The purpose of the Flood Damage Prevention section of the Unified Development Ordinance is to promote public health, safety and general welfare and to minimize public and private losses due to flood conditions within flood prone areas by provisions designed to:
- Restrict or prohibit uses which are dangerous to health, safety, and property due to water or erosion hazards, or which result in damaging increases in erosion, flood heights or velocities;
- Require that uses vulnerable to floods, including facilities which serve such uses, be protected against flood damage at the time of initial construction;
- Control the alteration of natural floodplains, stream channels, and natural protective barriers, which are involved in the accommodation of flood waters;
- Control filling, grading, dredging, and all other development which may increase erosion or flood damage; and
- Prevent or regulate the construction of flood barriers which will unnaturally divert floodwaters or which may increase flood hazards to other lands.
These regulations are located in Chapter 9: Environmental Protection Standards of the Knightdale Unified Development Ordinance.
NATIONAL FLOOD INSURANCE PROGRAM (NFIP)
The Town of Knightdale is a participant in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) which is administered by the Department of Homeland Security. The U.S. Congress established the NFIP with the passage of the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968. The NFIP is a Federal program enabling property owners in participating communities to purchase insurance as a protection against flood losses in exchange for State and community floodplain management regulations that reduce future flood damages. Participation in the NFIP is based on an agreement between communities and the Federal Government. If a community adopts and enforces a floodplain management ordinance to reduce future flood risk to new construction in floodplains, the Federal Government will make flood insurance available within the community as a financial protection against flood losses. This insurance is designed to provide an insurance alternative to disaster assistance to reduce the escalating costs of repairing damage to buildings and their contents caused by floods. in the Standard property insurance does not cover flood damage.
FLOODPLAIN MAPPING
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) establishes flood zones for higher risk areas. The purpose is to determine where flood insurance is required. In partnership with FEMA, North Carolina became the first state to assume responsibility for floodplain mapping. The project includes analyzing flood hazards and producing updated, digital flood maps.
CONTACT INFORMATION
919-217-2250
swengineer@knightdalenc.gov