Background
The City of Emporia is an independent city within the Commonwealth of Virginia. Located in southeastern Virginia, Emporia is 8 miles north of the North Carolina state line and the first municipality encountered by travelers heading north on Interstate 95. The city is centrally located within Greensville County and has served as the county seat since 1781.

The Meherrin River, bisecting the city, is the primary source of flood risk in the study area. The city has experienced repeated flood events and economic losses due to heavy rainfall associated with weather systems such as tropical storms, hurricanes, and nor'easters. Flooding events range from nuisance flooding to major events, causing the river to overtop its banks and inundate areas of the city. In addition, this flooding threatens critical infrastructure and public health and safety. These floods have resulted in economic damages and impacts on the City of Emporia, its residents, and businesses. The city is allocating increasing staff and budget resources to manage flood risk for the continued economic viability and protection of its citizens and infrastructure.

Purpose
The primary purpose of this Flood Risk project is to reduce economic damages and impacts from flooding events along the Meherrin River while improving resiliency and reducing risk to public health, safety, and critical infrastructure.

Study Authority
The authority for this project falls under the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ (USACE) Continuing Authorities Program (CAP), Section 205 of the Flood Control Act of 1948, as amended. Under this authority, the USACE is authorized to plan, design, and construct small flood risk management projects with structural and nonstructural measures for flood damage reduction in accordance with current policies and procedures governing projects of the same type that are specifically authorized.

Status
The Feasibility Study began in August 2025.