During the development of The Tomorrow Plan, flooding and water quality issues rose to the top of the Steering Committee’s priority list. As such, these items are early implementation priorities for The Tomorrow Team.
Under Iowa law, a Watershed Management Authority (WMA) is a formal 28E agreement created by two or more political subdivisons. WMAs work to:
- Assess and reduce flood risk
- Assess and improve water quality
- Monitor federal flood risk planning and activities
- Educate residents of the watershed regarding flood risks and water quality
- Allocate moneys made available to the Authority for the purposes of water quality and flood mitigation
The legislative intent in authorizing the creation of WMAs was to develop coordination within watersheds and to identify funding opportunities.
Walnut Creek WMA
The Des Moines Area MPO is facilitating the development of the Walnut Creek WMA, which includes 13 entities. To date, 11 of the 13 have signed onto the 28E cooperative agreement. The Board of Directors and the officers will be finalized in the coming weeks.
Other Greater Des Moines Area WMAs
The Tomorrow Team also is playing an active role in other WMAs around the region. The team is participating in both the Mud, Camp, and Spring Creek WMA and the Fourmile Creek WMA.
