Louisiana spillway opened to relieve Mississippi River, spare cities from flooding [protect Orleans]

Los Angeles Times ^ | 5-14-11 | By Tina Susman, Los Angeles Times

[NoLibZone]

The Army Corps of Engineers begins diverting water to a flood plain, a move that will slowly swamp farmland and small towns to relieve pressure on levees protecting New Orleans and Baton Rouge.

Reporting from New Orleans— In a last-ditch move to relieve stress on levees burdened by Mississippi River floodwaters, the Army Corps of Engineers on Saturday opened a spillway to gradually inundate a major floodplain for only the second time in nearly 40 years, funneling water over farmland and small communities to save New Orleans and Baton Rouge, La., from inundations.

At 3 p.m. CDT, a large crane lifted the metal teeth on one of the Morganza Spillway's 125 gates, marking the first time in the nation's history that three of the Mississippi River spillways were opened at the same time. The New Madrid floodway in Missouri and the Bonnet Carre spillway in Louisiana were opened earlier this month as the river reached record or near-record levels in several states.

[abb]

The Mississippi Embayment, I believe it is called.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mississippi_embayment

[centurion316]

Thanks for the links, interesting. Your photobucket link isn’t working from my end.

[dennisw]

Reporting from New Orleans— In a last-ditch move to relieve stress on levees burdened by Mississippi River floodwaters, the Army Corps of Engineers on Saturday opened a spillway to gradually inundate a major floodplain for only the second time in nearly 40 years, funneling water over farmland and small communities to save New Orleans and Baton Rouge, La., from inundations.

If this were up to me I would save the cropland, save the farmers and this years crops. Let New Orleans and Baton Rouge get flooded. The activity and output (food) of the farmers is more dear to me than stinkin' cities
The Obama voter breakdown here is --- They live in those two cities, not out in farms. White farmers are getting flooded but blacks also live in rural Louisiana

[abb]

If this were up to me I would save the cropland, save the farmers and this years crops. Let New Orleans and Baton Rouge get flooded. The activity and output (food) of the farmers is more dear to me than stinkin' cities.

Between Baton Rouge and New Orleans, there is probably $100 billion of petrochemical infrastructure that would be lost. Refineries, plastics, rubber, chemical, etc. While there is some farmland in the Atchafalaya floodway, mostly it is fishing camps, swampland and such.

The monetary value between the two is nowhere close.

[abb]

Finally found one that will stick.

[dennisw]

I wrote my comment before I read about all the petro-chemical industries that would be flooded out. So you are correct. How about upriver in Cairo Illinois? Cairo should have gone under. Not all that Missouri farmland with crops near harvest (according to one farmer who had record wheat crop growing)

[centurion316]

Thanks, good chart. I think that Fisk and Kolb were the first ones to do the research on these alluvial features. Note that the present lower reach is a recent phenomenon, and the river now wants to go back to its former course, the Atchafalya. It will.

[abb]

To me, the most interesting part of the history is Shreve’s role. In the early 19th century, steamboat travel was the interstate of the day.

http://www.louisianasportsman.com/printer_friendly.php?id=2430

“In 1831, famed steamboat captain Henry Miller Shreve was given a contract to cut a new channel across the narrow neck of Turnbull’s Bend to straighten out the Mississippi so boats would not have to make the long voyage around the meander. Afterward, the old channel on the bend’s south side became known as Old River, and the Red River continued to flow into the Mississippi by way of it. It was through Old River that steamboats moved back and forth between the Mississippi and Red.

Soon, residents in the Atchafalaya Basin pressured officials to do more to open that river up to steamboat traffic. When the state refused to appropriate money to remove the log jam clogging the river’s headwaters, citizens decided to take action on their own.

A severe drought in 1839 dramatically lowered the Atchafalaya and exposed more of the raft (contemporary reports claimed the river got so low that people could walk across it on a 15-foot plank). Local residents set fire to the mass of exposed debris in the hope of burning it away, but all they really accomplished was the killing of thousands of alligators. While the fire did burn the raft down to the water line, it had no effect on the jumble of logs under the water.

