Updated
Category: Army Corps of Engineers
Corps of Engineers systematically underestimates river flood risk
Robert E Criss, Statistics of evolving populations and their relevance to flood risk, Journal of Earth Science 1–7 (2016). ABSTRACT: Statistical methods are commonly used to evaluate natural populations and environmental variables, yet these must recognize temporal trends in population…
Reducing Coastal Risks on the East and Gulf Coasts – NRC
National Research Council. Reducing Coastal Risks on the East and Gulf Coasts. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press, 2014. National Vision Needed to Achieve Comprehensive Risk Reduction Along Atlantic and Gulf Coasts WASHINGTON – A national vision for coastal risk…
Army Corps of Engineers 404 Permit Process
Corps permits are also necessary for any work, including construction and dredging, in the Nation’s navigable waters. The Corps balances the reasonably foreseeable benefits and detriments of proposed projects, and makes permit decisions that recognize the essential values of the…
Morganza to the Gulf of Mexico – EIS Resources
Review Plan for the Post Authorization Change Decision Document of the Mississippi River and Tributaries, Morganza to the Gulf of Mexico Hurricane Protection Project, LA – 2011 Final Independent External Peer Review Report for the Mississippi River and Tributaries, Morganza…
West Shore Lake Pontchartrain Hurricane and Storm Damage Risk Reduction Study
http://www.mvn.usace.army.mil/About/Projects/WestShoreLakePontchartrain.aspx This is levee system will protect I-10 as it enters New Orleans from the west. Appendix A has useful information from Fish and Wildlife about endangered species in Louisiana and how the proposed levee will adversely impact them. West…
Analysis of Datums and Elevations in USACE Projects: FINAL REPORT
Analysis of Datums and Elevations in USACE Projects: FINAL REPORT The USACE assembled this team as a direct result of the catastrophic losses endured after Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast in 2005. The emphasis on vertical accuracy came about…
Mississippi River Freshwater Diversions in Southern Louisiana – 2012
Teal, J.M., R. Best, J. Caffrey, C.S. Hopkinson, K.L. McKee, J.T. Morris, S. Newman and B. Orem. 2012. Mississippi River Freshwater Diversions in Southern Louisiana: Effects on Wetland Vegetation, Soils, and Elevation. Edited by A.J. Lewitus, M. Croom, T. Davison,…
Environmental Report for the Inner Harbor Levee Improvements
INDIVIDUAL ENVIRONMENTAL REPORT #11 IMPROVED PROTECTION ON THE INNER HARBOR NAVIGATION CANAL ORLEANS AND ST. BERNARD PARISHES, LOUISIANA
Comprehensive environmental study of post-Katrina levees
The Army Corps of Engineers is hosting a public meeting Tuesday evening to explain the comprehensive environmental document developed for the improvements made to the New Orleans area hurricane levee system. The document takes the place of a comprehensive environmental…
5th Circuit Upholds Ruling in Katrina Levee Breaches Litigation – Update – Case rejected
Update: Court dismisses Katrina Levee Breach cases under FTCA – In re Katrina Canal Breaches Litigation, 696 F.3d 436 (5th Cir.(La.) 2012) Additional cases and commentary The 5th Circuit just affirmed the lower court decision in the Katrina Levee Breaches Litigation.…
Corps of Engineers closing Louisiana science office
A fight between the Army Corps of Engineers and the state over who controls the science governing construction of nearly $2 billion in coastal restoration projects has led the corps to order closure of the Louisiana Coastal Area Science & Technology Office by Oct. 1.
Geological investigation of the alluvial valley of the lower Mississippi River
While some of the conclusions of this report are dated, the beautiful maps of the evolution of the river are the best illustration of the dynamic nature of river deltas. The maps are known as meander maps. Fisk, H.N., 1944,…
Inundation Maps – Flood of 2011 on the Lower Mississippi
Lower Mississippi water flows and inundation map – May 11, 2011
Morganza – too late, still too little?
Morganza is slowing being opened. The projected crests downstream have been revised, but as the previous post illustrates, the projected crests still leave very high water from Baton Rouge to New Orleans. We can debate (and will) the Corps decision…
Playing Politics with Morganza?
Took a drive up to the Old River Control Structure and the Morganza Spillway on the 12th of May. I was curious about what is keeping the Corps from opening the spillway until the flow hits 1.5 M CFS. One…
The Mississippi River and Tributaries Project
This is the Army Corps of Engineers explanation of the Mississippi River flood control system and how it would be used to control a flood. It details the the use of the floodways and the river flow levels that will trigger their use.[…]
The Control of Nature – Morganza Spillway
John McPhee has written a fascinating history of the River Control Structure at Morganza. While it is not clear that the Mississippi still wants to go down the Atchafalaya, losing the River Control Structure in a flood would still be a…
ASCE – The New Orleans Hurricane Protection System: What Went Wrong and Why
“On the morning of August 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina struck southeast Louisiana and triggered what would become one of the worst disasters ever to befall an American city. The devastation was so extensive, and the residual risk looms so ominous,…
Waterworld
http://www.tnr.com/article/environment-energy/magazine/77388/waterworld
“This fall, construction is set to begin on a $4 million pop-up floodwall near the National Mall in Washington, D.C. It’s designed to be assembled quickly in the event that torrential rains cause the nearby Potomac River to spill into the city[…]
What is the Corp Really Building in New Orleans?
From the University of Colorado Natural Hazards Observer:
Corps of Engineers’ Steven Stockton
Avoiding the Single Line of Defense
Natural Hazards Observer • September 2010
“Where are the visionaries for the future? [Congress’] focus is on a million different areas. It’s not on water infrastructure or on disaster risk mitigation,” says Steven Stockton, director of Civil Works for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.[…]