§ 11-3. Purpose.

It is the purpose of this chapter to promote the public health, safety, and general welfare, to minimize flood losses and to protect watercourses by:

(1)

Reduction of the hazard of floods to life and property through:

a.

Prohibiting certain uses which are dangerous to life or property in time of flood.

b.

Restricting uses which would be hazardous to the public health in time of flood.

c.

Restricting uses which are particularly susceptible to flood damage, so as to alleviate hardship and reduce demands for public expenditures for relief and protection.

d.

Requiring permitted floodplain uses, including public facilities which serve such uses, to be protected against floods by providing flood protection at the time of initial construction.

(2)

Protection of floodplain occupants from a flood which is or may be caused by their own land use and which is or may be undertaken without full realization of the danger, by:

a.

Regulating the manner in which structures designed for human occupancy may be constructed so as to prevent danger to human life within such structures.

b.

Regulating the method of construction of water supply and sanitation systems so as to prevent disease, contamination and unsanitary conditions.

c.

Delineating and describing areas that could be inundated by floods so as to protect individuals from purchasing floodplain lands for purposes which are not in fact suitable.

(3)

Protection of the public from the burden of extraordinary financial expenditures for flood control and relief.

(4)

Protection of the "storage capacity of floodplains" and assuring retention of sufficient "floodway" area to convey flood flows which can reasonably be expected to occur by:

a.

Regulating filling, dumping, dredging, and alteration of channels by deepening, widening or relocating.

b.

Prohibiting unnecessary encroachments.

c.

Encouraging open space uses such as agriculture and recreation.

(Code 1977, § 5.702)