Army Corps of Engineers is Proposing a Floodgate Across HWY23 in Oakville
November 5th FINAL MEETING
BELLE CHASSE, LA -- On Oct 27th, the US Army Corps of Engineers released the addendum to its IER13 report, triggering another 30-day public comment period. During this public comment period, there will be one last public meeting to allow the Corps of Engineers to explain how it will be affecting residents who will be left out of the 100-year flood protection being constructed for the area north of Oakville, in Belle Chasse, Louiaiana.
The addendum report (linked here), is supposed to answer the public concerns aired during the public comment period back in April, however there are MANY unanswered questions as to how badly the project will affect the neighborhoods of Jesuit Bend and south. This report is a complete slap in the face to those residents who provided substantive comments 6 months ago, and only now are hearing how they simply don't rate any further consideration.
By not including the levees south of Oakville in IER13 project, the alignment at Oakville will not give the same level of flood protection as those located north of Oakville. The market effects of this project have not fully been analyzed by the Corps. This substantive claim of economic impact was acknowledged, but dismissed as not being a large impact on property values. They have GOT to be kidding! This project will cause HUGE disparity in property values once the project is complete. This will literally, figuratively, physically, and economically DIVIDE the parish in Oakville.
The concerns about induced risk of flooding on the back levees south of Oakville were similarly dismissed. Flood modeling was done using only 10 of 152 model storms which did not accurately represent the true risk of flooding induced by the project. Of these 10 model storms, these were not the best selection of storms which would cause harm on our levees. Just as the economic analysis was flawed, the Corps of Engineers flood modeling is incomplete.
It is up to the residents most affected to make their voices heard one last time. Read the addendum report, and write down your comments to deliver them via email and in person at the public meeting on November 5th. The meeting will be held at the Belle Chasse High School Auditorium at 6pm. The Corps of Engineers will make a short presentation and then take public statements/comments. They will need to answer as to how they can blatantly hurt so many people with this alignment. Be there to support your community and demand 100-year protection for more residents of Plaquemines Parish!
Remember, the choices made here will affect thousands of people, and will set the course of future development within ALL of Plaquemines Parish.
IER13 Addendum Oct 09. Click HERE.
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LOUISIANA ROAD HOME DOES NOT NEED TO END IN OAKVILLE
Do not let the Corps of Engineers deny us flood protection, insurability and economic growth.
By ignoring our substantive comments, and excluding us from IER-13 / 100-year protection, the Corps of Engineers will be condemning our future.
Eastern tie-in at LaReussitte will protect 3000 more citizens of Plaquemines Parish and cost NO additional money
NO WALL, NO WAY!
BELLE CHASSE, LA -- Residents of Jesuit Bend in Belle Chasse discovered in April 2009 that they were not going to be included in the Corps of Engineers’ plan to provide 100-year flood protection to the Greater New Orleans area. Based on a 25-year-old study, the Corps of Engineers is drawing the line of 100-year protection in Oakville. This outdated study, which was produced before the vast majority of homes were built in the area, stated that the area south of Oakville is nothing more than citrus trees and cow pastures. However true 25 years ago, nothing could be further from the truth today. The area within 7 ½ miles from Oakville consist of over 1450 homes, or 17% of Plaquemines Parish population, and is a vibrant part of the Belle Chasse community. Unfortunately, this is how the Corps of Engineers is representing our community to Congress. Without this protection, the neighborhoods will not have the same level of protection that the rest of New Orleans will receive once the flood protection system is in place. This will have a direct impact on insurance, flood risk, and ultimately property values. Our investments will be outside the fortification.
As part of a larger project to provide 100-year protection to the Greater New Orleans area, the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) intends to put up a 16-foot high system of levees/floodwalls/floodgates across the West Bank of the Mississippi River from Waggaman in St Charles Parish to Oakville in Plaquemines Parish. The whole project on the West Bank of the Mississippi is known as the West Bank and Vicinity project, or WBV. This system is broken up into smaller sub-parts, referred to as Interim Environmental Report (IER) areas, to allow the Corps of Engineers to study, design, contract, and construct the projects more efficiently.
