May 25
May 21, 2007Sheila Boudreaux
May 23, 2007
By a vote of 91-4, the U.S. Senate passed a Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) bill authorizing several key flood control projects in Terrebonne and Lafourche parishes.
The multi-billion dollar bill, a conglomeration of proposed water projects from every state in the nation, is typically enacted into law every two years. However, partisan wrangling and other political issues have caused a seven-year gap since the last WRDA legislation was approved.
Inclusion of the Louisiana projects simply means that they have been authorized by the federal government. The next step in the process is to seek funding for the $14 billion bill in the appropriations process.
WRDA also includes language directing the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to base its work on sound economics and science. Many senators argued that past Corps projects have been plagued with waste and abuse.
Similar legislation was overwhelmingly approved 294-25 by the House in April.
To Louisiana’s credit, Sen. David Vitter, a strong proponent of WRDA, has been named a conferee in the House-Senate legislative conference on the bill.
“I am pleased to again be named a conferee on the WRDA bill,” he said. “We came a long way in conference negotiations last year, and I plan to actively work to make sure that WRDA is quickly sent to the president’s desk.
“Last year, critical agreements between the House and Senate were reached on virtually all issues pertaining to Louisiana. Will be working to keep Louisiana’s priorities at the forefront of negotiations in this year’s bill as well,” he added.
The good news coming out of the Senate version is that the long-awaited federal authorization for the Morganza to the Gulf hurricane protection system has finally been realized.
The Morganza project provision is listed in both the Senate and House versions of the legislation, virtually guaranteeing that it will survive any conference committee negotiations or efforts to remove it from the final draft.
The $866 million project has been somewhat in limbo awaiting approval, although work began last year on the first section of the levee. The portion n the J section n had been approved in earlier water resources legislation.
Once completed, the 72-mile system of locks, flood control structures and levees will provide protection for over 100,000 people in Lafourche and Terrebonne parishes from a Category 3 hurricane, according to Terrebonne Parish Levee District Executive Director Jerome Zeringue.
The Morganza approval comes on the heels of the $30 million secured for the project last year in an emergency supplemental appropriation bill. “Including the Morganza to the Gulf project in the bill was a top priority as well as funding for the South Lafourche system,” Vitter said.
The Senate version also calls for up to $90 million to be spent on bringing the Larose to Golden Meadow hurricane protection levee up to a height able to withstand a 100-year hurricane event.
While South Lafourche Levee District general manager Windell Curole said that the exact height necessary to ward off such a storm is still being determined, he was encouraged by the inclusion in the bill. “It’s good that the federal government recognizes our unique needs in South Lousiana and is stepping forward to address them,” he said.
The district is in the process of bringing the South Lafourche ring levee back up to design level height after earlier studies indicated that the seal level benchmark for the area had fallen significantly, thereby lowering the height and protection level of the levee.
The South Lafourche Levee District received further good news from the legislation with an amendment to the bill giving the district monetary credit for the work performed on the Leon Theriot lock, which will be placed just north of the floodgates below the Town of Golden Meadow.
Curole noted that the district has been seeking the credit for the lock work for several years and he was pleased to see the provision included in the legislation.
Mary Landrieu, Louisiana’s senior senator, was also pleased with the bill’s final passage. “Water and flood protection projects like these in Louisiana benefit the entire nation because our port system affects commerce all over the country and the oil and gas industry in the Gulf of Mexico serves energy needs nationwide,” she said.
The Senate version of the bill must now be reconciled in a conference committee with the House of Representatives version that passed on April 19. The bill then moves to the White House for a presidential signature or veto.
Although a veto of the bill is not expected, pundits are noting that a veto of the bill would be an easy way for the president to show that he is tough on spending in an effort to quell criticism coming from some quarters of the Republican Party.
Associated Press Writer Jim Abrams contributed to portions of this article.
La. projects included in 2007 WRDA
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
A look at the Louisiana projects authorized as part of the 2007 Water Resources Development Act approved by the U.S. Senate last Wednesday:
• Louisiana Coastal Area Ecosystem Restoration n $1.13 million
• Louisiana Coastal Ecosystem next wave n $728 million
• Morganza to the Gulf of Mexico Hurricane Protection n $886 million
• Modification of East Baton Rouge n $178 million
• Port of Iberia Navigation/Storm Surge Protection n $131 million
• Jefferson Parish Consolidation n $100 million
• Larose to Golden Meadow certification up to 100-year level n $90 million
•†MRGO Revolving Loan Fund for Private Facilities n $85 million
•†MRGO Relocation Assistance for Public Facilities n $75 million
• Red River Waterway mitigation n $33 million
•†Southeast Louisiana Development Planning n $17 million
• Calcasieu River and Pass Rock Bank Protection n $15 million
• Various Louisiana environmental infrastructure n $13 million
•†Bayou Sorrel Lock n $10 million
• MRGO De-Authorization n $5 million
Total n $3.514 billion
Source: U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu’s office.
