CARPC Secures $187,500 Grant to Help Communities Improve Flood Resilience
As Wisconsin grapples with rising temperatures and more intense rainfall, communities face growing challenges in managing flood-prone infrastructure. The Wisconsin State Climatology Office reports that 2024 was the state’s warmest year on record since 1895, marked by extreme precipitation swings—from record dry months to record wet ones. These shifting climate patterns are placing a growing strain on road-stream crossings and the watersheds they serve.
To help local governments address these risks, CARPC will expand its Dane County Road-Stream Crossing Inventory thanks to a $187,500 Pre-Disaster Flood Resilience Grant from Wisconsin Emergency Management. The project assesses and prioritizes critical infrastructure upgrades to improve flood resilience.
“Many rural communities lack the resources to systematically evaluate their culverts and drainageways, making it difficult to identify which crossings are most at risk,” said Jason Valerius, Executive Director of CARPC. “Without adequate data, municipalities are often forced to make reactive infrastructure decisions—replacing culverts and drainage structures during emergencies instead of implementing long-term, strategic improvements.”
CARPC launched a pilot project in 2024, assessing 67 crossings in the Towns of Cottage Grove, Deerfield, Medina, and Sun Prairie. The inventory examined structural conditions, stream health, aquatic organism passability, and flood vulnerability, with real-time data uploaded to the Stream Crossing Dashboard. The findings provided towns with valuable insights into safety, connectivity, and fish passage issues while identifying recommended improvements and funding opportunities.
“Flooding is a challenge that no community can tackle alone,” Valerius said. “This grant allows us to take a regional approach, helping local governments plan ahead and make infrastructure decisions that build long-term resilience—not just quick fixes after a storm.”
With this new funding, CARPC will expand the project to additional townships and watersheds across Dane County. The data collected will support local infrastructure planning, watershed modeling, and regional flood resilience studies, ensuring communities are better prepared for extreme weather events.