This past summer, the towns of Woodbury, Southbury, Oxford, and the neighboring communities were impacted by “the largest flood in town history.” As a life-long Woodbury resident, I had never seen anything like this before. Roads going into town had collapsed, telephone poles were fully submerged by water, and the parking lot of our neighborhood pizza restaurant looked like a swimming pool. It is no question that extreme storms have begun to multiply, each time causing devastating losses and affecting everyone from farmers to small business owners to families who had their property washed away.  With the General Assembly meeting in January under First Selectman Barbara Perkinson, and board of selectmen George Hale and Karren Reddington-Hughes, there is still time to advocate for Woodbury’s legislative priorities, which should include permanent upgrades to town storm drains and culvert sizes. As someone who interned at Pomperaug River Watershed Coalition this past summer, my job was to assess the condition of all culverts, bridges, and dams, in the town of Woodbury and Southbury. As a first person witness, I saw just how outdated and neglected some of these culverts were. With over 100 culverts assessed in Woodbury, over 20 of the culverts were classified as “severe barriers,” which means aquatic life cannot get through, usually meaning there is limited to no water getting through the structure (NAACC). Flood damage on Labored Road, Oxford, on August 19, 2024 after heavy rains caused massive flooding the night before. Eversource workers asses the road which was half washed away.. Credit: Tyler Russell / Connecticut Public This month, Barbara Perkinson needs to advocate for updates to culverts and storm drains, updating the size and quality of all of them. So far, in regards to comments and future plans addressing the flood, the first selectman has done little besides noting “the significant impacts of the road closures, emphasizing that Route 6, which closed due to the flood, is a major route for travelers connecting the two towns. As the town of Woodbury, we need to come together and make sure the General Assembly discusses solutions to the flooding, instead of Band-Aids that will be washed away with everything else after the next flood. Harrison Harwood According to Pomperaug River Watershed Coalition, “the National Center for Atmospheric Research has forecasted that extreme storms will multiply by up to 400% by the year 2100 and that climate warming will cause flood damages to swell from $20 billion in 2021 to $32 billion by 2051.  Floods that are supposed to happen once every 100 years are now happening every few years. To adjust to our changing climate, we need to adjust our infrastructure. Updating our culverts and storm drains will help everyone, especially our farmers.  Cathay Dibner, a poultry farmer and small business owner in Southbury, was one of many who suffered severe damages. A 150-foot mudslide destroyed everything. Over 100 chickens and all of her farm infrastructure was gone. Among other farmers, Dibner’s business was shut down and she was left with nothing. Farmers such as the Gazy Brothers Farm in neighboring Oxford had their entire 30 acres of vegetables completely wiped out. In order to protect our farmers and small businesses we need to make sure storm drainage is at the top of Perkinson’s to-do list come January. Supporting the movement to upgrade town storm drains and culverts benefits everyone. Shouldn’t our taxes be spent on infrastructure that protects us from natural disasters that are becoming increasingly common? These storms destroy businesses and livelihoods. Let’s put a stop to these setbacks caused by natural disasters so we can keep moving forward as the town of Woodbury.  Harrison Harwood lives in Woodbury and is a student at Connecticut College.