The reach from east of the Harvey Canal to the eastern tie-into the Mississippi River is known as IER-13. Where much of the protection of New Orleans will be the building taller of existing levees and flood walls, IER13 will consist of a BRAND NEW levee alignment in Oakville. The Corps wants to put up this brand new levee system without a current study. According to congressionally-authorized alternative arrangements to a full Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), the Corps is not allowed to impact us economically or environmentally. See the link at the bottom of the NEWS page for these Alternative Arrangements.
The exact tie-in at Oakville has undergone several different design alternatives. Originally, the system was authorized by Congress in 1996 to terminate at the northern edge of the non-federal levee which extends south to LaReussitte, near Conoco Phillips refinery. Based on inputs from residents and business owners at Oakville, the Corps of Engineers has evaluated and recommended a floodgate structure across HWY 23. Unfortunately, this is the only way in and out of our area. The Corps should have sought inputs from the residents of Jesuit Bend. Instead, we accidentally found out about this proposed option 2 weeks into a 30-day comment period. Even after initial calling and inquiring about a ‘rumored’ floodgate, the Corps denied there was such a plan in existence.
While the eastern tie-in is needed for the protection of Algiers and the rest of the west bank, the proposed alignment in Oakville is bad for 4 main reasons: (1) restricts access to the only egress route, (2) insurability, (3) induced flood risk, and (4) downward pressure on property values for the large number of homes just south of Oakville.
INSURABILITY
According to the Corps of Engineers, the stated reason for the 100-year protection is to allow residents to participate in FEMA’s National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). In 2011, once the 100-year protection is finished, FEMA will publish Digital Flood Insurance Rate Maps (DFIRMs) which will redefine what flood zone a property is in, and what rates a property owner must pay into the National Flood Insurance Program.
FEMA representatives at two of the COE’s public meetings have been evasive about how the rates will be affected once the 100-year lines have been drawn. In the past, rates have been grandfathered in when a new FIRM is published, and rates MAY transfer if a flood policy is in effect at time of sale. However, new properties and properties damaged greater than 50% FOR any reason (flood, fire, wind, etc.) must be raised to a height greater than the new Base Flood Elevation (BFE). Currently, BFE for Jesuit Bend is 1.0 feet (Zone A). Once the 100-year protection is set, the new BFE will be 9 feet (Zone AE). The cost of raising a home has been estimated at $95/sq ft, by the Corps of Engineers, or $190,000 for a 2000sqft house. Yet another reason someone would choose to buy a house on the inside of the 'Protection Fortification’.
INDUCED FLOOD RISK
The entire system of levees, flood walls, and floodgates across the West Bank and Vicinity (WBV) project will hold back water from areas where it previously was allowed to reach. This will cause a static rise of water along the non-federal levees south of Oakville. In addition, according to several hydraulic engineering experts, the geometry and proximity of the WBV will force more water against the non-federal levees than was previously seen during Rita, Gustav, and Ike. The WBV will set up a funneling effect on the levees behind us, and especially in the area where the WBV meets the Non Fed Levees in Oakville. Additionally, the Western Closure Complex across the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway, will be built using a 225-foot floodgate and a pumping station capable of pumping 20,000 cubic feet per second from the protected side (north side) to the flood side (south side) of the floodgate. This is the equivalent of 12 Olympic swimming pools pumped every minute!! This additional water will contribute to an increased risk of flooding during a hurricane event. The levees behind Jesuit Bend are already very close to being overtopped during a moderate storm. The levees are inadequate for flood protection, and are built only to 5 feet. The HESCO baskets currently in place are not adequate to hold back wave action in a storm surge event.
