Fixing Cedar Rapids, IA - [Rufus]
By RufusT on General
I feel for the people impacted by this tragedy. I hope all are safe and the waters soon recede. When a situation needs improvement I almost always opt for the less government option, but this is one area where the federal government needs to do more.
The folks who have their businesses on the river front in Cedar Rapids knew they ran the risk of flood damage. The river has been there much longer than any of these businesses have. So, the prudent ones were adequately insured and those who rolled the dice now have to pay the croupier. That is not the federal government's problem. However, many other cities along this river, and the entire Mississippi river system (Ohio, Missouri, Illinois, Wabash…) have been building fortifications, artificially limiting where the river can and cannot go, especially in flood stage. After this disaster Cedar Rapids will likely increase the height of its levy. Great for Cedar Rapids! Bad for anybody upstream of Cedar Rapids.
Rain and snowfall are unpredictable, and can vary greatly from year to year and humans need to live and work near these rivers; they are vital to our nation's commerce. We need a sensible federal policy that manages these river systems and allows for safe, unpopulated (or sparsely populated) areas for overflow when we have episodes of increased rain and snowfall. If you fly over the Mississippi river system, or look at a topographical map of the area, you can easily see the areas where the rivers have traditionally overflown their banks in time of flooding, even changed course throughout their history. There is no great mystery to this pattern. |
