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Mayor Daniella Levine Cava announced an extension for the Miami-Dade Back Bay Coastal Storm Risk Management (CSRM) Feasibility Study after making a formal request to Assistant Secretary Connor and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). The USCAE expressed support for the development and consideration of locally identified alternatives that enhance the natural environment and urban communities, in combination with other measures, to provide a level of risk reduction from storm surge.
“This is a huge win for Miami-Dade County and for resilient local governments across the US,” said Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava. “With this extension, Miami-Dade can now better solicit community feedback and work to include nature-based solutions into this milestone project.”
In addition, Assistant Secretary Connor also encouraged coordination of the Back Bay Study with other water-related infrastructure projects and studies in the County and the Southeast Florida Region. As planning advances, new and enhanced collaboration will be led by the Coastal Storm Risk Management National Planning Center housed at the USACE North Atlantic Division (NAD). The USACE NAD and Norfolk District will continue managing the Back Bay Study and work closely with the USACE South Atlantic Division (SAD) and Jacksonville District to ensure that solutions are integrated with other water resource planning efforts. The South Florida Water Management District, a critical local player, will also be invited to play an active coordination role.
These integrated solutions will be critical as the USACE completes a separate Miami-Dade County, FL CSRM study focused on the ocean side of the County, with recommendations for furthering the County and USACE partnership to manage local beaches. Additional studies for Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP) projects and increasing the resilience of the regional flood control system will also continue.
Mayor Levine Cava and the Miami-Dade County Office of Resilience (OOR) will schedule a September meeting with key USACE officials to agree on a timeline and critical steps for the Back Bay Study and collaborate on all other USACE projects within the County. Special attention will focus on involving key stakeholder groups, including the County’s Biscayne Bay Watershed Management Advisory Board and the State’s Biscayne Bay Commission.
“We know we can develop a workable plan to protect urban areas of the County from storm surge,” said James Murley, Chief Resilience Officer for Miami-Dade County. “And we’re working to ensure this same plan also provides economic continuity after a hurricane event and maintains and enhances our precious Biscayne Bay.”
At Mayor Daniella Levine Cava’s direction, the OOR will also move to procure services from a consulting firm that can assist County staff and local stakeholders to formulate new environmentally-based features to be included in the overall Back Bay plan.
