Federal studies proved suburbanization doubled to quadrupled storm runoff by 1970

Evidence

By 1970, the agency’s staff had completed more than a dozen studies of watersheds in fast-growing areas in California, New York, Virginia, Maryland, Michigan, Illinois, North Carolina, and Mississippi. The runoff investigations took two forms. In some studies, researchers compared the flow of streams in rural and urban regions within a watershed. In other studies, investigators were able to analyze the water regimen before and after development. Either way, the studies showed a dramatic increase in flood potential in the wake of suburban growth. The change in land use doubled, tripled, or quadrupled the volume of runoff. The speed of the storm flow also increased sharply. Because a much greater amount of water ran off the land in less time, the result was likely to be more frequent and more damaging floods. — Adam Rome, The Bulldozer in the Countryside, 803

Categorization

• XREF: Pays off and scientifically confirms the Max Bader anecdote and the reader’s eco-justice thread on development imposing downstream costs. — connects to: Antidevelopment arguments across disciplines converged on the cost of disregarding natural processes. — Adam Rome, The Bulldozer in the Countryside:…, 640; Early claims that suburbs worsened floods were plausible but scientifically untested — Adam Rome, The Bulldozer in the Countryside:…, 798; Suburban sprawl created flood damage faster than engineered protections could counter — Adam Rome, The Bulldozer in the Countryside:…, 698 (+1 more)

Broader Connections

• Suburban sprawl created flood damage faster than engineered protections could counter #corroborates (0.85) — Adam Rome, The Bulldozer in the Countryside, 698
• Scalped suburban watersheds erode at roughly fifty times undisturbed rates #expands (0.80) — Adam Rome, The Bulldozer in the Countryside, 898