flood control News

5th Circuit: Corps Not Required to Reexamine Operation of ‘Polluting’ Spillway

The Bonnet Carré Spillway diverts Mississippi River flood flows away from New Orleans into Lake Pontchartrain, which connects to the Mississippi Channel and eventually the Gulf of Mexico. The spillway has been opened only 15 times since construction was completed …

How Coconuts Protect the Jersey Shore, Other Eroding Coasts

NEPTUNE, N.J. (AP) — Coastal communities around the world are adding a tropical twist to shoreline protection, courtesy of the humble coconut. From the sands of the Jersey Shore to the islands of Indonesia, strands of coconut husk, known as …

Costs Prompt Cedar Rapids to Assess Flood Control Efforts

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) — High inflation and construction cost spikes are prompting city officials to study the impact of growing expenses on its permanent flood control system. But City Manager Jeff Pomeranz recently said during a City Council session …

After 18 Years, $1.5B Dike Repair Done at Florida’s Lake O

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — After 18 years, a $1.5 billion project was officially completed Wednesday to repair the sprawling dike around Florida’s Lake Okeechobee that protects thousands of people from potentially catastrophic flooding during hurricanes. The Herbert Hoover Dike …

House Advances Giant Texas Storm Surge Project in Water Bill

HOUSTON (AP) — Fourteen years after Hurricane Ike ripped through thousands of homes and businesses near Galveston, Texas — but mostly spared the region’s oil refineries and chemical plants — the U.S. House of Representatives voted Thursday to authorize the …

Many Questions on $52B Storm Protection Plan in NY, NJ

PERTH AMBOY, N.J. (AP) — People are asking questions about a storm protection proposal for New York and New Jersey that would be among the most massive and costly flood control projects ever done in America. At a public hearing …

Federal Agency to Help Pay for Mississippi Flood Control

JACKSON, Miss (AP) — A federal agency has set aside money to help guard Mississippi’s capital city and surrounding areas against flood damage following two deluges in three years. The US Army Corps of Engineers announced Monday that it has …

Housing Market Slows Retreat from Rising Seas, Bigger Storms

Chuck and Terry Nowiski lived in their country-style farmhouse with a wrap-around porch for 36 years before it flooded. After hurricanes Matthew and Florence, they said “yes” to the state’s offer to buy their place and tear it down. Nearly …

Aging Dams Could Soon Benefit from $7B Federal Loan Program

Eight years after Congress created the program, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is taking a first step toward offering more than $7 billion of federally backed loans to repair aging dams owned by states, local governments and private entities …

To Stop Baton Rouge Floods, They’re Carving a 12-Mile River

ZACHARY, La. (AP) — You can’t quite see it yet from Plank Road or La. 19 near Zachary, but work crews are building a man-made river from scratch. Down inside a huge, wide “V” carved out of the earth, concrete …