U.S. Army Corps outlines $3 million feasibility study to assess flood risk across 10 eastern Kentucky counties

Laura Manning of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers told Estill County officials that the Corps is beginning a flood-risk reduction feasibility study covering 10 counties in eastern Kentucky.

Manning said the study is budgeted at about $3,000,000 and was authorized in the Water Resources Development Act of 2022. She described the work as a scoping and feasibility phase that will gather existing studies and new input to evaluate both large structural solutions (dams, basins, levees, channel work) and nonstructural or nature-based approaches such as buyouts, wetland restoration and streambank stabilization. "It's a flood risk reduction study, that's gonna last about 3 years, with a $3,000,000 budget," she said.

The Corps is working with local partners on cost sharing and project definition; Manning said Perry County has already signed a cost‑share agreement. She described the typical federal/nonfederal split for design and implementation as roughly 65% federal and 35% nonfederal, but said the nonfederal partner(s) could be structured in different ways — one county, a coalition of counties, or a single county with third‑party agreements to cover regional responsibilities. "That nonfederal entity can be... it could be you all," she said, noting the arrangement is flexible.

Manning said the Corps expects to be in a public‑engagement phase soon and tentatively planned outreach and workshops in about two months, around February–March. She urged officials to use the Corps' public comment map and poster (a QR code was provided) and advised the study team intends to build on previously completed floodplain work and modeling for the region.

Why this matters: eastern Kentucky has experienced repeated federally declared flood disasters, and the Corps framed this study as an effort to assemble local, state and federal data to identify options that reduce risk to roads, bridges and houses. Manning emphasized that the study will consider both engineering and ecosystem-based approaches and that final implementation would require additional authorizations and a project partnership agreement.

Next steps: Corps staff will hold local workshops and public outreach, collect on-the-ground problem reports from county officials (flooded roads, bridges and at-risk houses), and refine concepts in the first year of the study. No implementation decisions were made at the meeting; Manning said authorization, funding and a later project partnership agreement would be required before construction or buyouts could proceed.