In Oklahoma, indigenous communities are most likely to be at risk of flooding, with one recent study showing the danger increased by more than five times compared to surrounding areas.
The reason for the risk: location.
“We’re stuck in places where nobody else wants to live,” said Theresa Tsoodle, who is Pawnee from Andarko, a small community in central Oklahoma and who led the new analysis.
A researcher for the University of Oklahoma, Tsoodle said the study suggests that future flooding could be mitigated by federal and state agencies working with tribes to better understand the ecology of the area.
“We’re on these lands where the soil can be poor, and wetlands — which would help drain surface water — are missing,” she said.
Help may be on the way. The US Secretary of the Interior, Deb Haaland, announced this last week $120 million is available to fund tribal efforts to become more resilient to climate-driven extreme weather, including flooding in places like Oklahoma.
Oklahoma State Climatologist Gary McManus said that while spring is the official flood season for the area, it’s now a year-round problem to worry about. As in many parts of the world, climate change in Oklahoma is creating an atmosphere more prone to severe precipitation, from snow to ice and rain.
“With the warming of the atmosphere, we have more evaporation and warmer air, more of that water vapor. It lends itself to more intense weather events,” he said.
Flooding causes a lot of damage, such as loss of life, damage to property and soil erosion. And other weather events such as wildfires and heat waves can make the soil hard and less absorbent, increasing the risk of flooding. And for many tribes, recovery from a flood can take years, if at all.
According to her research, Tsoodle could see the indigenous population in Oklahoma grow to nearly 600,000 people by the end of the century. But the larger the population, the more vulnerable, she said.
The implementation of traditional knowledge of tribes in flood policy can be something as nature-based as ensuring that livestock graze sustainably, to ensure soil quality.
This recent injection of federal funds from the government could help get some of these recommendations off the ground, as many tribal nations may not have the money to implement some of these supports.
But Tsoodle said that’s only half the battle. For tribal knowledge to be integrated into infrastructure and methodology, it must come from tribal members.
“Funding is a part of it,” she said. “The paradigm shift is not necessarily from above, but community-driven and inclusive.”
