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VEM Flood Study Scoping – Huntington, VT�Public Meeting #1

January 12,2026

Branden Martin, PE, Evelyn Boardman, and Annemarie Fortune, AICP (Stone Environmental, Inc.)

Steve Libby and Vicky Arthur (Vermont Emergency Management)

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Agenda�

Presentation

Introductions
Scoping Study Background and Role of Vermont Emergency Management
Project Objectives
Project Process and Timeline
Anticipated Outcomes
River Process and Channel Evolution
Historic River Management and Effects/Outcomes
Hydraulic and Hydrologic Model Inputs and Outputs
Hazard Mitigation Grant Funding and Example Projects
Community Input/Engagement Activity and Objectives for Collaboration
Next Steps

Public Comments and Questions
Opportunity for Input - Poster Engagement

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Flood Study Scoping Background�

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Project Objectives

Assessment of flood water and sediment flows of the Huntington River by development of a Hydraulic and Hydrologic Model (H&H Model)
Identify flood vulnerabilities and identify opportunities to mitigate risk
Engage the public to capture local knowledge of flooding conditions, property damage, and potential flood mitigation actions
Identify one or more priority flood mitigation implementation projects that will be designed to 30% to support future applications to funding like FEMA and State of Vermont programs

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Scope of Work / Process

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Anticipated Outcomes

Improved understanding of flood impacts informed by hydraulic modeling.
Prioritized list of potential mitigation project alternatives. Projects will be ranked by factors such as:

Flood mitigation potential
Project feasibility
Permitting ease
Community alignment
Cost effectiveness
Co-benefits

High priority projects advanced toward implementation with conceptual designs.

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Background – River Process and Channel Evolution

Rivers change over time, in response to:

Discharge (amount of water)
Sediment Load
Energy
Resistance of Bed and Bank Materials
Channel Management

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Background – River Management

Historic Activities:

River Straightening and Deepening
Bank Hardening
Corridor and Floodplain Encroachment
River Crossings

Modifying:

Floodplain Storage
Stream Power

Materials Erode or Deposit

Boundary Resistance
Damage risk

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Hydraulic Model Inputs

Topography (Elevation)

Land Cover

Infrastructure

Buildings
Bridges and Culverts

Hydrology

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Hydraulic Model Outputs

Areas vulnerable to inundation, erosion, and deposition

Flow patterns, elevations, depths and velocities

Simulated response to projects

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HMGP Funding & Eligible Project Types

FEMA Hazard Mitigation Grant Program Funding (HMGP) funding is available to towns and other eligible applicants for projects that reduce the risk of flooding or other hazards.
Eligible Project Types

Natural resource projects such as floodplain restoration or dam removal
Infrastructure projects such as upsizing bridges and culverts
Floodproofing of municipal or commercial buildings
Structural elevations and mitigation reconstruction
Road relocation, elevation, or soil stabilization
Buyouts
Projects can be combined into one larger project

Projects cost-effectiveness must be shown through a Benefit Cost Analysis, Project Benefits > Project Costs.

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HMGP Funding & Example Projects

Photo source: NOAA Climate Program Office

Culvert Replacement & Upsizing

Dam Removal & Floodplain

Reconnection

Structure Elevation

Bank Stabilization

Restored

floodplain

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On our left – culvert upsizing (Branden)
In the middle – dam removal project that included removal of a partial breached high hazard dam. This dam was an old mill dam that was no longer serving it’s intended purpose. It was located immediately upstream of an abandoned home and upstream of a village center. The project included buyout the downstream property, removing the dam, and restoring a variable width floodplain, providing storage for flood waters and slowing the velocity of water during floods. The project include the buyout and demolish of an immediately downstream home that had been abandoned. The restoration project included the construction of a variable width floodplain to restore natural flood.
The dam, floodplain reconnection, and culvert projects are examples of projects that increase resiliency by helping to lower flood levels. These types of projects can often be more cost-effective than structural projects, such as elevating or floodproofing a building.
Floodproofing in the top right hand corner.
Bottom right photo is from a bank stabilization project where root wad installations, a nature-based engineering solution, were design and installed to stabilize a bank adjacent to a horse barn and upstream of an existing hydroelectric dam.

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VEM Scoping Study – Community Input

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Objectives for Input

Understand desired outcomes and priorities;
Better understand past flood impacts and vulnerabilities; and
Gather ideas for potential projects and understand concerns/questions related to particular types of solutions.

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Opportunity for Input Cont.

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Next Steps

Data collected from today will:

Help us to better understand flooding impacts within the community that can inform our assessment of vulnerabilities/potential solutions.

Inform us of projects that have been identified within the community that may need additional analysis/data.

Assess identified solutions for alignment with community priorities and values to support prioritization of projects for conceptual design.

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Next Steps

Data collected from today will:

Help us to better understand flooding impacts within the community that can inform our assessment of vulnerabilities/potential solutions.

Inform us of projects that have been identified within the community that may need additional analysis/data.

Assess identified solutions for alignment with community priorities and values to support prioritization of projects for conceptual design.

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Thank you.

Branden Martin, PE, Project Water Resources Engineer

Contact / bmartin@stone-env.com

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