Posted on 08/30/2005 3:53:30 PM PDT by Dont Mention the War
You might find this interesting. It was cited by the American Society of Engineers as one of the seven modern wonders of the world.
Netherlands North Sea Protection Works
This singularly unique, vast and complex system of dams, floodgates, storm surge barriers and other engineered works literally allows the Netherlands to exist. For centuries, the people of the Netherlands have repeatedly attempted to push back the sea, only to watch brutal storm surges flood their efforts, since the nation sits below sea level and its land mass is still sinking.
The North Sea Protection Works consists of two monumental steps the Dutch took to win their struggle to hold back the sea. Step one, a 19-mile-long enclosure dam, was built between 1927 and 1932. The immense dike, 100-yards thick at the waterline, collars the neck of the estuary once known as Zuiderzee. Step two, the Delta Project, was intended to control the treacherous area where the mouths of the Meuse and Rhine Rivers break into a delta. The project's crowning touch was the Eastern Schelde Barrier, a two-mile barrier of tell gates slung between massive concrete piers, which fall only when storm-waters threaten. The North Sea Protection Works exemplifies the ability of humanity to exist side-by-side with the forces of nature.
Over 25% of the Netherlands is below sea level. The balance of land averages only 37' above sea level. Much of the land that was once below sea level is today reclaimed and protected by 1,500 miles of dikes.
What has happened down here is the wind have changed
Clouds roll in from the north and it start to rain
Rained real hard and rained for a real long time
Six feet of water in the streets of Evangeline
The river rose all day
The river rose all night
Some people got lost in the flood
Some people got away alright
The river have busted through clear down to Plaquemine
Six feet of water in the streets of Evangeline
Louisiana, Louisiana
They're tryin' to wash us away
They're tryin' to wash us away
Louisiana, Louisiana
They're tryin' to wash us away
They're tryin' to wash us away
President Coolidge come down in a railroad train
Little fat man with a note-pad in his hand
The President say, "Little fat man isn't it a shame
what the river has done To this poor cracker's land."
Louisiana, Louisiana
They're tryin' to wash us away
They're tryin' to wash us away
Louisiana, Louisiana
They're tryin' to wash us away
They're tryin' to wash us away
It isn't like major hurricanes heading for NO is that rare of an event. Look at the last few years. Just because they finally got nailed by a big one doesn't mean it's over. It's gonna happen again. I know it's historical and all but really... there's a point at which you need to use some common sense. Why pour billions into rebuilding and watch it happen all over again? Also, what a waste of natural resources. And where are they going to find enough landfills and all to haul the garbage to?
Buy real estate in the Baton Rouge area.
Yep, the folks in Galveston reached that very same conclusion, and thus, Houston became the megatropolis it is, while Galveston is just a little beach town.
We've always enjoyed a good shut the city down, declare a state of emergency blizzard. It's fun to go cross country skiing up and down the middle of the street. Snow's an inconvenience but managable. In a couple days you're up and running again. And we've dealt with it. Eleven feet on Jan '04 from lake-effect snow.
It was like the Great Gatsby "the orgiastic future that year by year recedes before us"
I did love it whenever I visited, but there was always a Devil-may-care doom about it, and the bill came due.
Insurance rates already reflect flood and hurricane risk. The USG underwrites the National Flood Insurance Program. Hell, I have flood insurance for an investment property in Scottsdale.
What will happen? There will be a "lessons learned" review of what happened. The levee system and pumping stations will be strengthened and reengineered. NO will become better protected against future occurences. Their will probably be improved building codes, sewage systems, and zoning changes in terms of where housing can be located. NO will rise like Phoenix from the ashes. Charleston and Savannah rebuilt and are now thriving.
I've always been a snowshoe'r myself. Something about walking like a cerebrally-stroked duck in the whiteout stirs the Jack London in me.
Thanks for your post.
And is that REALLY the smartest way to spend/invest our national treasure?
New Orleans will ALWAYS be vulnerable to devastating flooding. And only fools would spend billions trying to cheat the inevitable.
Let the FREE MARKET decide.
Pretty amazing. But it is only a matter of time before some natural disaster brings it all down.
Let's see the Dutch survive a CAT-4 or 5.
Me thinks a thumb won't do.
If you are asking my personal opinoin, absolutely. NO plays an important role in our national economy. NO is also important historically and culturally. Rebuilidng NO is a better use of our national treasure that providing the Egyptians, Palestinians, and Israel with billions every year. The recently passed transportation bill is filled with pork. We are giving Africa $15 billion to combat AIDS. The citizens of Louisiana, Mississippi,Alabama, and Florida are deserving Americans who are overly reprsented in our armed forces. They have earned and deserve that support.
New Orleans will ALWAYS be vulnerable to devastating flooding. And only fools would spend billions trying to cheat the inevitable. Let the FREE MARKET decide.
And San Francisco will always be vulnerable to earthquakes, and Florida to hurricanes. You can make NO less vulnerable to flooding. The Dutch have proven that. If it is up to the FREE MARKET, YOU CAN BET THAT PRIVATE INVESTMENT WILL BE BACK INTO NO BIGTIME.
When the going gets tough, the tough get going. Americans don't cut and run from their own country. Most of us are made of sterner stuff. The whimps haven't taken over yet.
No Dyke has EVER been subject to the the rainfall and sustained winds of major tropical systems.
I guess you can only hope. LOL. The Dutch are pretty tough. They are up to the challenge and willing to take the risk. I have never detected any great fear or handwringing about that possibility during my several visits there.
Fine.
Let's let you "sterner" folk allow American FREE WILL to re-invest in a scooped out chunk of earth surrounded by temperamental waters.
I mean, after all, if it's a great investment the bravest visionaries will beat a path below sea level.
Probably because of no recent natural disasters to alert them to the dangers of living below sea level.
They should feel VERY fortunate they aren't in the line of yearly hurricanes like the southeast USA.
"Well, somebody picked themselves up a thesaurus at Wal-Mart."
LOL, that's a good one!
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