Meeting on Prince George’s Levee Systems

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Baltimore District, and Prince George’s County are hosting a public meeting April 19 from 7 – 9 p.m. at Bladensburg Elementary School to present on and discuss levee systems in the county. 

According to the Corps, the purpose of this meeting is to improve the public’s understanding of the benefits, concerns and risks associated with living behind these levee systems.

“Managing flood risk is a shared responsibility – from the federal level to the public, and we hope residents take advantage of this opportunity to meet with and learn from agency experts,” said Jehu Johnson, Baltimore District Levee Safety Program manager.

Additional meeting participants include the Maryland Department of the Environment, Maryland Emergency Management Agency and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

USACE also added that following presentations, there will be a question and answer segment. Largescale maps of the levee systems will also be displayed.

“Several items go into determining the level of flood risk associated with a levee system, such as how often the area may flood; the condition of the levee system; and the population and development behind a levee system,” said Johnson. “With stronger storms occurring more frequently, we can’t fully rely on levee systems to prevent all floods.”

The six levee systems being presented at this meeting include Bladensburg, Brentwood, Colmar Manor, and Hyattsville-Riverdale that reduce the risk of flooding from the Anacostia River; Collington Branch that reduces the risk of flooding from the Collington Branch of the Patuxent River; and Forest Heights that reduces the risk of flooding from Oxon Run. These systems were all constructed by Baltimore District and are now operated and maintained by Prince George’s County.

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