High Water leads to Slippery Slope

[Alluvial]

Originally Posted by xoxoxoBruce

Historically, towns and cities grew up along the waterways. Then the suburbs grew up around those towns and cities, so there is a lot of people living near the rivers. It would be a Herculean task to move them all.

That's all true. One thing that the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) is trying to do in the states is to get people to relocate out of frequently flooded homes & businesses. That's a bit different than wholescale relocation of towns - although that's been done too. Here is an interesting publication which showcases some mitigation stories from the 1993 floods in Missouri, including some relocations.

Many structures would benefit from simple elevation. Here is an article about a couple who had their home elevated 10 feet above the original grade. Although the home had suffered several floods, including 53 inches of water from Hurricane Georges, after the elevation it didn't, even from Katrina.

And where are we going to get the food that's grown on those millions of acres of flood prone land, if nobody is allowed to continue their farms there?

I didn't mean to relocate the farms. People living there would need to be protected from flood, although some areas are just so low that you oughtn't put a home there.