How will people south of Oakville feel after the floodgates are shut and the pumping begins? If Jesuit Bend and areas south flooding, no one in the parish will be able to look each other in the eye.
LOSS OF PROPERTY VALUE
Once a floodgate is constructed across HWY23, there will be a dividing line, both literally and figuratively, between north and south in Belle Chasse. Those who live north of Oakville will be protected and be guaranteed low flood insurance rates. Those who live south of Oakville will be at a much greater flood risk and will experience an increase in flood insurance rates. This will directly affect any future economic development in the area, and put an extreme downward pressure on pricing for home sales. It boils down to one basic question, if you were buying a home in Belle Chasse, do you want to be INSIDE of the new Protection Fort or OUTSIDE of it? For the same purchase price, EVERYONE would choose to be on the 'inside' of the 'Protection Fort'. That answer alone would make us less desirable, and the end result would directly affect our property values. The Corps is discounting this. The Corps has stated that they must do studies of areas to make sure that they are NOT harming anyone economically or environmentally. Because the 23 yr old study does not accurately describe the “environment” to be analyzed, Congress does not have a true picture of the potential harm this alignment will cause. How can they hurt us if they tell Congress in an outdated study that we are cow pastures? After the West Bank and Vicinity (WBV) project is completed with a floodgate in Oakville, the DIRECT effect will result in a net “taking” of property value, because Jesuit Bend will be omitted from 100-year protection. And according to guidance from Congress, in the Alternative Arrangements, THIS IS AGAINST THE LAW.
EASY SOLUTION
In internal documents from the Corps of Engineers, the cost difference between raising the non-federal levees from the current plan of 9 feet to the 100-year protection and lifting the HWY slightly at LaReussitte (with NO FLOODGATE structure to divide the parish) is $43 Million. By tying in the Hero Canal levees directly to the Jesuit Bend levee, the need for a floodgate structure is obsolete. The cost savings of NOT building a floodgate structure across HWY 23 can then be used to raise the Jesuit Bend levees to 100-year protection for NO ADDITIONAL COST!! This makes all the sense in the world to include an additional 17% of the population in 100-year protection for no cost!! And this alignment still protects the area north of Oakville at the same 100-year protection. This is achievable !!
WHAT’S BEEN DONE TO DATE
When we discovered in April that the Corps of Engineers was halfway through its 30-day public comment period for IER13, the people of Jesuit Bend immediately called a meeting with President Billy Nungesser and Councilman Anthony Buras. Both met with a group of 150 residents. Through an active campaign of emails, signage, flyers, and phone calls, over 300 people showed up for a meeting on April 29th in Oakville. Due to the public outcry, the Corps held a second meeting at the Belle Chasse Auditorium, where over 600 citizens showed in a very public statement that the floodgate at Oakville would be bad for Belle Chasse and Plaquemines Parish. Many residents went home because they couldn’t get inside the auditorium.
In May, the Plaquemines Parish Council issued a unanimous declaration stating that the floodgate in Oakville was not good for Plaquemines. Letters stating the same were written by President Billy Nungesser and Louisiana Speaker of the House Jim Tucker.
On June 4th, Senator David Vitter met with Pete and Jamie Stavros and Parish President Nungesser to hear how this project could hurt so many residents of Louisiana. On June 11th, Sen Vitter held a teleconference with COL Alvin Lee to discuss the situation and present 2 additional alternatives. At this time, the option of including the Jesuit Bend levees in IER13 was discussed as an alternative to the Oakville alignment.
On June 26th, Corps of Engineers personnel, along with state and Parish officials toured the sites at Oakville and LaReussitte to evaluate the option of bringing 100-year protection to LaReussitte.
On July 17th, Pete and Jamie Stavros made a trip to Washington D.C. to meet with staff members from both Sen Landrieu’s and Sen Vitter’s offices. After spending 2 hours in each office, staffers assured that they would remain engaged on our behalf.
