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FEMA -Community Rating System Resource Center Page 1 of 1 Natural and Beneficial Functions Floodplains perform certain natural and beneficial functions that cannot be duplicated elsewhere. The CRS provides special credit for community activities that protect these functions, even though some of the activities may not directly reduce flood losses to insurable buildings. Two types of "natural and beneficial functions" warrant protecting Floodplains in their natural state. 1. Floodplains in their natural state have an important impact on flooding. Flood waters can spread over a large area in floodplains that have not been encroached upon. This reduces flood velocities and provides flood storage to reduce peak flows downstream. Natural floodplains reduce wind and wave impacts and their vegetation stabilizes soils during flooding. 2. Floodplains in their natural state provide "ancillary beneficial functions" beyond flood reduction. Water quality is improved in areas where natural cover acts as a filter for runoff and overbank flows; sediment loads and impurities are also minimized. Natural floodplains moderate water temperature, reducing the possibility of adverse impacts on aquatic plants and animals. Floodplains can act as recharge areas for groundwater and reduce the frequency and duration of low flows of surface water. They provide habitat for diverse species of flora and fauna, some of which cannot live anywhere else. They are particularly important as breeding and feeding areas. The CRS encourages State, local, and private programs and projects that preserve or restore the natural state of floodplains and protect these functions. The CRS also encourages communities to coordinate their flood loss reduction programs with Habitat Conservation Plans and other public and private activities that preserve and protect natural and beneficial floodplain functions. Credits for doing this are found in the following activities: . 330-Outreach Projects: credit is provided for outreach projects that include descriptions of the natural and beneficial floodplain functions of the community's floodplains. . 420-Open Space Preservation: extra credit is provided for open space areas that are preserved in their natural state, have been restored to a condition approximating their pre-development natural state, or have been designated as worthy of preservation for their natural benefits, such as being designated in a Habitat Conservation Plan. • 430-Higher Regulatory Standards: regulations that protect natural areas during development or that protect water quality are credited. • 450-Stormwater Management: erosion and sediment control and water quality requirements for projects that affect stormwater runoff are credited. • 510-Floodplain Management Planning: extra credit is provided for plans that address floodplain natural resources and that are coordinated with a community's Habitat Conservation Plan. http://training.fema.gov/EMI Web/CRS/ml s3main_b.htm 3/22/2007