FMA College Scholarship

As an intern for the Santa Cruz County Department of Public Works, I have experienced first hand the effect flooding has had on local communities. The climate change crisis, pre-existing infrastructure, and state budgets and regulations all contribute to the challenges in finding and implementing solutions to flooding. Climate change has great affects on flooding and has also increased storm intensity. Because the ocean's surface is warmer, storms are able to form and travel at a much stronger rate than before. Because of this, we have seen an increased amount of catastrophic storms and greater damage in the storm effected areas. As a civil engineer it's important to consider solutions, such as implementation of renewable energy sources, to contribute to mitigating climate change. Climate change will not be something we can reverse. However, we can mitigate the effects of climate change and adapt to our new environment. Another challenge is working with pre-existing infrastructure. It is difficult and costly to demolish existing infrastructure for more effective, modernized constructions. For example, Paulsen Road in Watsonville, CA experienced destructive flooding during the January 2023 winter storm surge. When I went to assess the impact of the storm on the road and culverts, half the road was completely flooded. The other half of the road contains a bridge and I discovered that the bridge section was completely dry, there was no water flow under the bridge. Although these situations are exciting when considering the ideas of new constructions, it would be difficult to work with the pre-existing infrastructure as it would require completely pulverizing the road and rebuilding a new road and bridge. Lastly, local and state budgets and regulations can make new construction projects difficult at times. It is important as an engineer to work within environmental regulations and consider the budgets. For engineers working in Santa Cruz County, federal and state budgets must be considered when prioritizing and executing projects. Furthermore, local environmental restrictions must be complied with to ensure new developments are not harming the surrounding ecosystem. Although these restrictions may be difficult to work around, it presents new opportunities for engineers to create new designs and implement them in their projects. For large culvert replacements, the county has implemented HDPE piping. HDPE piping is made of a durable and low maintenance plastic material as opposed to metal pipes that corrode and deteriorate with time. Because of this, water flow has been much smoother and the impacts of heavy rains and flooding have been lessened. In conclusion, there are several factors engineers must consider when it comes to reducing flood issues. Subjects such as global warming, existing infrastructure, and local and state regulations and budgets must all be considered and complied with in order to make certain that new constructions will be efficient and safe. I personally am looking forward to the challenges and opportunities that are presented to engineers when faced with adversity. What is most exciting is being able to help the public and seeing your work directly helping residents and the community.

On Valentine's Day weekend 2017, my family was nearly flooded out of their home. We live in Yuba City, CA, downstream from the Oroville Dam. The record-breaking rains that year had damaged the dam, and threatened to collapse the dam entirely. I was fourteen at the time and remembered the panic of trying to escape town. For the first time in my life, I was faced with the difficult decision of what was valuable, and what I was willing to lose in the event of a flood. I recall realizing just how dangerous the situation was when we got onto the highway, as there were only two directions to head; west or south. In either direction, we faced bumper-to-bumper traffic. We were trapped. I was separated from the main family group, as I was the designated navigator and translator for my elderly grandmother, who was half blind and driving the other vehicle. As I sat in the cramped car, surrounded by what little we could save from our homes, I remember having a completely out-of-body thought; these events were things that I would expect to see in a movie, or maybe read in a book. The selfish thought continued to cross my mind that this happened to other people all the time, but I had never imagined that this would happen to my family. Thankfully, the danger of the dam collapsing receded, and we were able to return home. Looking back on the event, there were a few key issues. The primary issue was the lack of repairs. The main spillway was damaged, so to prevent further erosion they emergency spillway was used. However, the emergency spillway had not been used since the dam was constructed in 1968. Eventually, the water running through the spillway caused more significant erosion than previously anticipated and threatened to collapse the spillway. However, there was an upgrade proposal in 2005 that would have lined the emergency spillway with concrete, as environmentalists were concerned that it was susceptible to erosion. This proposal was rejected. Had the upgrades been done, 150,000 people would not have been nearly flooded out of their homes. Furthermore, when the main spillway failed, no major warnings or notices were issued. As far as I remember, the only notice or flood warning that was issued was not even an advisory, it was a full-on evacuation order. It seems as if the management of the entire situation was very poor, and had the situation gone south, thousands would have drowned, regardless of their ability to swim. I think of my family, trapped in traffic with nowhere else to run. Had the emergency spillway failed as well as the main one, we all would have been washed away. Thus, I have opted to dedicate myself to environmental law. Those that put individuals in harm's way through such reckless actions must be held accountable. That upgrade proposal for the emergency spillway should have never been rejected. Furthermore, using the emergency spillway that had never been used before was a desperate attempt. If the spillway had been tested periodically throughout the season, perhaps this event could have been avoided. Ultimately, this mistake cost far more in damages than the upgrade itself. In the future, my goal is to advocate for environmental preservation and promote safe policies for both the environment and those who coexist with it.