11 municipalities and counties represented in TNC’s Floodplain Prioritization Tool that was developed to identify critical opportunities for floodplain conservation and restoration in Missouri’s Lower Meramec River watershed. This tool helps us meet our 2025 goal to help 30 flood-prone Missouri communities invest in natural and nature-based solutions.
1,322 floodplain acres protected following completion of a large-scale levee setback in Atchison County. Protection of these acres provides multiple benefits to nature and to the local communities who have been devastated by repetitive floods. Our goal is to protect or restore 7,500 floodplain acres in Missouri by 2025.
7.5 acres of bank erosion since 1996 on a 1,650-foot stretch of the Elk River in McDonald County. In 2018, TNC led a stream restoration project that used bioengineering techniques to stabilize the bank and stop the erosion — enhancing habitat for fish and wildlife and improving downstream recreational benefit.
“I had the great fortune to work closely with the Atchison County Levee District, Army Corps of Engineers, Natural Resources Conservation Services, The Nature Conservancy and colleagues across multiple state departments to set back a levee that had breached in five places during the historic floods of 2019. This project is truly a model of collaboration and creativity. As flooding has become more severe over the years, and my colleagues across the country look at ways to mitigate the costs of flood, I encourage them to look at this project and explore how we can work with nature to provide solutions that benefit our lands, water and communities.” —Dru Buntin, Director, Missouri Department of Natural Resources
NATURE.ORG/MISSOURI 5
THIS PAGE Construction of L-536 levee on the Missouri River © Route 3 Films
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