By the 1980s, the federal government had declared Tulsa County a flood disaster area nine times in 15 years, more than any other community in the nation. Under the leadership of Mayor M. Susan Savage, the city of Tulsa has developed innovative, nationally-recognized stormwater management programs which also protect urban water quality. The community, together with many public and private partners, adopted a watershed management approach which successfully prevents flooding, corrects existing infrastructure problems, and enhances the community s safety, environment and quality of life. Tulsa is now building parks in the flood plains, sports fields in stormwater detention basins and greenway trails on creek beds. Tulsa s success has been based on a unified, watershed-based philosophy.
Effective management demands that drainage basins be planned as integral units.
Planning for floodplain management should be based on projections for total basin urbanization, accounting for increased stormwater runoff and flood depth. In urban areas, stormwater and flood programs should address multiple objectives, including recreation and environmental quality, and multiple techniques, including structural and non-structural projects. Recovery efforts should focus primarily on prevention and flood-loss reduction. M. Susan Savage was elected Mayor of Tulsa in 1992. Mayor Savage s strong support for the city s innovative stormwater and watershed management programs has helped Tulsa become a nationally recognized leader in the field.