As the Blanco recedes, officials wonder aloud about a dam
The Cloptin's
"If we had built the Cloptin dam as it was already designed and funded, we probably would not have had the life-threatening flooding that we just had in
Cobb's view is not universal. Opponents say large reservoirs -- like those
The renewed debate over whether to dam the
As climate change causes extreme weather events to become more frequent and the
Other solutions include further restricting development in flood-prone areas, widening river channels so they can better absorb inundations and investing in more precise gauges to monitor river flows and alert systems to warn residents of coming danger.
For Cobb, the answer is all of the above.
"Once you've had a flood like a 42-foot wall of water hitting the city, it should change minds, and it should change hearts," Cobb said. "I think the biggest change will have to be attitudinal -- about what people are allowed to do and what people are not allowed to do, and where you build things and how you build things."
"Flash flood alley"
The terrain and geographic position of the
Many of the world-record rates for rainfalls of less than 48 hours have occurred along Balcones Escarpment, the geologic uplift that characterizes the
Partly because the
On Saturday night, nearly 6 inches of rain fell over a mere four-and-a-half hours in
Unlike the flatter land east of
And such extreme floods are likely to become more frequent in the future because of global warming, said
"The rate of rainfall is limited by how much moisture the air can carry. The amount of moisture the air can carry is limited by its temperature. So the warmer the ocean and overlying atmosphere, the greater the amount of water that will be transported into
Damming the
As long ago as 1961, engineers proposed building a dam upriver of
"The large landowners fought that thing tooth and nail," said
The plan was ridiculed because there were few apparent buyers of the reservoir's water and because its costs nearly exceeded the river authority's entire budget.
The politics of building a major flood-control dam are "immensely difficult," said
The
Such a project would likely require federal funding. Jake Pickle, the longtime congressman for the area, backed Cloptin's Crossing for several years but gave up as local officeholders opposed to it held their ground.
If a new proposal arises, U.S. Rep.
Although he was supportive of the Cloptin's Crossing plan at the time, West said there would have to be "overwhelming support" for the river authority to resurrect the project or one like it. Still, he said, there's a reason the nearby
"Canyon has done its job," he said. "
Over the last 15 years, the
But
"There are many factors that you have to think about when you start talking about dams -- the destruction of many acres of land and taking it from landowners, usually unwillingly," she said. "Then you have the added danger of a dam that could collapse and, if it did, would have a deadly impact downstream."
A new reservoir would also be a significant water source for the growing region, solving a problem Cobb and other pro-development politicians have been working on for the past few years. Conversely, a reliable water source could further fuel the construction of homes and businesses in an area that nature reminded this week is very much in harm's way.
Other options
Rather than build a dam, Wassenich suggested local governments crack down on development in flood-prone areas. The city of
Given the record-breaking nature of the recent floods and the possibility of climate change fueling worse inundations in the future, some are suggesting that policymakers now use 500-year floods as a benchmark.
"We're looking at the new normal now,"
Like building a dam, such a shift is easier said than done. West said that any changes that restrict property rights or impact building plans could be as politically difficult as building a dam.
"You start moving flood plains around and you start impacting economic development, boy, you stir up a big hornet's nest," he said.
The
Hydrologist
"Your grandmother isn't crazy when she calls and says, 'Is it raining where you are?'" Curran said.
She warned that the prospect of flooding could increase if the
"If rain falls and can't infiltrate (the soil), more of it is going to run off," she said. "If you take out ranches and put in ranchettes, instead of soil, it's going to hit rooftops, cars, driveways" and make its way to the river.
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