Letter to the editor: Feds must help protect flood-prone areas

There’s no doubt that a federal infrastructure bill has the potential to greatly impact Pittsburgh’s airport corridor. While a bipartisan divide exists as to how Congress should proceed with infrastructure spending, there is common ground that can be found to better protect federally funded assets, including water utilities, roads and bridges, hospitals and schools.

A recent poll conducted by The Pew Charitable Trusts found an overwhelming majority of Americans (85% overall, Democrats 91%, Republicans 80%, independents 87%) support requiring all federally funded projects located in flood-prone areas be built to better withstand future flooding.

A simple way to achieve this is to have the feds enact a flood risk management standard to break the costly cycle of flood loss and repair. Year after year, hurricane season after hurricane season, and federal disaster declaration after federal disaster declaration, we rebuild our infrastructure without considering how to make it withstand a future flooding disaster — the costliest of all federal disasters.

Research shows that every dollar spent on exceeding current building codes to better withstand flooding can save society between $5 and $7 on average. While a federal infrastructure bill is a welcomed step toward economic recovery, Congress must have the foresight to make infrastructure investments that are both resilient and cost-conscious. That’s how we run our households and businesses, and it is how Congress should approach infrastructure spending.

Chris Heck

Moon