The Metropolitan King County Council created a new countywide government, the King County Flood Control District (FCD), on April 16, 2007, with responsibility for developing a plan for funding a backlog of maintenance and repairs to King County's aging system of 500 levees and hardened embankments.

Scientists have concluded that climate change will impact in the Pacific Northwest with higher temperatures, higher sea levels, more flooding, and slight increases in precipitation. Due to the possibility of more flooding in the future, King County created the Flood Control District, which is comprised of twelve former flood control districts that did not previously coordinate optimally during past flooding events.

The current King County FCD work plan was adopted November 17, 2007, with the new FCD managing 500 flood control facilities in King County. The purpose is to protect residents and towns from any future catastrophic flooding by upgrading and maintaining King County’s aging levy system.

The levees alongside the river systems protect 65,000 jobs and generate $3.7 billion dollars within King County floodplains.  King County’s estimated lost economic output per day during flooding events is $46 million dollars. The work plan project list costs have an estimated range of $179 to $335 million dollars over the next ten years, funded by a property tax assessment of 10 cents per $1,000 assessed valuation.

The river systems that have been identified as flood hazards are the South Fork Skykomish, Snoqualmie, Sammamish, Cedar, Green, and White Rivers, and their significant tributaries, the Tolt, Raging, Miller, and Greenwater Rivers. Other flood hazard tributaries are included, such as the existing flood protection facilities like Tokul Creek, Kimball Creek, Coal Creek (in the Upper Snoqualmie Basin), Issaquah Creek, Fifteen-Mile Creek, and Holder Creek.

More Information:

King County Flood Services

King County Environmental Services