The Neuse River Basin Action Strategy is a strategic flood resilience plan tailored to the unique characteristics and needs of the Neuse River Basin. The strategy outlines actionable steps to enhance flood resilience across the river basin. These actions are guided by a comprehensive set of considerations, including scientific data, local priorities and long-term sustainability objectives, ensuring the strategy is both effective and responsive to the basin’s evolving needs. 

The River Basin Action Strategy is a component of the Blueprint program, which supports the planning, evaluation and implementation of flood resilience strategies. It is the largest proactive statewide flood mitigation investment in North Carolina history, equipping local governments, the state and supporting organizations with data, tools and processes to better understand flood risk, identify community needs and guide strategic investments to reduce flood risk and strengthen resilience.  

The draft Neuse River Basin Action Strategy is now available for public review and input. Public input will be accepted until June 12.  

Members of the public are invited to submit feedback through a public feedback form or by emailing the Blueprint Program at blueprint@deq.nc.gov with “Neuse RBAS Feedback” in the subject line. Members of the public may also ask questions or provide additional input during the public information session. 

In 2021, the NC General Assembly directed the NC Department of Environmental Quality to develop a statewide Flood Resiliency Blueprint. The Blueprint serves as the backbone of North Carolina’s flood resiliency planning and is based on the best available science, stakeholder engagement and sound decision-making to develop actionable projects. At the heart of the Blueprint is an online decision support tool to help local governments, agencies and nongovernmental partners develop, evaluate and prioritize resilience actions as well as plan and marshal funding to implement those priorities. The Blueprint is currently funded and authorized to work in six of North Carolina’s 17 river basins. River Basin Action Strategies are being developed for the six initial basins. The Blueprint will make North Carolina more resilient to flooding by funding projects that limit flood extent and severity, allowing communities to recover more quickly and limit future risk as storms become more frequent and severe. DEQ has awarded funding to 84 Blueprint projects in six river basins totaling more than $43 million.