Mississippi River Flooding
We think the Corps should operate the ORCC to increase the discharge as the river rises — and that Congress should authorize this. Now. This would lower flood crests, make floods shorter, and reduce the risk of levee failure — and a course change. It would also reduce batture and backwater flooding and the resulting economic and environmental damage on some 1.5 million acres in Mississippi and Louisiana. Time to change the flood control plan – before it’s too late.
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Clogged Arteries and Rivers
Clogged arteries cause heart attacks. Clogged rivers cause floods. If plaque clogs your widowmaker artery and you don’t get a stent, you may have a serious heart attack. The Mississippi River is the country’s main transportation artery. It’s vital to our economy and national security. It is clogged with plaque. It needs a stent.
Why Won’t the Corps Remove the Mississippi’s Bottleneck?
The US Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) is in charge of flood control on the lower Mississippi River (1928 Flood Control Act). Congress gave it that job to prevent another disastrous 1927 flood. The Corps has spent billions on its Mississippi Rivers and Tributaries Project (MRTP). It is supposed to keep the largest future flood (Project Flood) inside the levees and pass it safely to the Gulf. But the Corps’ 2019 flow line study predicts levees will overtop again — in a lesser flood.
Cliff Notes for Corps Speak
Cliff Notes began as short plot summaries of classic novels and stories. Now they are cribs about complex topics and spin. Corps Speak is the US Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) clever spin that evades responsibility for higher and longer Mississippi River floods (a complex topic). This story began when Congress put the Corps in charge of flood control (1928 Flood Control Act) to prevent another 1927 flood disaster.
Einstein Was Wrong
Not Albert, his son Hans. As far as we know, Albert was right about his General Theory of Relativity and other natural laws. Hans was not as famous as his father. But he was the world expert on river sediments. He advised the Corps of Engineers (Corps) on the design of the Old River Control Complex (ORCC) in the 1950s.
Yazoo Delta Backwater Flooding
Backwater flooding happens when the Mississippi River is higher (about 43’ at Vicksburg) than the Yazoo River and blocks its discharge. It takes less rain to raise and keep the Mississippi above 43’ than it used to. (See More Flood for Less Rain.) So backwater flooding and batture flooding inside the levees are more frequent and longer — over three times longer since 2015. Why? What happened to cause a step change in flooding in 2015?
More Flood for Less Rain
I don’t know who said it first, but the Mississippi River is flooding more often, longer, and higher for the same or less rain. There are many reasons for this. But the main one is the US Army Corps of Engineers (Corps). It is in charge of flood control on the lower Mississippi River (below Cairo, Illinois). Congress gave it that job after the great 1927 flood disaster — to prevent a repeat.