Corps OKs Morganza: But federal build a long way off

A sign-off by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on the federal Morganza-to-the-Gulf project is described as a boon to local communities in need of flood protection, which while long-awaited is seen as coming at a perfect time.

The approval of the Chief Engineer’s report by the corps gives a green light for future federal spending on the project, which has an estimated cost of $13 billion.

Terrebonne Parish has chosen not to wait for the feds to act, with officials stating that federal approval for the dollars could be a long way off.

So a local version of Morganza is already under construction, through a taxpayer-approved bond issue.

Reggie Dupre, director of the Terrebonne Levee and Conservation District, said the sign-off from the corps means that permit approval for the locally-funded project will be easier to obtain, since the corps approval all but guarantees it.

The project was approved by Congress in 2007 but was kicked back to the corps for an update due to changes in cost and design related to Hurricane Katrina. The corps had been studying the project for more than two decades.

“This is a huge step,” said U.S. Sen. David Vitter, R-La.

Sharon Bergeron, president of the Morganza Action Coalition, an association of business and community interests committed to the project, called the signing of the chief’s report “a milestone.”

“Terrebonne and Lafourche parish residents have waited more than 20 years for federal authorization of Morganza and now we are closer than ever,” Bergeron said. “Citizens of Terrebonne Parish have stepped up to the plate to tax themselves in order to build the first phase of Morganza and now it is finally time for a federal authorization. … While our Terrebonne Levee and Conservation District proceeds with the first lift of levees and floodgates along the Morganza alignment, we continue to demand federal support for this hurricane protection system that our community needs and deserves.”

Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La, is among officials who applaud the report’s release, but with a caveat.

“This is the third time Morganza has been authorized over the past 20 years, and it is time to stop studying and start building,” she said. “Along with local leaders and the Congressional delegation, I am determined to build Morganza to the Gulf quickly and at a reasonable cost.”