Camelback Ranch South Levee Scour Monitoring and Launchable Riprap Erosion Protection

About the Program

Category: County Resiliency (Best in Category)

Year: 2016

Levees are extremely important flood control structures that can contain, control, or divert floods. Levee safety has become the nation’s top priority after over 50 catastrophic levee failures occurred in Louisiana due to 2005 Hurricane Katrina. The Flood Control District of Maricopa County (FCD) is responsible for 21 levees, with a total length of more than 40 miles, in Maricopa County, Arizona. These levees protect thousands of people living in low-lying areas, and more than 11,000 parcels worth over $2 billion. The FCD has a mission of reducing flooding risk for 3.8 million residents in Maricopa County. In 2011, a levee deficiency was discovered in the Camelback Ranch South Levee in Phoenix due to flood scour. This levee protects more than 2,700 residents and 1,200 parcels of land behind the levee. In addition to a traditional levee monitoring plan required by FEMA, FCD staff went above and beyond by constructing three innovative scour chains, three permanent markers, and a solid scour protection structure in conjunction with the use of GPS technology, which significantly enhanced the levee’s integrity and maximized the long-term risk mitigation for the residents behind the levees. A glossary of terms is provided in the Supplemental Materials.