FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

• How do I find out which flood zone my property is in?

  Visit the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) web site to determine if your property or property you are considering buying is in a flood zone.

• Who do I call with a drainage concern?

  With complaints or concerns about standing water in the street or flooding in your area call Adam Johnson, Engineering Tech III, at 456-3292, or you can e-mail him at adamj@fresnofloodcontrol.org.

• With so many ponding basins around town full of water, what does the District do to prevent the spread of West Nile Virus through mosquito breeding?

  Since 2005 the District has proactively responded to community concerns regarding the spread of West Nile Virus in the Central Valley.

• Who do I call to report illegal dumping in a storm drain or ponding basin?

  Call the District’s Illegal Dumping Hotline at 456-8632. You may also use this web site for response within the next business day. If the incident is in progress and involves hazardous materials, please contact your city fire department, police, sheriff, or the County of Fresno Hazardous Materials Emergency Response Team at 445-3271 or 1-800-742-1011 between the hours of 8 am – 5 pm. After hours call 488-3111.

• How is the District governed and funded?

  The Fresno Metropolitan Flood Control District is a public agency governed by a seven-member board, serving the Fresno/Clovis metropolitan area of Fresno County. The Fresno City Council appoints four members; the Fresno County Board of Supervisors appoints two members; and the Clovis City Council appoints one member. Each director serves a four-year term and may be reappointed for consecutive terms. The Board must approve the District budget, fees and assessments, direct matters of policy and enact ordinances, and perform other responsibilities authorized and required by the District Act. Board meetings normally occur on the second and fourth Wednesday of each month.Capital facilities such as pipeline, basin, reservoir, and dam construction, are funded through local development ordinances and operations are funded through a limited voter authorized tax. The District is authorized to collect 20¢ on every $100 of assessed property value within its service area, while the amount actually collected remains at 11¢.

• How is Flood Control contributing to groundwater sustainability?

  The District has longstanding partnerships with the Fresno Irrigation District, City of Fresno, and City of Clovis to perform planned groundwater recharge in nearly 90 stormwater basins, using water primarily from the Kings River. During rain storms all 153 of the District’s basins in Fresno and Clovis collect stormwater, which soaks through the soil to replenish the groundwater supply. Between these two types of recharge, District basins put an annual average of 60,000* acre-feet of water, or 19,551,060,000 gallons, back into our community’s aquifer.*In typical, non-drought years.

• Why do some ponding basins have grass and trees and others don’t?

  The District has a longstanding partnership with Tree Fresno to plant trees in ponding basins in the Fresno/Clovis area. The volunteer coordination and planting expertise are provided by Tree Fresno and the trees, site grading, irrigation system, and turf are put in by the District. The results speak for themselves.Improvements the District provides are funded out of accounts specific to each of the more than 160 drainage areas within the District boundaries. The money comes from property taxes collected within the drainage area and from fees assessed on development that occurs in the drainage area. The top priority for spending that money is installation of needed curb inlets, storm drain pipeline, and excavation of the basin to which the pipeline drains, in order to provide protection from localized flooding. When there are enough funds in a drainage area’s account to allow landscaping, the District and Tree Fresno partner up to beautify the basin.Not all drainage areas can be landscaped because the amount of property taxes and development fees collected varies widely. Property values and the amount of building taking place determine the availability of money for basin landscaping.

• Is my property inside the Flood Control District?

  The Fresno Metropolitan Flood Control District’s service area includes all of the metropolitan area of Fresno and Clovis, as well as several County islands and rural areas to the south, east, and northeast of the cities, as shown on the District service area map. If you aren’t sure whether your property falls within the boundary, e-mail your address to info@fresnofloodcontrol.org, or call (559) 456-3292, and District staff will check.

• Why is the water being drained out of my neighborhood’s stormwater basin?

  Basins capture stormwater runoff to prevent flooding in your neighborhoods, replenish our community’s groundwater supply, and also captures stormwater pollutants. These captured materials are being removed to prevent contaminants from accumulating to levels of concern. Maintenance also removes the fine layers of sediment that accumulate on the floor and slows the rate at which the water soaks into the ground. The water will be temporarily drained and the basin will dry out so that the sediments can be removed.

• What happens to birds when basins are drained for cleaning?

  Stormwater basins provide habitat for a wide variety of birds. Birds travel to nearby basins during maintenance. Once maintenance is completed, water flow resumes and birds return to the basins. During maintenance, the District will provide an alternative source of water for those birds unable to leave.

• Why is the public not supposed to feed birds in basins?

  You can help keep birds healthy by not feeding them. Feeding of wildlife, including ducks and geese, is discouraged by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. Human food is unhealthy, and causes birds to become dependent on the artificial food source and less able to forage on their own. It also disrupts normal migration patterns, and encourages over-breeding, leading to crowded conditions and transmission of diseases within bird populations.