While still no Decision of Record has been signed, the Corps of Engineers continues to remain distant on the issue of whether or not the alignment to LaReussitte is in the best interest of the Corps. As of September 8th, the Corps has still neither released an addendum to IER13 report, nor published answers to substantive claims made back in June.
We have been trying to get in to speak with the Corps since April. Attempts to bring an expert engineer to look at the hydraulic modeling work done by the Corps have been met with resistance. Because the engineer was called as an expert witness in an unrelated case against the Corps, he has been banned from any meeting to discuss the flood risk in Jesuit Bend for fear that he may use this information against the Corps!!
On Sep 19th the Corps of Engineers held a workshop, with breakout sessions, to divide the citizens into smaller workgroups and solicit their inputs/responses to their proposed actions. Making an effort to avoid the crowd reaction of May 4th, the Corps wants to keep the outcry to a minimum and to “sell” their plan to an unaware public. At that time the public comments the Corps took during the April public comment period had STILL not been answered,
The Corps has stated that they would put out an addendum to the IER report and publish answers to the substantive comments made (back in April) some time later in September, after the public workshop.
Now that the addendum has been put out, the Corps is ready to sign a Record of Decision at the end of November. At this time, they are required to allow a public comment period for 30 days before signing the Record of Decision for this project.
WAY AHEAD
There will be one last meeting in which the Corps will engage the public with respect to the impacts of WBV on the Jesuit Bend levees. If a floodgate is decided at Oakville, and the non-federal levee project is allowed to progress WITHOUT 100-year flood protection, potential for litigation is high.
CONGRESSIONAL LANGUAGE
The Corps has stated that they may not be “authorized” to include the Jesuit Bend levees in 100-year protection. Somehow over the last 6 months the Corps has gone from considering the proper alignment at LaReussitte back to defending a poor choice of a floodgate at Oakville. Where does the blame lie? The Corps has been leaned on by Congress on one hand to ensure 100-year flood protection is in place by June 2011, and on the other by the Louisiana Senators to “get it right the first time.”
We believe that the Corps is within their legal limits to put the alignment for IER13 to LaReussitte, as proposed in June 09. The Corps used that same flexibility to alter the alignment to include the town of Oakville within 100-year protection—why NOT include the reach down to LaReussitte?? If they feel they do not have congressional authority, then there is one alternative the Corps can use, called a request for a “Post-authorization Change Report (PCR). Using a PCR, the Corps of Engineers may request the proper authority from Congress based on their findings during their Environmental study. The Congressional action necessary would amount to an authorization only, meaning that no additional funds would be needed to protect the citizens of Belle Chasse without putting Jesuit Bend in harms way!
WHAT CAN YOU DO??
Stay engaged and inform yourself as much as possible about the risks you will be told to bear once the WBV is in place. There are plenty of links on this website…
Write/call your elected officials to let them know how badly this system will hurt us and our community. You do have a voice.
Show to the meeting on the 5th of November at the Belle Chasse High School, and ask questions directly to the Corps of Engineers. Demand an answer to how you are expected to deal with increased flood risk, higher insurance rates, and lower home values. Get educated…and be prepared for the Corps to defend their alignment without revealing any true answers to previous substantive comments.
Help spread the word to as many of your neighbors as you can!!
Post your questions, comments, research on the forum on this website.
100-year protection is ACHIEVABLE !!
In the words of Senators Boxer, Vitter, and Landrieu, let's get the job done RIGHT the first time!!
If the northern reach of the Non Federal Levee (NFL) project is incorporated into the West Bank and Vicinity (WBV) project, the Eastern Tie-in will connect the 100-year protection system into the Mississippi River Levee at LaReussitte instead of Oakville. Areas north of Oakville will still have 100-year protection, but now approximately 17% more of Plaquemines Parish population will be given the same protection.
There is lots of information posted and shared here concerning the Levee project in Plaquemines Parish. If you have some information concerning this project, please take the time to share it with all of us.
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