USACE opens National Levee Database for public access Oct. 27

Published Oct. 20, 2011
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) today announced it will open the National Levee Database (NLD) for public access with a series of public webinars beginning Oct. 27 at 2 p.m. EDT. The NLD is a living, dynamic information source that provides visualization and search capability for the first time on the location and condition of levee systems nationwide.

“The National Levee Database is the first critical step in understanding levee systems in the United States, including the benefits and potential risks they pose for the communities in which they exist,” said Eric C. Halpin, P.E., USACE special assistant for dam and levee safety. “Although the current database currently contains levee information within the USACE program, we are working closely with other federal, state and local agencies to include the information on other levees on a voluntary basis.”

The database includes attributes of levees and floodwalls relevant to flood fighting, design, construction, operation, maintenance, repair and inspection. Because the location and characteristics of levee systems can be viewed on a map with real-time data from other sources, such as stream gauges and weather radar, it is a useful tool for a variety of public agencies and individuals including flood plain managers, emergency management agencies, levee system sponsors and citizens who live or work behind a levee.

Currently the NLD includes information on more than 14,700 miles of levees systems that are associated with USACE programs, but this is just a fraction of the estimated 100,000 miles of levees estimated to be nationwide.

The database will be available at http://nld.usace.army.mil

USACE will host three webinars: Thursday, Oct. 27 at 2 p.m. EDT, Wednesday, Nov. 2 at 2 p.m. EDT and Thursday, Nov. 3 at 11 a.m. EDT. Attendance is free and open to the public, but registration is required at: http://nld.usace.army.mil/publicrollout.
Contact
Pete Pierce
202-761-1809
Walter.E.Pierce@usace.army.mil
or
Carol Sanders
Carol.A.Sanders@usace.army.mil

Release no. 11-014