the National Nonstructural and Flood Proofing Committee, visit the website at: To learn more about these successes in FPMS, view the slides and audio at: Levee System Evaluation for the NFIP EC Published The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) recently published consolidated guidance covering how it conducts levee system evaluations for the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). Engineer Circular (EC) , USACE Process for the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) Levee System Evaluation, supplements and clarifies existing policy, procedures and technical guidance and applies only to USACE. It is not intended as design guidance. With the release of this EC, USACE will begin using NFIP levee system evaluation as opposed to levee certification to describe the process it uses to evaluate a levee system for NFIP mapping purposes. Why the terminology change? NFIP levee system evaluation emphasizes the true purpose of evaluating the complete levee system s status with regard to requirements of both 44 CFR and USACE guidelines. This choice better supports FEMA s definition of certification defined in 44 CFR 65.2(b), which focuses on certification of analysis and data and is not meant to imply a warranty or guarantee. This change does not affect FEMA s requirements for mapping areas behind levee systems. The change, however, better describes the purpose and emphasis that certification does not mean a guarantee of safety from flooding. The purpose of a NFIP levee system evaluation is to determine how flood hazard areas behind levees are mapped on FEMA Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs). The resultant maps are used to determine flood insurance rates; federal, state, and local floodplain management requirements; and other floodplain management decisions. If a positive finding is made in an NFIP levee system evaluation, FEMA will use this information to determine how the floodplain behind the levee system is mapped. A NFIP levee system evaluation determination is a technical finding by a registered professional engineer that, for the floodplain in question, there is, or is not, a reasonable assurance that the levee system will exclude the 1 percent annual chance exceedance flood from the leveed area. A there is answer leads to a positive finding and support for accreditation. An is not answer means a negative finding for NFIP levee system evaluation thus, accreditation is not supported. Key points Levee Certification is commonly used to describe the submittal of all required data to FEMA to demonstrate the levee meets requirements in 44 CFR Inspection of a levee, as related to USACE s Levee Safety Program, is a visual inspection conducted to verify that the levee system is being properly operated and maintained. The result of this inspection do not equate to a levee certification or NFIP levee system evaluation. Other criteria for a NFIP levee system evaluation, not covered by a USACE levee inspection, include levee height determination, seepage analysis, embankment stability analysis, settlement analysis, and interior drainage. Accreditation means FEMA has verified that all the documentation to demonstrate that a levee system meets 44 CFR has been submitted and has shown the levee on the Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM) as providing reasonable assurance of excluding the 1 percent annual chance exceedance flood (or base flood). 7

8 The EC consolidates and summarizes existing policy and guidance previously distributed among various related USACE documents and provides policy and guidance about topics not previously covered in relation to levee certifications, such as, Requiring submittal to FEMA of an evaluation report, as opposed to issuing only a certification letter. Clarifying technical areas to include earthen closures, ice, seismic criteria, channels, and flood fight activities. Requiring a minimum of two feet of freeboard to match FEMA s minimum requirement. Revisiting situations in which FEMA used USACE documentation to accredit a levee system to ensure it meets requirements in the EC. Responsibilities Since the local community is responsible for administering the requirements of the NFIP and maintaining the levee, providing the documentation to meet 44 CFR is a local project/system sponsor responsibility. In some cases, USACE Levee Safety Program activities will help inform and support the local sponsors efforts. There are two conditions when USACE will budget for and conduct these evaluations when requested by the local sponsor: (1) USACE operates or maintains the levee system (such as the Mississippi River & Tributaries levees) or (2) USACE has an active levee design/construction project underway (such as New Orleans). USACE may perform this evaluation using funds provided by non-federal sponsors, provided that it can be demonstrated that USACE is uniquely equipped to do so and that such services are not reasonably and quickly available through ordinary business channels (Thomas Amendment). Conclusion Flood risk management is dynamic and constantly changes as we learn more about floods, storms and subsidence; the performance of our aging infrastructure; the engineering profession and the effects of increasing development behind flood and storm damage reduction systems. USACE is constantly working to improve its understanding of the loading on levee systems, how they respond to floods, and to advance the state-of-the-art of design and construction. USACE anticipates there will be periodic updates and improvements to the EC as advances are made in the engineering profession in relation to flood and hurricane storm damage reduction systems. Levee Safety Engineering Circular Developing: Opportunity for Input The USACE Levee Safety Program is continuing development of an Engineer Circular (EC) that will provide policy and guidance for the overall USACE Program. Over the course of this year, USACE will conduct a series of webinars and workshops for the purpose of gathering internal and external stakeholder input on the Engineer Circular concepts, policies, and procedures. We seek feedback from a variety of sources within the Corps, other Federal, state, and local agencies, elected officials engaged in levee safety issues, levee sponsors and operators, Associations, floodplain managers, planners, emergency managers, local and regional business interests, environmental and economic development interests, and public health and safety officials. On December 2010, the first series of webinars covered general concepts including the vision, draft guiding principles, portfolio management, and the process we are undertaking to develop the EC. The presentation, along with supplementary documents including the white paper on the Levee Safety Program, the webinar announcement, and comment form, are posted on the Levee safety website: The second series of webinars are scheduled on 2-3 February 2011 and will cover the Routine Levee Safety Program activities to include Portfolio Management, Inspections, Levee Safety Screening, Levee Safety Action Classification, Risk Communications, Operations and Maintenance, Incident Reporting, Permits for Modifications (408 Process), and related subjects. External stakeholders and USACE staff are invited and encouraged to attend and participate; please contact your Silver Jackets Coordinator or Levee Safety Program Manager for access information. Looking forward, the third round of webinars on the Levee Safety Program Non- Routine activities are scheduled for 9-10 March Topics will include additional information on Portfolio Management processes, tolerability of risk concepts, and future risk management studies/options. 8 Proposed USACE Portfolio Management