Coastal Hazard Bulletin

Issue No. 14

The purpose of the Coastal Hazard Mailing List is to provide up-to-date coastal flood hazard information pertinent to the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the National Flood Insurance Program. Subscribers will receive new mailings on a monthly basis.

Introduction/Upcoming Coastal Hazard Bulletin Topics

This Bulletin marks the one year anniversary of the Coastal Hazard Listserv. During this time period, the Listserv has been focused on CHAMP tools available for coastal modeling use through the discussion of individual CHAMP programs. Links for each of the six discussions on CHAMP programs are provided below:

A second focus area of the Coastal Hazard Listserv over the past year has been the presentation of FEMA National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) coastal hazard mapping and modeling guidelines and methodologies. This focus area has included a presentation of several FEMA websites as discussed primarily in the January 2002 through May 2002 Bulletins which are located in the Flood Hazard Mapping Bulletin Archive.

Looking ahead, future Bulletins of the Coastal Hazard Listserv will address four major focus areas:

  1. CHAMP Applications - Application of CHAMP at different US regional coastlines and for different coastline types (i.e. sand, bluff, rocky cliff, and shore protection structure). Specific modeling techniques of CHAMP and associated coastal models (Erosion, WHAFIS, and RUNUP) will be developed for these different case examples on a monthly basis.


  2. CHAMP Helpful Hints and Software Updates - Helpful hints for each specific CHAMP module, and CHAMP software update notices will be provided on an as-needed basis.


  3. Federal Agency NFIP Applications - The application of other Federal Agency (including the US Army Corps of Engineers, the US Geological Survey, and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) initiatives to NFIP coastal hazard mapping and modeling guidelines and methodologies that are used in CHAMP will be presented on an as-needed basis.


  4. Hot Topic of the Month - Coastal flood hazard information pertinent to the FEMA and the NFIP including coastal technical modeling and mapping information will be presented on a monthly basis.

CHAMP Graphic Export Capabilities

Prior to developing the Coastal Hazard Mapping Focus Area discussed above, the capability of CHAMP to export graphics for use in ArcExplorer, a spatial database viewing tool developed by ESRI, will be discussed. The purpose of this exercise is for the user to develop CHAMP graphic exporting skills and become familiar with using a spatial database such as ArcExplorer. Additional CHAMP Graphic guidance can be found in the August 2001 and December 2001 Bulletins.

To export CHAMP graphics, please find the attached file Complete.mdb and the folder Complete.zip (both files are saved in ch_oct01.zip which can be downloaded, in Winzip format, by clicking here) which include a completed CHAMP database and transect data files. Extract the files in Complete.zip and save in a folder named Complete. Save the folder and the Complete.mdb file to your local directory (C:\Program Files\Champ). The Complete.mdb database can be opened by clicking on the Open button on the CHAMP main menu button bar. Note: Since these files were previously provided in the October Bulletin of the Coastal Hazard mailing list, they may already reside in your C:\Program Files\Champ folder.

Once in the CHAMP Project Information Window, select Transect 1 in the 'Transect ID' window in the upper right hand corner, and then select the 'Graphics' button on the Main Menu Button Bar. The graphic that appears should look like the graphic shown below.

Save the graphic file by selecting 'Save As' from the drop-down menu. Files with the .DXF, .DWG, or .BMP extensions can be selected.

To import the CHAMP graphic into ArcExplorer, follow these steps:


ArcExplorer .DXF screen dump



ArcExplorer .BMP screen dump

While ArcExplorer is only a viewing tool and does not allow the user to manipulate data, ArcView has similar import capabilities and allows the user greater freedom to work with the data. More detailed discussions of CHAMP graphic export capabilities and mapping in Arcview capabilities will be discussed in future Bulletins.

Coastal Construction Manual - FEMA Publication Number 55CD available

FEMA has released its new Coastal Construction Manual, an updated and expanded version of the manual first issued in 1985. The new Coastal Construction Manual is intended to help design professionals, state and local officials, and builders mitigate natural hazards to one- to four-family residential buildings in coastal areas. Building on the numerous findings from Building Performance Assessment Team (BPAT) investigations conducted in various coastal areas of the US, the manual presents state-of-the-art engineering techniques for building siting, design, construction, and maintenance aimed at reducing damage from natural hazard events, including hurricanes, northeasters, and other coastal storms.

Particular emphasis is placed on mitigating the simultaneous effects of high-velocity flow, wave action, debris impact, high winds, storm-induced and long-term erosion, and storm-induced scour. The manual also addresses multi-hazard issues such as the use of open foundations for buildings in seismically active coastal areas and the selection of building materials resistant to damage by water, windborne debris, and fire.

The manual consists of three volumes comprised of 14 chapters and 12 appendixes. The CD-ROM version of the Manual and can be ordered through the FEMA Map Service Center at 1-800-480-2520. Ask for FEMA Publication Number 55CD.

Click here to view the archive page for all Flood Hazard Mapping listservs.

Last Modified: Thursday, 21-Jun-2007 11:57:20 EDT