By Ted Fischer
January 11, 2010

Steve Stockton, Director of Civil Works for the US Army Corps of Engineers, addressed mayors participating in the Mayors Water Summit in Washington (DC) on December 2. Stockton commented on the role of the Corps in communities across the nation. "The Corps provides vital engineering services in peace and war to strengthen our nation's security, energize the economy, and reduce risks from disasters," he said. "Our mission and purpose align with mayors' visions for quality of life in their cities. We share the mayors' principle that water resource management should balance economics and the environment and we strive to support home-rule and each mayor's leadership for development and management of water resources."

Stockton reviewed the long list of functions performed and the way they are integrated with local government. Relying on a hydrologic basin'scale water management system approach, the Corps designs and builds structures to reduce urban flood risk, generate power and supply water to hundreds of communities. About 1,400 local projects originally were designed and constructed by the Corps, and yet are maintained by local communities. The Corps also assisted in 160 eligible local flood and storm risk management projects. Harbors and waterways that are vital to the well being of millions of people, hundreds of communities, and the competiveness of U.S. industries are also very important to the Corps- ever-changing portfolio. Several examples of the Army Corps of Engineer's portfolio include 926 coastal, Great Lakes and inland harbors, waterborne transportation serving 41 states (including all states east of the Mississippi River), 12,000 miles of commercial inland channels, 241 lock chambers at 195 sites, transportation for $1.394 trillion of US world trade and 17 percent of all domestic freight transportation.

"There is always disequilibrium between where people settle and where water resources are located. Using water degrades its quality; using huge volumes each day requires that billions of dollars are spent on treating the water," said Stockton. He further stated that according to Army Corps records, droughts in New Jersey, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia suggest that we can no longer expect a stable climate and rely on historical precipitation for future supply planning. "Mayors continue to seek ways to help cities raise the more than $1 trillion needed to build and refurbish the nation's surface and sub'surface water infrastructure," he added.

Stockton commented on the need to consider non'structural engineering techniques to control floods and increase water recharge in watersheds. The Corps is engaged in balancing structural and non'structural approaches while they seek to balance environmental and economic goals. He called for the mayors to find ways to increase intergovernmental collaboration to achieve the necessary balance.

For more information on Stockton's presentation and the Army Corps of Engineers, visit the website www.usmayors.org/urbanwater.