In 1978, King County and cities of Auburn, Kent, Renton and Tukwila signed an interlocal agreement to form the Green River Basin Program, which supported a more comprehensive and programmatic interjurisdictional flood control and drainage program for the lower Green River basin.

In 1990, the King County Council passed a Resolution which activated the District's taxing authority and established the first budget and tax levy for the District. Subsequently in 1992, the interlocal agreement between King County and the cities of Auburn, Kent, Renton and Tukwila was renewed for a ten-year duration for the purpose of continuing the principles embodied in the Green River Basin Program interlocal agreement; administration of the District's budget and work program; and setting forth the standards and procedures for maintaining and repairing the levees, revetments and pump stations located within the District's boundaries.

HOW IS THE DISTRICT OPERATED AND ADMINISTERED?
The King County Council is established by Washington State law (RCW) as the District's Board of Supervisors and is expressly responsible for the governance of the District. The King County Department of Natural Resources and Parks serves as the lead administrative and technical agency of the District and assigns its employees to implement the District's annual work program.

The District's overall budget and work program is coordinated through an Executive and Technical Committee. The Executive Committee provides policy guidance and direction to the Technical Committee for implementing requirements of the interlocal agreement. The Executive Committee is comprised of the mayors of the four participating cities, a King County Councilmember, and the King County Executive. The Technical Committee carries out the directives of the Executive Committee and implements the District's annual work program as identified in the interlocal agreement. The Technical Committee consists of the public works or department directors and/or their designated representatives from the four participating cities and King County.

HOW ARE THE DISTRICT'S PROGRAMS AND PROJECTS FUNDED?
The District is primarily funded by an ad valorem tax levy on all properties within its boundaries. The District levy in 2002 is .04846 cents per $1,000 of assessed valuation and will collect an estimated $830,780. Therefore the owner of residential property assessed at $200,000 will pay $9.69 and the owner of a commercial property assessed at $10 million will pay $484.60 to the District levy. Annual levy increases have been held to the limitations of Referendum 47 and more recently within the mandatory restrictions in Initiative 747.

The District also leverages significant amounts of public assistance and grant funding from federal and state agencies following flood disasters to repair damaged flood protection facilities. Since 1991, the District has secured nearly $5.9 million in federal and state funds for flood hazard reduction projects. Other funding for the District's projects and programs has come from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the U.S. Housing and Urban Development's Community Development Block Grant program.

WHAT ARE SOME OF THE DISTRICT'S ACTIVITIES?
The District is responsible for maintaining 98 flood control facilities on the Green River lying between the Cities of Auburn and Tukwila. Since 1991, 36 major maintenance, repair and habitat enhancement projects have been completed using a combination of federal, state, local and grant funds. The total cost of these 36 projects was $7,960,550.

In addition to maintaining the flood control facilities, the District operates two pump stations, the Black River and Tukwila Pump Stations, constructed by U.S. Soil Conservation Service in 1970s. A third, the Segale Pump Station, was constructed by the District in 1997. The Black River Pump Station regulates flow of water from the Black River drainage basin into the Green River and serves to block high flows from the Green from flooding up into the Black River & Springbrook Creek, and the Earlington Industrial Park in Renton. The Tukwila Pump Station, located adjacent to the Green River, pumps stormwater from the Southcenter commercial area into the Green River. The Segale Pump Station controls groundwater saturation previously affecting the stability of the Segale Levee foundation soils.

Annual routine maintenance activities are also performed by the District. These include access gate repairs and replacements; project site and in-water monitoring; removal of invasive plant species from newly re-vegetated flood protection facilities; installation of native riparian trees and shrubs; sign installation; and routine facility flood damage assessments. District personnel also participate in the patrol and inspection of its flood control facilities during flooding events and coordinate flood warning and emergency response activities between King County, the lower Green River valley cities, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

WHAT ARE THE RISKS AND POTENTIAL DAMAGES THAT COULD OCCUR IN THE DISTRICT AS A RESULT OF FLOODING?
A preliminary risk-based analysis study has been completed. The study examines the potential damages that could occur as a result of levee and revetment instability. The objective of the study was to develop a preliminary estimate of the expected annual damage to structures and structure contents within the district's floodplain.

Preliminary Risk-Based Flood Damage Analysis (Adobe Acrobat 1.0 mb)

IS THERE MORE INFORMATION AVAILABLE?
Yes, An annual report is published that provides a detailed account of the program activities.

2004 Annual Report (Adobe Acrobat 2.3 mb)
2003 Annual Report (Adobe Acrobat 1.8 mb)
2002 Annual Report (Adobe Acrobat 951 kb)
2001 Annual Report (Adobe Acrobat 656 kb)
2000 Annual Report (Adobe Acrobat 913 kb)
1999 Annual Report (Adobe Acrobat 703 kb)
1998 Annual Report (Adobe Acrobat 887 kb)

For questions about the Green River Flood Control Zone District, please contact Steve Bleifuhs, River and Floodplain Management Unit.

For questions about the
Water and Land Resources Web Site,
please contact Fred Bentler, webmaster

Updated: December 29, 2006