WASHINGTON, DC — In the wake of yet another record-breaking hurricane, the National Wildlife Federation urged Congress to act on a series of urgent, comprehensive steps to prepare America for rising oceans and worsening storms. Rebuilding Stronger: 12 Priority Policies to Better Protect our Nation from Extreme Storms documents lessons learned from Hurricane Florence, which dumped up to 36 inches of rain in parts of North Carolina and about nine trillion gallons of water total on the Carolinas. The storm took more than 40 lives, cut off power for hundreds of thousands, and polluted rivers with spills from coal ash and pig waste lagoons.

“America needs a national commitment to protecting communities from the staggering destruction of extreme storms, like Hurricane Florence. Our communities and wildlife are at-risk because of decades of inaction, but we have highlighted concrete ways Congress can safeguard communities, protect wildlife, promote resilience and adapt to worsening storms, exacerbated by climate change,” said Collin O’Mara, president and CEO of the National Wildlife Federation. “We’re asking Congress not just to fund damage repair for this storm, but to take a series of low-cost or even cost-saving steps to better prepare communities across America for future storms.”

Rebuilding Stronger recommends that Congress:

1. Prioritize Natural Infrastructure Solutions for Hazard Risk Reduction
2. Reform the National Flood Insurance Program
3. Increase Investment in Resilience and “Pre-sponse”  
4. Reinstate the Federal Flood Risk Management Standard
5. Ensure Clean Water Act Safeguards Protect Existing Wetlands, Waterways, and Natural Floodplains
6. Ensure Meaningful Public Input and Environmental Review 
7. Improve Stormwater Management 
8. Address Dangerous and Outdated Infrastructure 
9. Ensure Climate-Resilient Siting and Design of Toxic Pollutant Storage Facilities
10. Ensure Climate-Resilient Siting, Design, and Management of Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations.
11. Ensure Full Funding for Farm Bill Conservation Programs
12. Advance Climate and Clean Energy Solutions