Base Flood Elevation

Base Flood Elevation, or BFE, is the computed elevation to which the flood is anticipated to rise during the base flood. The base flood is also referred to as the one-percent annual chance flood or 100-year flood.

Design Flood Elevation

Design Flood Elevation, or DFE, refers to a base flood elevation that incorporates future SLR and flooding projections.

FEMA FIRM

Federal Emergency Management Agency Flood Insurance Rate Map, or FEMA FIRM, is described as “the official map of a community on which FEMA has delineated both the special hazard areas and the risk premium zones applicable to the community” (FEMA Flood Map Service Center, 2017). The FIRM is the basis for determining subsidies available to communities with floodplain management through the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP).

Freeboard

Freeboard is the elevation of a building’s lowest floor above predicted flood elevations by a small additional height. Freeboard is not required by the NFIP standards, but local governments are encouraged to adopt at least a one-foot freeboard to account for the one-foot rise built into the concept of designating a floodway and the encroachment requirements where floodways have not been designated.

Public Right-of-Way

Right-of-Way, or ROW, is a public path, road, or area of land that people are legally allowed to travel along.

SLR-XA

Sea Level Rise Exposure Area, or SLR-XA, is identified in the State of Hawai‘i’s Sea Level Rise Vulnerability and Adaptation Report. SLR-XA was developed based on modeling that combines anticipated impacts from passive flooding due to SLR, annual high wave flooding, and coastal erosion.

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