DECEMBER 2020 NEWSLETTER

The latest news and updates from DIPP

Dear Deal Island Peninsula Partners,

 

Happy holidays!! Below is the latest on DIPP activities, including an update on the Deal Island Shoreline Project, and several opportunities that you can take advantage of to help shape local flood mitigation and adaptation planning efforts. In particular, the County's draft Flood Mitigation Plan will be released for public comment in January, and we encourage everyone to review it and share your feedback. We are also working with DNR to promote a new flood documentation phone app and website called MyCoast Maryland, which has the potential to bring needed attention to flooding issues, and to help shape local flood reduction efforts on the ground. We'd love your help in generating flooding reports this winter through the MyCoast app in an effort to help us understand how we can take advantage of this powerful tool to support the Deal Island Peninsula. More details on these two opportunities are below.

 

Wishing everyone a wonderful holiday season, and a brighter and healthier 2021! 

 

Sincerely,
Liz Van Dolah

DIPP Coordinator

Restoration and Maintenance Project Updates

The Deal Island Shoreline Project: 

The County is developing a bid package for the shoreline construction which will be advertised through the Salisbury Daily Times this coming Sunday, December 27th (as well as on the County website). In addition to the newspaper ad in the Daily Times, the County has a list of 12 approved marine contractor to whom they will be directly mailing the bid package. They plan to host a virtual pre-bid meeting for interested contractors on January 12, with bids sent to the County Commissioners on February 2nd. 

Ditch Maintenance Projects: 

The County installed a new culvert and tidegate at the intersection of Crab Island, Oriole Back Road and Oriole Road in early November. They also addressed drainage issues on Fitzgerald Road near the intersection of Deal Island Road.  

 

DIPP Coordination Committee Update

The DIPP Coordination Committee -- a committee with representation from each of DIPP's main stakeholder groups -- met in late November to discuss upcoming projects and opportunities for DIPP. These included the Somerset County Flood Mitigation Plan (see below for details), the Deal Island Thin-layer Placement Project that will be carried out in the marshes near Dames Quarter in 2021, and the potential benefits of using the new MyCoast app/website to document local flooding (more details below). We also discussed the need for a more coordinated long-term strategy for support DIPP coordination into the future. The Committee will return to this discussion in the new year, and discuss activities to pursue in 2021 towards meeting DIPP's resiliency goals and objectives. We will share outcomes from these discussions in an upcoming newsletter.

Somerset County's Draft Flood Mitigation Plan Will Be Available for Public Comment in New Year

Somerset County (though their Department of Emergency Services) is developing a FEMA Flood Mitigation Plan to reduce flood risks throughout the County. The planning process is open to all interested stakeholders who are invited to participate in virtual planning discussions and share comments.

 

To date, there have been three virtual stakeholder planning discussions, the last which was held at the end of October. During this call, the Deal Island Peninsula was identified as a key area of concern due to repetitive flooding and potential access issues during extreme flooding events. You can review notes from this call and maps of identified flooding hotspots here.

The County will be releasing a draft of the Flood Mitigation Plan on January 15th for public comment (will be made available through the plan's website, link below). We encourage everyone to provide their feedback on the plan when the public comment period opens. You can also stay up-to-date with the planning process by becoming a project stakeholder. Visit their website for more details: www.somersetmdfloodplan.org.

MyCoast Maryland Now Available:

A New App/Website to Report Local Flooding 

The new MyCoast Maryland website and app is now available! MyCoast is a free flood documentation platform that enables users to share tidal or rain-based flooding issues with decision-makers. MyCoast Maryland is being offered by the DNR's Chesapeake and Coastal Service to help decision-makers visualize flooding impacts and enable communities to inform flood reduction decisions.

How to Use MyCoast: 

The app offers three tools to report local flooding events:

1) Nuisance Tidal Flooding Reporter -- for reporting sunny-day tidal-driven flooding, usually associated with higher than high tides

2) The Storm Reporter -- for reporting precipitation-caused flooding from routine rain events or large coastal storms

3) Storm Damage Reporter -- for reporting damage from hurricanes, nor'easters, or other coastal storm events.

 

A fourth reporting tool -- the Restoration Tracker -- will be coming online soon to provide a mechanism to track restoration projects, such as the Deal Island shoreline project.

 

Once you create an account, you can generate flood reports using any of these tools through a simple 4-step process:

MyCoast geo-references each report and links it to data from nearby tidal stations, stream gauges, and Dark Sky (weather app) to create a more complete picture of what caused the documented flooding or damage. The app also includes several useful tools, such as a high-tide reminder if you live in an area that's prone to routine flooding; and a local tide chart for the coming week.  

 

Flood reports are publicly viewable on the website and can be downloaded by decision-makers to help them better understand flooding trends, identify needs, access data to support grant applications, among other potential uses. It has the potential to be a powerful tool for building the case for needed flood reduction action. 

 

DNR is in the very early stages of rolling out MyCoast to communities across Maryland. Currently, they are piloting it with specific communities -- including in Somerset County -- to better understand how residents and decision-makers may use it, and to collect feedback on how to improve its functionality and usefulness. Somerset County Government is especially interested in exploring how they may be able to use MyCoast in their flood reduction and adaptation planning efforts. 

 

Using MyCoast on the Deal Island Peninsula

*****We Need Your Help!*****

 

MyCoast only has potential if local communities commit to using it to document local flooding concerns. Liz Van Dolah is working with DNR this winter to promote MyCoast on the Deal Island Peninsula. We are exploring how MyCoast can be effectively used to bring attention to areas where routine flooding is occurring and needs to be addressed. 

 

This is an opportunity for Deal Islanders to create a collective voice about local ditch issues, problematic roadway flooding, and other flooding concerns that impact people's day-to-day activities in Oriole, Dames Quarter, Chance, Deal Island, and Wenona.

 

If enough reports are generated, we hope to be able to collaboratively discuss ways these reports can/should be integrated into ongoing and future flooding mitigation and adaptation efforts with the County and others who make decisions about flood mitigation and adaptation. 

Help us Generate Flood Reports for the Deal Island Peninsula! 

 

1)  Download the MyCoast app

2) Register an account

3)  Use the app to document repetitive flooding that is of concern to you

4) Be part of the conversation about how MyCoast can/should be used to engage decision-makers and inform action

 

Download the MyCoast App for iPhone through the App Store

Download the MyCoast App for Android on Google Play

 

Interested in learning more? Want to provide feedback on MyCoast?

Get in touch with Liz Van Dolah

(vandolah@terpmail.umd.edu)

In the News

  • PEW Flood Prepared Communities Project: Policy and planning tools and resources to help communities better prepare for and respond to flooding.   
  • New article published from the DIPP Engaging Faith for Coastal Communities Project: "Marsh Migration, Climate Change, and Coastal Resilience: Human Dimensions Considerations for a Fair Path Forward" (Wetlands)
  • "Tale of Skipjack Captain and Caper Still Praise Worthy" (Bay Journal): Read a wonderful tale from a day in the life of the celebrated Deal Island waterman, Art Daniels Jr. on his skipjack, The City of Crisfield.

 

NOAA's Projected January High-High Tide Dates for the Mid-Atlantic: 

January 11-14, 2021

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