Certified Floodplain Manager (CFM)
Exam Questions With New Update
Answers
/Types of floodplains - AnswerRiverine, coastal, and shallow
/.Watershed - Answerarea that drains into a lake, stream, or body of water. Also called
basin or catchment area.
/.Channel - AnswerGround features that carry water through and out of a watershed
/.Riverine Flooding - Answerflooding that occurs along a channel
/.Flash flooding - Answerflooding that occurs in hilly and mountainous areas that may
come scant minutes after a heavy rainfall. One can also occur in urban areas where
pavements and drainage improvements speed runoff to a stream.
/.Overbank Flooding - AnswerThe most common type flooding in the US. It occurs when
downstream channels receive more rain or snowmelt than normal, or a channel is
blocked by ice or debris. Excess water overloads the channels and flows out onto the
floodplain
/.Velocity - AnswerOne measure of a flood is the speed of moving water. Measured in
feet per second
/.Thalweg - AnswerThe channel bottom
/.Meander - Answera curve in the channel. The outside bank of the meander is subject
to erosion, the inside bank is subject to deposits
/.Accrete - Answerto build up a shoreline by depositing sand, either by nature or human
actions
/.Actual Cash Value - AnswerThe replacement cost for a building, minus a depreciation
percentage based on age and condition.
/.Alluvial Fan - AnswerAn area at the base of a valley where the slope flattens out,
allowing the floodwater to decrease in speed and spread out, dropping sediment and
rock over a fan-shaped area.
/.Amendment - AnswerA change to a FEMA floodplain map that removes an area that
was inadvertently included in the Special Flood Hazard Area
, /.Approximate studies - AnswerFlood hazard mapping done using approximate study
methods that show the approximate outline of the base floodplain. An approximate
study does not produce a base flood elevation.
/.Base Flood Depth - AnswerA measurement of the base flood in feet above ground,
used for shallow flooding
/.Basement - AnswerAny area of the building having its flood subgrade (below ground
level) on all sides
/.Base floodplain - Answerthe area of water and land inundated by the base flood
/.Basin - AnswerAlso known as a Watershed, an area that drains into a lake, stream or
other body of water.
/.Bathymetry - AnswerThe measurement of depths of water in the ocean or lakes
/.Bench marks - AnswerMonuments on the ground that show the elevation of the spot
above sea level. Also called Elevation Reference Marks.
/.Building - AnswerA walled and roofed structure including a gas or liquid storage tank
that is principally above ground as well as a manufactured home. Also known as
structure
/.Building Condition Survey - AnswerA windshield survey conducted to obtain a
preliminary evaluation of the extent and severity of damage to buildings after a disaster
/.CAP - AnswerCommunity Assistance Program
/.Cfs - Answercubic feet per second, the unit by which discharges are measured (A
cubic foot of water is about 7.5 gallons)
/.CLOMA - AnswerConditional Letter of Map Amendment
/.CLOMR - AnswerConditional Letter Of Map Revision
/.Closed Basin Lake - AnswerA lake that has either no outlet or relatively small one,
where rainfall or groundwater can cause the lake's level to ride faster than it can drain
/.Coastal high hazard area - Answerthe part of the coastal floodplain extending from
offshore to the inland limit of the primary coastal dune along an open coast and any
other area subject to high velocity wave action from storms and seismic sources. Wave
heights during the base flood will generally be three feet or more in height above the
stillwater elevation
Exam Questions With New Update
Answers
/Types of floodplains - AnswerRiverine, coastal, and shallow
/.Watershed - Answerarea that drains into a lake, stream, or body of water. Also called
basin or catchment area.
/.Channel - AnswerGround features that carry water through and out of a watershed
/.Riverine Flooding - Answerflooding that occurs along a channel
/.Flash flooding - Answerflooding that occurs in hilly and mountainous areas that may
come scant minutes after a heavy rainfall. One can also occur in urban areas where
pavements and drainage improvements speed runoff to a stream.
/.Overbank Flooding - AnswerThe most common type flooding in the US. It occurs when
downstream channels receive more rain or snowmelt than normal, or a channel is
blocked by ice or debris. Excess water overloads the channels and flows out onto the
floodplain
/.Velocity - AnswerOne measure of a flood is the speed of moving water. Measured in
feet per second
/.Thalweg - AnswerThe channel bottom
/.Meander - Answera curve in the channel. The outside bank of the meander is subject
to erosion, the inside bank is subject to deposits
/.Accrete - Answerto build up a shoreline by depositing sand, either by nature or human
actions
/.Actual Cash Value - AnswerThe replacement cost for a building, minus a depreciation
percentage based on age and condition.
/.Alluvial Fan - AnswerAn area at the base of a valley where the slope flattens out,
allowing the floodwater to decrease in speed and spread out, dropping sediment and
rock over a fan-shaped area.
/.Amendment - AnswerA change to a FEMA floodplain map that removes an area that
was inadvertently included in the Special Flood Hazard Area
, /.Approximate studies - AnswerFlood hazard mapping done using approximate study
methods that show the approximate outline of the base floodplain. An approximate
study does not produce a base flood elevation.
/.Base Flood Depth - AnswerA measurement of the base flood in feet above ground,
used for shallow flooding
/.Basement - AnswerAny area of the building having its flood subgrade (below ground
level) on all sides
/.Base floodplain - Answerthe area of water and land inundated by the base flood
/.Basin - AnswerAlso known as a Watershed, an area that drains into a lake, stream or
other body of water.
/.Bathymetry - AnswerThe measurement of depths of water in the ocean or lakes
/.Bench marks - AnswerMonuments on the ground that show the elevation of the spot
above sea level. Also called Elevation Reference Marks.
/.Building - AnswerA walled and roofed structure including a gas or liquid storage tank
that is principally above ground as well as a manufactured home. Also known as
structure
/.Building Condition Survey - AnswerA windshield survey conducted to obtain a
preliminary evaluation of the extent and severity of damage to buildings after a disaster
/.CAP - AnswerCommunity Assistance Program
/.Cfs - Answercubic feet per second, the unit by which discharges are measured (A
cubic foot of water is about 7.5 gallons)
/.CLOMA - AnswerConditional Letter of Map Amendment
/.CLOMR - AnswerConditional Letter Of Map Revision
/.Closed Basin Lake - AnswerA lake that has either no outlet or relatively small one,
where rainfall or groundwater can cause the lake's level to ride faster than it can drain
/.Coastal high hazard area - Answerthe part of the coastal floodplain extending from
offshore to the inland limit of the primary coastal dune along an open coast and any
other area subject to high velocity wave action from storms and seismic sources. Wave
heights during the base flood will generally be three feet or more in height above the
stillwater elevation
