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The rural rivers project: sociotechnical innovation for mitigating flooding in rural riverine communities
Brouillet, Zoë
Brouillet, Zoë
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2026-04
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Abstract
Rural riverine communities in Vermont were devastated by a 2023 mass precipitation event that caused severe flooding across the region. This is a common impact observed across many communities and can be attributed to hydrogeologic conditions driven by climate change. The recovery from the 2023 floods demonstrated that the diverse needs, capacities, and approaches of communities require recovery efforts to be led by local action. Basic and social scientists have demonstrated that flood preparedness and recovery are best done through community-engaged sociotechnical solutions, in which social understanding is interconnected with technical expertise. Communities are proven to be more resilient through these methods, enabling them to reduce negative community economic and social impacts. This is the mission of the Rural Rivers Project (RRP), an interdisciplinary collaboration that includes research partners at Dartmouth College and the Colorado School of Mines, disaster response and mitigation agencies, and flood-impacted communities in Vermont. The Black River watershed is one of these flood-impacted communities that would benefit from sociotechnical solutions to improve water infrastructure. Engagement with this community will help determine the most effective means of generating more resilient floodplains and floodplain infrastructure. Through RRP, this work will present a sociotechnical floodplain map that incorporates both geospatial indicators and contributions from actors to identify important relationships within communities, thus addressing a systemic disconnect between the technical understanding of floodplain maps and those they impact. This work will demonstrate how sociotechnical solutions can support mapping, community engagement, and thoughtful decision-making related to risk and resilience in infrastructure.
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