We now know that overdevelopment on floodplains deprives flooded rivers of the open space they need for drainage. This causes flood waters to flow farther inland damaging cities and farms, and forces more water downstream for other communities to deal with. Flood waters then recede slowly because they cannot be absorbed through concrete and asphalt.

Even though all of this was known after the great floods of 1993, most communities rebuilt on their floodplains and continued developing these fragile areas. In fact, several of the communities and neighborhoods hardest hit this spring were areas that were severely damaged in 1993, but that allowed redevelopment (and further development) to occur in their floodplain.

The main mistake that was made post-1993 was the failure of many communities to plan for the next disaster - which turned out to be this spring. "Our tendency is to want to put bad experiences behind us," explained Gary Taylor, an assistant professor at Iowa State University, writing for the Des Moines Register.

"After two catastrophic floods in 16 years," Taylor noted, "now is the time to conduct serious, deliberative disaster-mitigation planning, so that rebuilding after the next disaster takes place in a way that protects lives, property and public investments."

Taylor also blames common terminology for allaying fears better faced and dealt with. "The continued inaccurate use of the term ‘500-year flood’ gives people a false sense of security, leaving them thinking that such an event will not occur again for a very long time. Taken together, these human reactions often push planning for the future to the back burner," he added.

Taylor acknowledged that some relocation did occur where the public and private investments in flood-damaged areas were relatively small, and relocation was politically feasible. "However, where the affected areas contained millions of dollars of investment in homes, businesses and public infrastructure, significant relocation was neither practically nor politically feasible," he said.

Valley County is Nebraska's newest member of FEMA's National Flood Insurance Program. The county's Board of Supervisors voted on July 29 to join the Federal Emergency Management Agency's program. The move allows residents to purchase flood insurance and now the county is eligible for federal assistance in case of disaster.

The Board also appointed Zoning Administrator Nancy Glaubke as the county's Floodplain Administrator. In addition, Valley County's new FEMA flood maps will become effective on Aug. 19, 2008.

County officials are confident joining the NFIP will benefit residents. "If the county did not adopt this policy," Board Supervisor George Baker explained, "people who might want to build in the floodplain could not get flood insurance. Now people will have access to this program."

Valley County is one of nearly 20,000 communities across the United States and its territories participating in the NFIP. Communities adopt and enforce floodplain management ordinances to reduce flood damage. In exchange, the NFIP makes federally backed flood insurance available to homeowners, renters and business owners in these communities.

Valley County has about 24 residential structures in the floodplain which could be impacted. If property owners carry a mortgage on these homes, banks will now require flood insurance.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sen. Dianne Feinstein want to make sure future Californians have plenty of water. The two, a Republican and a Democrat, have joined forces and proposed a $9.3 billion bond to sustain California's water supply through a combination of reservoirs and conservation projects. Billions also would be spent to help the ecologically fragile Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, the heart of the state's intricate water-supply system. The governor hopes to win approval from leaders in the State Legislature and put the plan before voters this November. Feinstein and Schwarzenegger have emphasized the urgency in upgrading the state's decades-old water systems. An overview of the plan noted improvements are needed to help "offset the climate change impacts of reduced snowpack and higher flood flows."

We know flood waters can submerge cities and towns, but can they also sink test scores? Three University of Iowa professors want to find out. They have asked the National Science Foundation for $60,000 to look into how flooding affects young students. Their plan is to follow the lives of about 680 fourth through eighth graders in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, for two years. They want to compare students' pre-flood grades to their performance in coming years.

The next scourge to afflict the global economy after soaring oil and food prices will be an increase in the cost of water brought on by growing scarcity, according to the conglomerate General Electric. And the company wants to do something about it now. GE plans to cut its own water use by 20 percent by 2012, in addition to exporting water-saving technology to countries hit by shortages. The move comes as scientists warn that 50 percent of the world's nations will be hit by water shortages by 2025 and 75 percent by 2050. Already, a billion of the world's poorest people drink unsafe water, according to UNICEF. GE added that drought could also trigger war and terrorism.