FLOOD MAPPING PROGRAM OF THE U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY
FAILURE TO RECOGNIZE THAT THE NATURAL FUNCTION OF FLOOD PLAINS IS TO CARRY AWAY EXCESS WATER IN TIME OF FLOODS HAS LED TO RAPID AND HAPHAZARD DEVELOPMENT, WITH A CONSEQUENT INCREASE IN FLOOD DESTRUCTION. FUNDAMENTAL TO SOUND DEVELOPMENT OF FLOOD PLAINS IS THE RECOGNITION OF, AND BECOMING INFORMED ON, THE FLOOD POTENTIAL OF THE STREAMS AND THE HAZARDS INVOLVED IN FLOOD-PLAIN OCCUPATION. BASIC DATA ON THE REGIMEN OF STREAMS, PARTICULARLY THE MAGNITUDE OF FLOODS TO BE EXPECTED, THE FREQUENCY OF THEIR OCCURRENCE, AND THE AREA THEY WILL OVERFLOW, ARE ESSENTIAL TO BEING SO INFORMED. THE INFORMATION TO BE COLLECTED AND DEVELOPED FALLS INTO TWO CATEGORIES' FIRST, A TOPOGRAPHIC MAP; AND SECOND, HYDROLOGIC AND HYDROLOGIC AND HYDRAULIC DATA, CONSISTING OF MAGNITUDE AND FREQUENCY OF FLOODS, FLOOD PROFILES, AND OUTLINES OF OVERFLOW AREAS. MUCH OF THE INFORMATION CAN BE PRESENTED DIRECTLY ON MAPS FOR READY APPRAISAL. THE PREPARATION OF TOPOGRAPHIC MAPS AND THE OBTAINING OF HYDROLOGIC AND HYDRAULIC DATA HAVE LONG BEEN FUNCTIONS OF THE U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. IT WAS NATURAL THAT THE SURVEY, IN RESPONSE TO THE GROWING INTEREST, WOULD INCLUDE FLOOD MAPPING ACTIVITIES IN ITS PROGRAMS. TO DATE, 13 STATE AND LOCAL AGENCIES AND THE COMMONWEALTH OF PUERTO RICO HAVE CONTRIBUTED FUNDS FOR COOPERATIVE PROJECTS. FIFTY REPORTS HAVE BEEN PREPARED, 40 AS HYDROLOGIC INVESTIGATIONS ATLASES AND 10 AS OPEN-FILE REPORTS. IN SEVEN STATES ACTIVE PROJECTS ARE CONDUCTED; HYDROLOGIC DATA ARE BEING OBTAINED SO AS TO PROVIDE FOR AN ACCURATE APPRAISAL OF THE FLOOD POTENTIAL. /AUTHOR/
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Supplemental Notes:
- Distribution, posting, or copying of this PDF is strictly prohibited without written permission of the Transportation Research Board of the National Academy of Sciences. Unless otherwise indicated, all materials in this PDF are copyrighted by the National Academy of Sciences. Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved
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Authors:
- Dalrymple, Tate
- Publication Date: 1964
Media Info
- Media Type: Print
- Features: References;
- Pagination: pp 33-41
- Monograph Title: Drainage law; Flood plain planning; Depressed curb-opening inlets
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Serial:
- Highway Research Record
- Issue Number: 58
- Publisher: Highway Research Board
Subject/Index Terms
- TRT Terms: Cooperation; Flood damage; Flood plains; Floods; Hydraulics; Hydrologic phenomena; Mapping; Overflows; Topographic maps; Weather forecasting
- Uncontrolled Terms: Flood peaks
- Old TRIS Terms: Hydrologic data
- Subject Areas: Highways; Hydraulics and Hydrology;
Filing Info
- Accession Number: 00203940
- Record Type: Publication
- Files: TRIS, TRB
- Created Date: Apr 1 1994 12:00AM