Date of Award
5-2026
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of City and Regional Planning (MCRP)
Department
Architecture
Committee Chair/Advisor
Caitlin Dyckman
Committee Member
John Gaber
Committee Member
Russell Stall
Abstract
Urban flooding poses an ever-growing threat to the built environment worldwide, as it is the leading natural hazard contributing to fatalities globally. Planners stand in a unique position to produce plans and policies that reflect and combat this threat, yet the capacity and obligation to do so varies considerably depending on where a community sits within the broader legislative and institutional landscape. This thesis focuses on the Southeastern subregion of Appalachia, a part of the United States characterized by mountainous terrain, steep foothills, and narrow valley communities. This region was chosen as much attention in the broader literature is focused on coastal communities, which often leads communities that were once deemed "climate havens" out of the conversation. The specific communities analyzed are Greenville County in South Carolina, Buncombe County in North Carolina, and Perry County in Kentucky, each of which was selected because they share a broadly similar regional context while differing dramatically in their planning capacities due to divergences in economic, social, and institutional conditions. These divergences, as this thesis demonstrates, have direct consequences for how well each community is positioned to address the flood hazards it faces.
By analyzing state legislation through a legislative matrix and the policy tools outlined in planning documents through a policy tools matrix derived from established best practices in flood management and hazard mitigation, this thesis assesses the extent to which state and local governments are pursuing meaningful mitigation measures. Ultimately, the findings reveal that places with greater institutional and fiscal capacity demonstrate a stronger ability to plan for urban flood hazards, which highlights the necessity of planning interventions that accommodate and actively support lower-capacity jurisdictions across the Appalachian region and beyond.
Recommended Citation
Clardy, Boyce A. III, "An Appalachian Approach to Urban Flooding in South Carolina, North Carolina, and Kentucky" (2026). All Theses. 4719.
https://open.clemson.edu/all_theses/4719