Floodplain Management
Contact:
Floodplain Management
2020 Hampton Street, 1st Floor
Columbia, SC 29204
(803) 576-2158
flood@rcgov.us
Mission
Protect property owners by restricting or prohibiting uses in flood prone areas that are dangerous to their health, safety, or property in times of flood.
National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP)
In 1979, Richland County joined the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) and has been active in floodplain management since that time. Floodplain Management is a program that uses corrective and preventative measures to achieve a reduction in loss of life, disruption, and damage caused by floods as well as the preservation and restoration of natural resources and functions of floodplain
Community Rating System (CRS)
The NFIP has played a critical role in fostering and accelerating the principals of floodplain management by providing federally backed flood insurance to the communities that must participate in the NFIP. The Community Rating System (CRS) offers incentives for communities to do more than just regulate construction of new buildings to minimum standards.
Under the CRS program, flood insurance premiums are adjusted to reflect community activities that reduce flood damage to existing buildings, manage development in areas not mapped by the National Flood Insurance Program, protect new buildings beyond the minimum required protection level, and assist insurance, mortgage, and real estate agents obtain accurate flood data. By participating in the CRS Program, enforcing the ordinance, and through public outreach, Richland County provides its residents an automatic 10% discount on flood insurance.