What are Louisiana’s Corps Priorities?

When I think of southern Louisiana, I think about the abundant seafood such as, crabs, shrimp, and oysters. Yet, my trip last week to Houma proved to be all about the other white meat – pork.

I was at the public meeting of the Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) Mississippi River Commission (MRC) to try to learn more about what the Corps has been up to in Louisiana since Katrina. You might wonder, what is the Mississippi River Commission? Well, unless you’re trying to get the Corps’ support for a multimillion dollar project, you’ve probably never heard of it.

The Mississippi River Commission was actually crated in 1879 to help improve navigation and flood protection on the Mississippi. These days, they make recommendations on water-related projects to senior Corps officials, Congress, and the White House. The MRC has a hand in setting the Corps’ agenda – one that has often been skewed in favor of public works projects that benefit the powerful and well-connected.

The main purpose of the MRC meeting was to allow people from the area a chance to provide input or give presentations. The comments varied from the usual call for larger and more expansive levees to the just plain wacky. My award for most ridiculous presentation of the day went to the Houma Airport and Gigaplex (formerly known as the Houma Airport and Industrial Park). Apparently, they are trying to bring some unmanned drone planes to Houma and wanted the Corps’ help somehow.

To be fair, not all those that went before the commission were seeking pork. Many in Terrebonne Parish were worried about their levee system and one landowner spoke about the importance of doings something to stop coastal land loss. Another speaker discussed the critical need for Mississippi River diversions to help stem coastal wetland loss, while a former Houma resident came all the way from California to speak out against the Houma Navigation Canal deepening, which he argued has the potential to become another MRGO by funneling storm surge up the canal and into Houma.

I was generally disappointed, however, with what I heard during the meeting. I would have hoped more people would have advocated for coastal restoration, but instead we heard many industry representatives talk about how they need deeper canals for their businesses. Beyond that issue, I couldn’t believe how many people thanked the Corps for doing a good job over the past year while they were pushing a pet project. What Corps were they talking about that has done a good job in Louisiana? Perhaps they meant the Marine Corps, Peace Corps, or maybe their local high school flag corps? It sure couldn’t have been the Army Corps of Engineers that built levees that failed in New Orleans and got combined grades of C-, D, and D- in a recent report grading government agencies’ efforts to restore Louisiana’s wetlands.

Matt Rota and I from the GRN also went before the MRC and told them what we felt they needed to hear, like how the Corps needs to stop asking for funding to restore coastal wetlands while at the same time permitting the destruction of coastal wetlands. We also mentioned the need for a MRGO closure plan that actually recommends closing the MRGO (which they seem reluctant to do) and the importance of restoring the barrier islands that were devastated by Katrina.

All the crazy requests at the meeting might have been more acceptable if they weren’t part of the same pork barrel system that left the people of New Orleans’ levees vulnerable to Katrina while funding industrial canal lock expansions. Pet projects get built, while restoration of places such as Lousiana’s coast and the Everglades languishes. For that very reason, we need to reform the way the Corps does business.

Jeff Grimes is Assistant Director of Water Resources.