OpEd: Learning to Build for Climate Extremes

This commentary is by Vermont Agency of Transportation Secretary Joe Flynn and Vermont Agency of Natural Resources Secretary Julie Moore.

On July 7, 2023, what began as a typical summer afternoon storm quickly escalated into something far more significant.

That day, heavy rainfall pummeled the Killington and West Bridgewater areas, closing major routes and triggering rockslides. But this was just the opening act of a climate disaster that would reshape how we think about Vermont's vulnerability to extreme weather.

Over the next 48 hours, up to nine inches of rain fell across the state. Montpelier received 5.28 inches - more rain than fell during Tropical Storm Irene and the highest recorded rainfall total in 75 years. And numbers across Vermont tell a similar, sobering story: 547 high-water marks recorded statewide, 20 of 45 stream gauges showing greater peak flows than during Irene, and 80 landslides scarred the landscape.

The 2023 floods impacted thousands of Vermonters and resulted in hundreds of millions of dollars in damage and loss in towns, villages, and cities, homes, businesses, and state offices, farm fields, state parks, and recreational trails. Storm-related damage to state infrastructure impacted 64 state bridges, 180 miles of state roads, 409 miles of active railroad, and 149 miles of rail trail - ultimately costing $190 million to repair.

And the human cost was even more devastating, as two Vermonters lost their lives.

But here's the truly alarming part: exactly one year later, on July 10, 2024, Hurricane Beryl's remnants delivered more deluges. While less widespread than 2023's disaster, localized damage - in places like Plainfield, Lyndonville, and Kirby - was even more severe. Again, bridges and culverts were damaged or destroyed, roads and rails flooded, and communities found themselves cut off from the outside world - ultimately costing tens of millions to repair. And tragically, two additional lives were lost.

Historic storm events in back-to-back years isn't coincidence - it's the new normal. Climate scientists have long warned that a warming atmosphere holds more moisture, creating conditions for these "atmospheric rivers" that can dump unprecedented amounts of rain in short periods. Vermont is experiencing firsthand what it means to live in an era of climate extremes.

The silver lining in this dark cloud is that we're learning to adapt. Since Tropical Storm Irene fourteen years ago, VTrans and the Agency of Natural Resources have been quietly revolutionizing how we work together to design, build and maintain infrastructure. Our teams meet regularly, in part so that we know what to expect of each other - allowing for faster, more effective, more efficient, and more successful emergency response when disaster strikes. And we are designing with our climate future in mind - installing larger culverts, building bridges that allow for bank-full width flows, and strategically managing debris to prevent catastrophic blockages.

While we can't simply snap our fingers and become resilient, the investments we have made since 2011 are paying dividends. The Whitesville Bridge over Twentymile Stream in Cavendish, damaged in Irene, withstood both 2023 and 2024 floods. Sections of Route 131 that were destroyed in Irene held firm during recent flooding. A just-replaced culvert on the Jail Branch in Orange, sized with more extreme weather in mind, passed the 2023 flood waters while the aged culvert immediately downstream was blown out. This isn't luck - it's smart engineering informed by hard-won experience.

Climate change isn't coming to Vermont - it's already here, and it's rewriting our weather patterns with real and lasting consequences. More and more Vermonters are recognizing that climate adaptation isn't a luxury - it's an economic necessity. Vermont has always prided itself on adapting to harsh conditions. Our ancestors built covered bridges and stone foundations that lasted centuries. Today's challenge is no different - to ensure the infrastructure we are currently building lasts, we must build for the climate we're inheriting, not the one we've lost.

The floods of 2023 and 2024 have shown us both our vulnerabilities and our capacity for resilience.

Given the increasing frequency and severity of climate-related events, we can and must prepare for our future - working to reduce risk and minimize future disruptions. Our infrastructure and our communities depend on getting this right. Together, the engineers, geologists, and river experts at VTrans and ANR are taking the steps necessary to reduce future flood damage and help Vermont become more resilient.