I welcome this new opportunity to inform outsiders that they don't know as much about New Orleans as they believe they do. Those who make no distinction between New Orleans' many neighborhoods and aver that the whole city is lower than sea-level need to be corrected. The truth is more helpful than a lie.
At the same time, it's still important to hammer home another truth: The fact that a home was built below sea level -- as mine was -- does not mean that home cannot be protected. Conversely, the fact that a home is above sea level does not mean it's safe from the government's engineering fiascoes.
The Dutch, who once considered New Orleans engineers to be the foremost authorities on flood control, have since built flood protection systems they expect to fail -- at most -- once every 10,000 years. And still they push to make those systems more reliable. Our government officials emit a long, low whistle when it's pointed out how many billions it will take to really protect New Orleans.*
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When it comes to protecting this area, we may never be able to persuade those who think they know it all that it can be done. But we need to say it anyway. There are whole cities in The Netherlands below sea level. Half of New Orleans isn't. The fact that we're the ones more afraid of flooding means there's something wrong -- with this country.
Damn straight "we need to say it anyway", Mr. DeBerry. And thank you for doing so! Let us stand with one another, and follow his example.
A recent T-P editorial correctly stated that Louisiana has "a narrow, 10-year window to begin reversing coastal erosion before the job becomes too large and too expensive". That's not a lot of time, especially when so much is at stake. Did you forget how much is at stake? Well, here's a reminder from Newt Gingrich and John Barry from a year ago:
Category 5 hurricane protection for the region, including coastal restoration, storm-surge barriers and improved levees, would cost about $40 billion--over 30 years. Compare that with the cost to the economy of less international competitiveness (the result of increased freight charges stemming from loss of the efficiencies of the port of New Orleans), higher energy prices and more vulnerable energy supplies. Compare that with the cost of rebuilding the energy and port infrastructure elsewhere. Compare that with the fact that in the past two years, we have spent more to rebuild Iraq's wetlands than Louisiana's. National interest requires this restoration. Our energy needs alone require it. Yet the White House proposes spending only $100 million for coastal restoration.
You can tell this was written over a year ago because the phrase "Category 5 hurricane protection" is used. That's taboo now.
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Schroeder has more on how climate change complicates flood protection for S. Louisiana. He says: "New Orleans is the test case for how well the United States is prepared to tackle global warming in the future."
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* We were recently informed by the Gulf Coast Reconstruction Czar that there is "no doubt in his mind" that President Bush is committed to funding 100 year flood protection-- the bare minimum to meet national flood insurance requirements.
Labels: Federal Flood, flood protection
