USING GEOLOGY TO IMPROVE FLOOD HAZARD MANAGEMENT ON ALLUVIAL FANS ‐ AN EXAMPLE FROM LAUGHLIN,NEVADA1

A study of the piedmont of the Newberry Mountains near Laughlin, Nevada, demonstrates that geologic information can improve the scientific basis of flood‐hazard management on alluvial fans in desert areas. Comparison of geologic information against flood insurance rate maps (FIRMs) reveals flaws in conventional methods for flood hazard delineation in this setting. Geologic evidence indicates that large parts of the Newberry piedmont have been isolated from significant flooding for at least the past 10,000 years. This contrasts with existing FIRMs that include large tracts of nonflood prone land in the 100‐year and 500‐year flood hazard zones and exclude areas of indisputably flood prone land from the regulatory flood plain. From the basis of the geology, flood hazards on at least one‐third of the piedmont are mischaracterized on the regulatory maps. The formal incorporation of geologic data into flood hazard studies on desert piedmonts could significantly reduce this type of discrepancy and substantially reduce the scope, hence cost, of more elaborate engineering studies and hazard mitigation strategies. The results of this study affirm the value of new Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) recommendations for characterizing alluvial fan flood hazards and support an argument for mandating geological studies in the regulatory process.