Final answer:
To deter building in floodplains, zoning regulations can prohibit construction, and building codes can enforce flood-resistant construction and mandate vegetative buffer zones. Natural ecosystems, such as forests and wetlands, play a significant role in flood mitigation, which should be incorporated into these regulatory standards.
Step-by-step explanation:
Regulatory Standards for Floodplain Management
To encourage building sites completely out of the floodplain, two higher regulatory standards can be implemented. First, zoning regulations that strictly prohibit construction in floodplain areas. Zoning can be supported by mapping and risk assessment tools that accurately delineate floodplain boundaries, ensuring that developments are kept out of high-risk areas. Second, building codes and standards that require any necessary structures within or near floodplains to be constructed with flood-resistant materials and elevated above known flood levels. These can also mandate the creation of buffer zones with vegetation that can absorb excess water, such as the conservation of mangrove forests and wetlands, which can reduce the impact and frequency of floods by absorbing rainwater and reducing runoff.
The importance of such regulatory standards is highlighted by studies showing that deforestation and the destruction of natural vegetation can increase the severity of floods. Conversely, maintaining natural forests and ecosystems can provide flood mitigation benefits, something that artificial interventions may not always achieve. Reforestation and the conservation of existing ecosystems, like mangroves and wetlands, can be potent strategies to reduce flood impacts, as exemplified in the aftermath of the 2004 tsunami in Southeast Asia, where areas with intact mangrove forests suffered less damage.