State to map North Fork flood plain

The Daily Inter Lake

The state will hold a public meeting in Columbia Falls this evening to discuss a proposed flood-plain study in the North Fork.

The meeting will be followed by an open house on an upcoming digital flood-plain mapping project that will cover the entire county.

The intent of the project is to modernize Montana's flood-insurance rate maps.

Most of the work involves converting existing flood hazard information to a digital format, but some new mapping - such as in the North Fork region - will take place.

Flathead and Missoula counties have been chosen as the initial sites for this effort, which is being funded by grants from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

The Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation is responsible for the mapping update. It's hosting tonight's meeting.

The North Fork study will cover 15 miles of river corridor, from the confluence of the North Fork and Middle Fork upstream to just past Big Creek.

The new maps are intended to provide more reliable information to guide future development in flood-prone areas.

Anyone with information or questions about potential flood hazards on this section of river is invited to attend tonight's meeting, which will be held at Moving Image, 235 Nucleus Ave., from 6 to 7 p.m.

The open house on the overall digital mapping program will be at the same location from 7 to 8 p.m.

For more information, contact Traci Sears-Tull at the Flathead County Planning Office, 751-8200.