14 C.F.R. § 1216.203 Definition of key terms.
Title 14 - Aeronautics and Space
(a) Action—any NASA activity including, but not limited to, acquisition, construction, modification, changes in land use, issuance of facilities use permits, and disposition of Federal lands and facilities. (b) Base flood—is that flood which has a one percent chance of occurrence in any given year (also known as a 100-year flood). This term is used in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) to indicate the minimum level of flooding to be used by a community in its floodplain management regulations. (c) Base floodplain—the 100-year floodplain (one percent chance floodplain). Also see definition of floodplain. (d) Critical action—any activity for which even a slight chance of flooding would be too great, such as storing lunar samples or highly toxic or water reactive materials. (e) Facility—any item made or placed by a person including buildings, structures and utility items, marine structures, bridges and other land development items, such as levees and drainage canals. (f) Flood or flooding—a general and temporary condition of partial or complete inundation of normally dry land areas from the overflow of inland and/or tidal waters, and/or the unusual and rapid accumulation or runoff of surface waters from any source. (g) Flood fringe—that portion of the floodplain outside of the regulatory floodway (often referred to as “floodway fringe”). (h) Floodplain—the lowland and relatively flat areas adjoining inland and coastal waters including flood-prone areas of offshore islands, including at a minimum, that area subject to a one percent or greater chance of flooding in any given year. The base floodplain shall be used to designate the 100-year floodplain (one percent chance floodplain). The critical action floodplain is defined as the 500-year floodplain (0.2 percent chance floodplain). A large portion of NASA coastal floodplains also encompasses wetlands. (i) Floodproofing—the modification of individual structures and facilities, their sites, and their contents to protect against structural failure, to keep water out or to reduce the effects of water entry. (j) Minimize—to reduce to the smallest possible amount or degree. (k) One percent chance flood—the flood having one chance in 100 of being exceeded in any one-year period (a large flood). The likelihood of exceeding this magnitude increases in a time period longer than one year, e.g., there are two chances in three of a larger flood exceeding the one percent chance flood in a 100-year period. (l) Practicable—capable of being done within existing constraints. The test of what is practicable depends upon the situation and includes consideration of the pertinent factors, such as environment, cost or technology. (m) Preserve—to prevent modification to the natural floodplain environment or to maintain it as closely as possible to its natural state. (n) Regulatory floodway—the area regulated by Federal, State or local requirements; the channel of a river or other watercourse and the adjacent land areas that must be reserved in an open manner; i.e., unconfined or unobstructed either horizontally or vertically to provide for the discharge of the base flood so the cumulative increase in water surface elevation is no more than a designated amount (not to exceed one foot as set by the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP)). (o) Restore—to re-establish a setting or environment in which the natural functions of the floodplain can again operate. (p) Wetlands—those areas that are frequently inundated by surface or ground water and normally support a prevalence of vegetative or aquatic life that requires saturated or seasonally saturated soil conditions for growth and reproduction. Wetlands generally include swamps, marshes, bogs, and similar areas such as sloughs, potholes, river overflows, mud flats, wet meadows, and natural ponds. Because all NASA wetlands lie in floodplains, and for purposes of simplifying the procedures of this subpart, floodplains will be understood as to encompass wetlands, except in cases where wetlands factors require special consideration. (Also, see definition of floodplain.) (q) Support—actions which encourage or otherwise provide incentives to undertake floodplain or wetlands development, such as extending roads or utilities into or near a floodplain, therefore making floodplain development more feasible.
Title 14: Aeronautics and Space
PART 1216—ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
Subpart 1216.2—Floodplain and Wetlands Management
§ 1216.203 Definition of key terms.
