Charlotte’s history with flooding has transformed the way the city manages its waterways. In August 1995 and July 1997, Charlotte experienced severe flooding as a result of excessive rainfall from Tropical Storm Jerry and Hurricane Danny (Robinson et al., 1998). During the 1997 flood, water levels increased significantly in Little Sugar Creek, with the gauge near Pineville at a historic crest of 23.94 ft (NOAA, 1997). This major flood caused over $60 million in property damage and resulted in the tragic loss of three lives. The flood also washed out a railroad bridge, sending a locomotive and 2,500 gallons of diesel fuel into Little Sugar Creek. The USGS conducted water quality monitoring at sites along Little Sugar Creek and found that sediment and nitrogen loads during the storms of 1995 and 1997 were much larger than a typical summer runoff event (Robinson et al., 1998). The below images are from a 1998 USGS Report covering the two historic floods in Charlotte.
A TOW TRUCK DRIVER WADES THROUGH WAIST-DEEP WATER TO ASSIST MOTORISTS AS STEWART CREEK OVERTOPS MOREHEAD STREET. (Photograph from The Charlotte Observer/Kent D. Johnson)
Flood hydrography for Little Sugar Creek during the storm of July 22-24, 1997. (Background photograph from The Charlotte Observer/Jeff Siner.) A LOCOMOTIVE PLUNGED INTO LITTLE SUGAR CREEK WHEN TRACKS NEAR SEIGLE AVENUE AND 1-277 WERE WASHED AWAY BY FLOOD WATERS.
FLOODED HOMES ALONG MYERS PARK DRIVE WHEN BRIAR CREEK OVERFLOWED ITS BANKS. (Photograph from The Charlotte Observer/ Gary O'Brien)
After the 1997 flood, Charlotte officials knew they needed to radically change their approach to mitigate flooding damage. This resulted in a major buyout program of homes located in floodplains, allowing for a new strategy of essentially letting the floodplains flood. Funded by grants from FEMA, the city and county, the Floodplain Buyout Program has purchased more than 475 homes in Charlotte’s floodplains since 1999 (del Charco, 2018). City officials also realized that their floodplain maps from 1978 were far outdated, so they began a local program using a new process called “future conditions floodplain mapping” (Durfee et al., 2016). They began mapping the 100-year floodplain on future land uses given development patterns. The floodplain maps are available to the public to show flood prone properties as Charlotte continues to grow.
A major paradigm shift in how Charlotte viewed their creeks was occurring at this time. The county recognized that their purpose for stormwater disposal should come second to the preservation of the creeks themselves (Durfee et al. 2016). This new perspective led to a greater focus on stream restoration projects across the city, starting in the early 2000s and still continuing today.
Despite Charlotte’s early headway in stormwater management, the city continues to face uncertainty as climate change is driving more frequent and severe weather events. Recently in November 2020, Charlotte faced another major flooding event, prompted by Hurricane Eta, which is featured by WCNC Charlotte in the video below. Little Sugar Creek near Midtown reached a historic depth of 16.2 feet- the highest it had been since 1997 (NOAA, 2020).
As the population of Charlotte continues to climb, urbanization is following suit, worsening the risk of flooding events as more stormwater runoff flows into Charlotte’s creeks. With the compounding impacts of urbanization and climate change, the future of Charlotte’s creeks hangs in the balance. Will current restoration and stormwater management practices be enough for these creeks to rebound after major floods?
References:
del Charco, C. (2018, October 29). When It Comes To Flooding Preparation, Charlotte Appears To Be The Model [Radio Broadcast Transcript]. WFAE 90.7 - Charlotte’s NPR News Source. https://www.wfae.org/local-news/2018-10-29/when-it-comes-to-flooding-preparation-charlotte-appears-to-be-the-model
Durfee, C., Rohmer, A., & Williams , D. (2016, October 17). The Future of Floods: Lessons from Charlotte-Mecklenburg County. Carolina Planning. https://carolinaangles.com/2016/10/14/the-future-of-floods-lessons-from-charlotte-mecklenburg-county/
NOAA. (2020, June 23). Little Sugar Creek (NC) At NC51 Pineville (PINN7)- Historical Crests . National Weather Service. https://water.weather.gov/ahps2/crests.php?wfo=gsp&gage=pinn7&crest_type=historic
Robinson, J. B., Hazell, W. F., & Young, W. S. (1998, April). Effects of August 1995 and July 1997 Storms in the City of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County, North Carolina. USGS- science for a changing world. https://pubs.usgs.gov/fs/1998/0036/report.pdf
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