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	Flooding Action Plans A New Response to Flooding One-hundred-year flood events have occurred several times during the 1990s. During these events, many homes and businesses are inundated with sediment and contaminated waters. Structural flood control projects such as dikes and levees now in place in Tillamook County do not adequately protect the bay, people, or their property. These structures are also expensive to build and maintain, and they can do great harm to the natural environment and natural riverine function. Today, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (ACE) and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) approach repetitive flood damage by working to reduce the impacts of flooding in an area instead of trying to control the flooding itself. The six flooding actions of the Tillamook Bay Watershed Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan (CCMP) incorporate this philosophy. The CCMP flooding actions work to improve floodplain function and to help managers develop plans to locate development out of the path of floodwaters. Many are long-term projects, designed to help the Tillamook County Performance Partnership (TCPP), the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and other partners develop a floodplain model that will help determine the best ways to decrease the impact of flood events and improve aquatic and riparian habitat. Only one of the CCMP flooding actions will be explored in detail here, but more can be learned about the specifics of all the CCMP actions at the TCPP Web site.   Flooding Action 3 in Focus Elevating Flood-Prone Structures CCMP Flooding action (FLD-03) focuses on elevating and relocating flood-prone structures, livestock, and equipment. Removing structures from the path of floodwaters can reduce damages and flood-related water pollution. Another option is to relocate a structure to higher ground. Moving structures out of the floodplain offers opportunities for habitat restoration and water-quality improvement as well. If the owners are willing, flood-prone property can be purchased and permanently removed from eligibility for development. The specific objectives of this priority action the following: Raise at least 60 houses at least three feet above the 100-year flood elevation by year 2001, and other houses as resources permit. Construct 10 livestock and equipment pads in flood-prone areas by 2001 to reduce pollution from petrochemicals and animal wastes during major floods. Work to raise homes at least three feet above the 100-year flood elevation is well underway. Led by the Tillamook County Department of Community Development, since 1998 some 58 homeowners have participated in this plan and raised their homes. Under the Flood Hazards Mitigation Program, the average cost to raise one house is about $25,000, of which the homeowner is responsible for 25 percent, or $6,250. The livestock and equipment refuge area (cow pad) shown at left is built high enough and large enough to provide adequate refuge for several days during flood events, if necessary. The idea of cow pads was introduced to Tillamook after the devastating flooding of 1996 in which over 1,100 cows drowned. Since that time, six cow pads have been built in Tillamook County. During flooding incidents, these pads keep the animals from drowning. Cow pad during a flood A newly constructed cow pad Image and Data Credits What's Next? See how we're mapping this action.