1	"A Presentation by Nicholas Johnson" A Presentation by Nicholas Johnson To FAIR’s “After the Flood” Program September 9, 2008
2	"this is a presentation by..." this is a presentation by Nicholas Johnson who is not a Johnson County employee Harry L. Graves, Director Johnson County Conservation Board Wants me to make clear That I am in no way speaking for him So . . . “I am not”
3	"Iowa ranks near last in" Iowa ranks near last in Park and recreation land Forests, wetlands, prairies, wildlife preserves Hopefully we’ll pass $20 million bond issue This presentation recommends We need 30-50-year plan that Puts new land for conservation in Greenbelts and Greenways, thereby Virtually eliminating economic losses from floods In addition to providing recreational, other benefits
4	"A “Greenbelt" A “Greenbelt” and a . . . Greenbelts are rings of open land encircling an urban area, serving to provide recreation: hiking and biking, golf, camping and picnics, hunting and fishing, bird watching wildlife preservation, farming and wetlands A cost-saving constraint on urban sprawl . . . “Greenway”? Greenways are linear strips of land, often along rivers, in floodplains, providing the benefits of Greenbelts plus fewer floods of less severity – eliminating economic loss .
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7	"San Francisco Greenbelt Alliance" San Francisco Greenbelt Alliance http://www.greenbelt.org/ http://youtube.com/watch?v=GpCO1cSYWg8
8	"London" London Birmingham Cambridge Bristol Reading
9	"England" England 13% of Johnson County = 32,000 acres San Francisco 27% of Johnson County = 67,000 acres
10	"Central Park Was a" Central Park Was a tough political decision Cost: $50 million – a lot 150 years ago Today’s value? $500 billion – one-half trillion! What will our Greenbelt be worth in 150 years? Never a cheaper time to acquire Greenbelt than now
11	"It’s elected official’s dream" It’s elected official’s dream! My GO IOWA! Web site lists over 100 organizations Land trusts Conservation organizations Hunting and fishing enthusiasts, hikers and bikers (Crowds at your rallies) Wildlife supporters; bird watchers Your supporters will include: young and old; liberals and conservatives; high school dropouts and Ph.D.s; rich and poor; Unitarians and conservative evangelicals; business and labor unions; farmers and realtors; Democrats, Republicans, Libertarians . . .
12	"Hawkeye Wildlife Area" Hawkeye Wildlife Area 13510 acres Coralville Lake 5400 acres Lake McBride Park 2150 acres Kent Park 1082 acres Redbird Wildlife Area 500 acres . . . More Credit: Iowa Sportsman’s Atlas
13	"That’s one I’ll leave to..." That’s one I’ll leave to the expert judgment of the professionals Wherever it’s located your grandchildren and great grandchildren will sing your praises As Larry the Cable Guy says, let’s just “Get ‘er done!”
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15	"It’s easy" It’s easy. There are only three rules: 1. Don’t put businesses or homes in floodplains 2. Don’t put businesses or homes in floodplains 3. Don’t put businesses or homes in floodplains Period
16	"Recreation areas anyway for" Recreation areas anyway for Walking and biking trails Softball fields and Frisbee golf Picnicking and camping Open areas for Prairies and pasture Nature preserves and wetlands Why put them on bluffs, and build our homes and businesses on the river bank?
17	"Recreation areas are more attractive" Recreation areas are more attractive There are fewer floods (absorption of 5 inch rain) Those that occur are less severe They come on more slowly They cause businesses and homes zero economic damage How can this be??!!
18	"Homes" Homes, businesses, roads and parking lots: Suffer economic losses They cannot absorb rainfall They increase, and speed up, run off Creating more, and more severe, floods Thereby increasing owners’ economic losses
19	"No more public money for..." No more public money for public structures Immediately stop all repair, rebuilding or new construction Immediately start using available land for recreation, flood control Modify zoning, utilize incentives, to encourage movement of structures
20	"Designate rivers" Designate rivers’ floodplain areas Create 30-50-year plan for creation Optimize use of available floodplains now Acquire new plots within them Support the $20 million bond proposal Utilize all available and alternative programs Create ongoing working committees