According to author John Seabrook, whose article, “The Floods Will Come,” (July 28,2025 New Yorker), Washington County ranked first in disaster declarations between 2011 and 2024 (mainly flood-related) and Vermont’s annual precipitation has increased six inches since the 1960s. Given this, Seabrook foresees Vermont as a perfect laboratory for the study of intense rainfall on steep terrain and a proving ground for scientists, policy makers, regulators and land use planners who are on the front lines of a recurring catastrophe that traditional methods of flood prevention -dredging the river’s bottom, armoring its sides, berming its banks- have only made worse.

Please join Vermont river scientist, Mike Kline, for a conversation on how a deepening understanding of rivers that function well has led to a new era of river corridor and floodplain conservation to slow the flow of flood waters. When natural watersheds are functioning to store water, there is less flood damage, cleaner water and healthier aquatic ecosystems.