#flood mitigation

A rainy day recipe for baha-and-bagyo-proof batchoy (ingredients are similar for systemic solution sopas):

-Flood mitigating miki noodles -2 tablespoons public pressure paminta -Corruption-free chicharon -Proper land-use pork liver -Sustainability sibuyas -Barangay-based broth of ideas -1 bone marrow budget for mangroves -Water from a forested watershed

Serve hot with accountability.

Eh, not really. Like, technically, but that's a very dramatic way to put it.

What that person told you about was probably this prediction, which says that some roads on some of the Florida Keys might be underwater by 2025.

Does that suck? Yes. But it's also pretty limited in scope.

(And by the way, that's probably not "underwater all the time." There will probably be a number of years of "the roads will be underwater at high tide specifically." I can't currently find a source on this, but that's how tides work, and the Florida Keys article does specifically mention them as a main problem.)

The areas in danger first are pretty universally small, very low islands. Actually, a dozen or so small islands have already gone underwater in the Pacific Ocean, but very importantly, none of those islands were inhabited.

They were mostly small reef islands (that is, the entire island is exposed coral reef detritus) and other uninhabited shoals. Mostly, they were so small scientists had to check old satellite images to even figure out that they disappeared. Literally, we're talking about chunks of land that are just 100 square meters/300 square feet. Again, not great, but still very limited in scope.

As this Live Science article thankfully explains, it's pretty unlikely that any countries at all will disappear before 2100.

Also, just because land is below sea level doesn't mean it will be underwater, and there are very real steps we can take to defend a lot of endangered cities/islands.

For example:

Much of the Netherlands is already below sea level, but the country isn't disappearing, because the Dutch have put a lot of work into building and maintaining coastal defenses.

Multiple surveys (including the one that found the missing islands in Micronesia) also found that not all low-lying islands are vulnerable to erosion and flooding. This is because many islands are protected by mangrove forests, lagoons, or both

Mangrove reforestation in particular is genuinely a super effective anti-flooding strategy that is being deployed pretty widely, and is expected to increase a lot in the coming years. Mangroves are effective at not only preventing short-term flooding, but also mitigating sea-level increases (in part by preventing erosion)

Some islands, esp Pacific Islands, have actually grown during the past couple decades, not shrunk. It really depends on what the island is made up of. Not all land is automatically doomed

You can read more about how sinking countries are fighting back here, and the lessons we can learn from them:

-via Time, June 13, 2019

And finally, and this is good news for reasons I'll explain in a second:

Some of the largest and wealthiest cities in the world are at the top of the danger list. (Note: the predictions at that link are based on some fairly severe warming predictions. They do NOT necessarily reflect what's going to happen or when.)

The cities that are going to be in danger the soonest (still away btw) include New York, London, San Francisco, Tokyo, and Dubai. Lots of very rich people in those cities! Who would really like to not have to move (any of their ten different homes lol)

So, flooding aside, we're going to (by necessity) get a lot better at figuring out the quickest, cheapest, most scalable, and most effective types of coastal defenses real fast.

Are rich countries going to be way more able to get strong coastal defense systems up quickly? Yes. Does that suck? Sure fucking does!! But these solutions don't all require a lot of money or tech to implement, even at a large scale, especially when it's local communities driving the effort.

And, importantly, when rich countries pour a ton of money into figuring this out, that will hugely expand our understanding of what techniques work best, why, and how best to deploy them in different situations. Unlike physical structures, that's valuable knowledge that can be shared very, very widely.

And any technology that comes out of this is going to work like solar panels and other green energy: as more people use it, it will get cheaper and cheaper. Probably really quickly.

So, all told, no one's going to be swallowed up in the next few years. We have time to work on this and a lot of people are already doing so.

Mostly, experts predict that the first wave of large-scale issues will be happening around 2050.

Three decades doesn't sound like enough time, in the face of something like this. But you know what? Responses to climate change are speeding up exponentially, and different types of responses are multiplying and magnifying each other.

We went from inventing flight to landing on the moon in just 66 years.

I wouldn't count us out of the climate change fight yet.

“In an effort to combat flooding, a Yorkshire woman realized that thousands of wasted Christmas trees every year could be used as natural flood protection, and started a unique business to do just that.

The Rooted Christmas tree rental delivers a potted Christmas fir, pine, or spruce to a family for the festive season. When the lights are taken down, the company then collects their rentals and replants them to enjoy another growing season.

When the trees get too tall, they are placed on the slopes of the nearby Calder Valley as natural floodwater breaks.

The Sunday Times reports that the towns of Mytholmroyd and Hebden Bridge in Yorkshire have been inundated by serious floods 4 times in the last 15 years, with the most-recent one causing $180 million (£150 million) in damages.

Rooted founder Sara Tomkins established a Christmas tree plantation in the spring of 2020 with 400 trees. Dozens of those original 400 have now become too large for the average living room, and have been hauled off for planting in the upper parts of the Calder Valley to stop floodwaters running down into the two towns below.

What started as a sustainability project turned into a flourishing commercial enterprise. When residents learned how their Christmas tree purchases could be used to protect their towns from floods and reduce waste from rotting trees, all of Tomkins’ original trees were rented out.

According to Tomkins, people pretend the trees are members of the family, and like to rent the same one over and over again to “watch them grow up with their kids...”

Tomkins feels that demand might be 3x her current supply, but as a music venue director, she does the job only in her off hours.

A severe storm or broken sump pump can quickly flood your crawlspaces or living areas in Rib Mountain. When water gets into places it shouldn't, it doesn't just sit there—it actively breaks down the glues in your plywood, rusts fasteners, and softens your drywall until it sags and collapses.

To protect your investment, you need a certified mitigation team that uses professional moisture tracking tools to map out the damage. 

Why specialized drying equipment matters:

• High-capacity pumps remove pooling water before it cracks foundation walls.

• Advanced air movers circulate air deep into wall cavities to eliminate rot.

• Eco-friendly sterilizers wipe out musty biological smells permanently.

Get your household back to a clean, safe, and completely dry condition with trusted local restoration specialists.

Learn more about our dependable water damage restoration in Rib Mountain: https://northstarrestorationservices.com/

Quantifying the Shift: Why Insurers are Pricing in Household Resilience Upgrades

A shift in global insurance modeling is beginning to reward proactive property hardening, offering measurable premium reductions for households that invest in flood-resilient materials and elevated infrastructure.

The Stormwater Management sector is evolving as cities recognize the need for smarter drainage to handle unpredictable weather. The Stormwater Management market was valued at USD 57.4 Million in 2024 and is projected to grow to USD 82.1 Million by 2030, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.2% from 2024 to 2030. As impervious surfaces continue to replace natural soil, municipal leaders are prioritizing infrastructure that can effectively mitigate flood risks while protecting local ecosystems from contamination.

Reviewing the Stormwater Management market report

The recent Stormwater Management market report highlights how data-driven tools are replacing traditional, reactive drainage methods. By integrating sensors and real-time monitoring, planners can now predict potential overflow scenarios before they cause significant damage. This shift toward active, intelligent water systems is not just preventing property loss; it is also optimizing the lifecycle costs of public infrastructure, making it a highly attractive investment for municipalities looking to modernize their aging networks.

Understanding the role of green infrastructure

Nature-based solutions like permeable pavements and bio-retention cells are gaining traction because they offer a cost-effective way to manage runoff at the source. Instead of simply piping water away, these systems filter pollutants and allow for natural groundwater recharge. By blending these green practices with conventional gray infrastructure, cities are creating a more balanced and sustainable approach to water security. This transition is essential for building long-term urban resilience against the backdrop of shifting global climate patterns.