FEMA's flood zone maps cause headaches for Rochester-area residents | democratandchronicle.com | Democrat and Chronicle

FEMA began using technology called Light Detection and Ranging, a remote sensing system that can view the topography of a land deeper underground than ever before. Previous maps were on average about 18 years old and did not account for new development. Across the country, new superhighways, roads, shopping centers and housing developments have gone up, said Bill Douglass, an external affairs officer for FEMA, leaving fewer trees to absorb water runoff.

FEMA's flood zone maps cause headaches for Rochester-area residents | democratandchronicle.com | Democrat and Chronicle