Washington, D.C. --- The U.S. House of Representatives today approved a giant water resources development bill that included funding for the Union Beach hurricane and sto rm damage reduction project said U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ).

The New Jersey congressman said the project area includes approximately 1.8 square miles of land along the coast of the Raritan Bay. The area is located in low elevation regions with numerous small creeks providing drainage.

Pallone said that low-lying residential and commercial structures in the area experience flooding caused by coastal storm inundation. This problem has progressively worsened in recent years due to loss of protective beaches and increased urbanization in the area with structures susceptible to flooding from rainfall and coastal storm surges, erosion and wave attack, combined with restrictions to channel flow in the tidal creeks.

"Today, the House dedicated itself to provide funding for the Union Beach hurricane and storm damage reduction project," Pallone said. "I'm hopeful that the project will protect the residents of this low elevation area from storm damage in the future."

A feasibility report, completed in 2004, recommended a combination of levee/floodwall elements and several outlet structures, along with a shorefront element. The plan would also include wetland mitigation sites to make up for the loss of wetlands due to the project.

The Union Beach hurricane and storm reduction project is estimated to cost $99 million with $64.4 of that coming from the federal government and $34.6 coming from the state.

The Water Resources Development Act of 2005 (WRDA) authorizes water projects for the Army Corps for the next two years. The bill now goes to the U.S. Senate for its approval. While authorization legislation lists specific funding levels, the Union Beach project must still go through the annual appropriations process to receive the funding included in WRDA.