Fight continues in D.C. to get flood protection cash

Though the Tri-parish area has an eerie similarity to New Orleans in 2005, Thibodaux business leaders learned that the government’s response to flood protection in this area has been different.

“Flood protection has not essentially been addressed in this area to the degree that it has in New Orleans,” said Jerome Zeringue, director of planning and program for the Governor’s Office of Coastal Activities. “In fact, since 2005 New Orleans has received $7 billion of funding for coastal improvements.”

“God bless them because they deserve every penny, but we deserve the same protection that New Orleans has,” he added.

Zeringue, who was the keynote speaker at the Thibodaux Chamber of Commerce quarterly breakfast last week, believes the areas that received the most damages, lower Lafourche and Terrebonne, are critical in terms of the economical viability to the state because of the gas and oil industry.

Hurricane Gustav hit directly over Lafourche and Terrebonne taking approximately 207 miles of wetland with it. Then, Hurricane Ike, which landed even further west, caused Terrebonne Parish’s worst flooding ever.

“This is an unfortunate reality of the condition that our flood protection system is in,” Zeringue said.

He told business leaders that the Governor’s Office is working diligently to ensure that Lafourche and Terrebonne get the financial support it needs to recover from these back-to-back storms.

In fact, state Sen. Reggie Dupre (D-Bourg) and Gov. Bobby Jindal headed to Washington, D.C., this week to voice their concerns before the U.S. Senate.

Zeringue said in past years the communication between the state and lawmakers in Washington, D.C. has not been clear and concise when it comes to receiving governmental assistance.

“In the past, we have asked for $5 million and they have given us $500,000 and we were happy. Then, we ask for $40 million and they give us $6 million and we accept that too,” he said.

Well, the planning director said the time has come for southeast Louisiana to get what it needs to thrive after a disaster.

In Zeringue’s opinion, the area does not have the cushion and protection it used to have. Homes in lower Terrebonne Parish flooded for hurricanes Gustav and Ike. Both storms nearly flooded the entire town of Lockport and lower Golden Meadow.

He said the only protection for those areas is Morganza to the Gulf, a project that was started in 1992. Morganza will help to protect not only Terrebonne Parish, but Lafourche Parish as well.

“We need to restore the coast and we need to rebuild our levees,” he said.

Some good news is that for the first time, Gov. Jindal has assembled a coastal and restoration organization, CPRA, to integrate a flood protection and coastal restoration plan.

“We have a master plan in place on how we can restore the coast. It’s a work in progress and it will evolve,” Zeringue said. “But again, fail to plan, plan to fail. We actually have an innovative plan that looks at flood protection and coastal restoration together so that we can move forward and show the lawmakers in Washington, D.C., that we are not just asking for money.”