Flood Protection

In early 2024, environmental anthropologist Michael Fedoroff led the planting of 300 rivercane stalks along Tuckabum Creek in York County, Alabama, marking the state's largest such project. Despite heavy rains that raised the river by 9 feet, the native bamboo survived and stabilized the eroding stream bank. As climate-driven floods intensify in the Southeast, scientists, tribes, and communities are reviving this forgotten plant to safeguard landscapes.