Save Our Soundside Communications Director Issues Public Comment on FEMA Notice

WASHINGTON, Nov. 16 -- Liz Pavelick, communications director at Save Our Soundside, Gulf Breeze, Florida, has issued a public comment on the Federal Emergency Management Agency notice entitled "Request for Information on the National Flood Insurance Program's Floodplain Management Standards for Land Management and Use, and an Assessment of the Program's Impact on Threatened and Endangered Species and Their Habitats". The comment was written on Nov. 11, 2021, and posted on Nov. 12, 2021:

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I have lived in the southern part of Santa Rosa County since 2008. I am shocked, disappointed and worried about the unbridled overdevelopment of the peninsula we live on. There is only one road, Highway 98, that goes from east to west and there are numerous points along the way that could be blocked by flooded culverts and overflowing stormwater ponds along the sides of Highway 98.

Santa Rosa County allows fill and build which is destroying our wetland areas. The new developments are built at much higher elevations and residents who have never flooded before are now. We were told in 2008 that we would never need flood insurance because our property is high and dry - but by 2021 - that is no longer the case. Overdevelopment to the north and west of our property is sending more runoff water our way. Thank goodness we have purchased flood insurance every year since we moved in - but our rates are getting higher every year.

In response to questions posed in the FEMA RFI, we ask that you:

Target FEMA financial support for buyouts and elevation to low-income residents whose homes flood repetitively. Be flexible in the way that you determine whether or not residents have flooded repetitively. I lived in Lake County Illinois where the Lake County Forest Preserve bought up numerous homes along the Des Plaines River that often flooded. The property along the river was then turned into a wetland forest preserve with limestone bike/walking paths. The restored wetlands worked the way they were meant to.

Prohibit all construction within the 100-year floodplain.

Require that all critical infrastructure (schools, hospitals, etc.) in the 500-year floodplain be elevated.

Ban all industry -- including steel manufacturer, factory farming, mining, oil refineries, and chemical plants - in the 500-year floodplain.

Here in Santa Rosa County our elevation is extremely low - we need to keep these industries out of our area to protect our aquifers which supply our drinking water.

Protect endangered species by prohibiting all construction in flood prone areas, thus giving greater protection to wetlands. Especially here on the south end of Santa Rosa County where we are a peninsula surrounded by East Bay, Pensacola Bay and the Santa Rosa Sound. In some areas the peninsula is only 1 mile wide. The endangered species have no where to go except for the pockets of wetland areas that are still undeveloped. We were told back in 2014 that all the high and dry property had been sold and developed. Everything after 2014 was just wetland areas being filled with red clay or other non- native fill which is only adding to flooding issues.

Prohibit all construction within the 100-year floodplain and prohibit the use of fill in the 500-year floodplain.

Ensure that new home owners can find out about flood risks by requiring states to pass disclosure laws. So many of the new developments are selling their homes online to out of state buyers. These buyers have no idea of the flood risks in this area. They assume that if these homes are built that they will be safe places to live which is not always the case. Many of these buyers are military families that have to move quickly and don't have the opportunity to do the full research - they SHOULD NOT BE TAKEN ADVANTAGE OF! They must be given full disclosure on the flood risks and the cost of flood insurance.

Prohibit the use of fill in the 500-year floodplain.

Sincerely,

Liz Pavelick

4454 Armitage Road

Gulf Breeze FL 32563

Communications Director

Save Our Soundside

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The notice can be viewed at https://www.regulations.gov/document/FEMA-2021-0024-0001

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