This pathway involves policy that might affect building codes or land use, as well as the construction and management of new infrastructure such as drainage channels, floodwalls, or levees that reduce the risk of flood waters entering or accumulating in an area. It can also include other measures to reduce the force of waves, such as breakwaters or wetlands. When major construction is required, this approach can entail high costs and often requires outside sources of funding such as federal grants. Construction of new flood protection infrastructure can have environmental impacts and is therefore best suited to areas that are densely settled and / or include vulnerable critical infrastructure.

Reduce the impacts of flooding by improving coping and adaptive capacity for flooding through education and changes in personal and community behavior, policy, or through adapting buildings, infrastructure, and other assets to withstand impacts from flood waters.

This pathway involves helping reduce the negative effects of flooding on people and property when it occurs. The approach involves making changes in personal and community behaviors and policies and adapting buildings and infrastructure assets to better withstand flood waters. Strategies might include education, encouraging changes in behavior, and / or enacting new land use and building codes, as well as floodproofing or elevating assets. It can also include stormwater management to minimize the impacts of heavy rainfall. This approach is broadly applicable and can be used in combination with the flood risk reduction pathway described above.

Reduce exposure to flood risk by managing growth or investment in areas exposed to flood hazard and moving highly at-risk communities or assets.

This pathway involves moving highly vulnerable assets or buildings away from areas with high flood risk and potentially buying out private properties. It can also include zoning tools to manage growth and mandate setbacks and restoring ecological systems to manage flood waters. Other strategies may include managing investment and focusing incentives and investment in lower-risk areas. Because this approach can lead to the displacement of residents and tax losses, it should be implemented thoughtfully and with care. Nevertheless, unmanaged risk often leads to movement away from the water in an uncontrolled and detrimental way.