Government officials then agreed to act and hired Shreve to finish clearing the log jam. This project, however, set in motion a chain of events that completely transformed the Atchafalaya.

For 300 years, the log jam had forced the Red River to flow into the Mississippi by way of Old River. When Shreve cleared the raft, it was though a plug had been pulled and the Red suddenly began discharging its water down the Atchafalaya. When the Mississippi overflowed during floods, even more water poured into the basin by way of Old River. In a short time, this huge increase in water volume scoured out what had been a minor stream channel and turned it into the wide, raging Atchafalaya River we know today.”

[centurion316]

Shreve was not only a riverboat captain, he was also an engineer. But, engineers in those days did not fully understand fluvial geomorphology (they still don’t). Meanders are there for a reason, and attempts to create cutoffs that the river doesn’t want cause the river to compensate. Likewise attempts to keep the river in its channel regardless of the discharge and energy state. The river will eventually bite back.

[abb]

Flow @ Red River Landing gauge: 10:00 AM CDT - 1,520,000 ft3/sec.

http://weather.hamweather.com/rivers/gauge/RRLL1.html

[abb]

Natchez @ 2:00 PM - 2,150,000 Ft3/sec, an increase of 30 thousand from 24 hours ago.

http://weather.hamweather.com/rivers/gauge/NTZM6.html

[abb]

The Natchez gauge now reads 60.77’. Compare to other historical flooding events.

1) 58.04 ft on 02/21/1937
2) 57.03 ft on 04/24/2008
3) 56.70 ft on 05/13/1973
4) 56.60 ft on 05/04/1927
5) 56.30 ft on 03/26/1997
6) 55.70 ft on 05/31/1983
7) 55.30 ft on 04/26/1922
8) 55.20 ft on 04/29/1945
9) 54.60 ft on 04/23/1979
10) 54.50 ft on 06/05/1929

http://weather.hamweather.com/rivers/gauge/NTZM6.html

[muawiyah]

Cairo is just a town, but the relief was needed to preserve the whole Delta ~ which, itself, is one of America's premiere agricultural regions.

This is the world's most important "bean patch" ~ they grow all the fancy beans that end up in cans and bags for sale all over the Americas.

It is so valuable that Mexican marketing companies have contracts for about almost all the beans ~ which constitute about 90% of Mexico's protein consumption.

They use beans instead of meat.

If you think having 20 million or so Mexicans in this country is oppressive, imagine having 50 million of them up here if the bean crop fails.

The value of Missouri wheat was a FRACTION of the value of this year's fancy bean crop that was saved ~ or, actually ~ allowed to be planted. If it gets too late you don't get beans at all.

[ErnBatavia]

Googleize "Campesi Tickfaw" and you might see some ties; looks to still be, at my quick glance.

What I most remember about Hammond was actually the next morning as we headed on east...it'd poured all night and was really humid (to us California desert people, it doesn't take much). The interior of the car started fogging so I did what I normally do: crank up the A/C...but it got panicky worse, so I pulled back off the Interstate.

Fortunately, I experimented and mixed full heat with full A/C and that did the trick.

[abb]

http://af.reuters.com/article/energyOilNews/idAFN1528133220110515?pageNumber=1&virtualBrandChannel=0&sp=true

Floodway opening a blessing for Louisiana refineries

[The Cajun]

If any Louisiana Freepers are interested, here's a link to an interactive elevation map put out by LSU, simple to use and accurate.
Expand to area you're interested in then one left click on particular spot and coordinates and elevation will appear in column to the left.
I prefer the *Hybrid* view choice.

LSU interactive elevation map

[dennisw]

Which beans are you talking about? As far as pinto beans that Mexicans eat they are grown ——>>>

California, Idaho, Michigan, Mexico, and Colorado are all large producers of this bean.
Depending on the species of pinto it could be a bush or a pole variety. It is planted and grows like any other green bean. Kids sometimes plant them as experiments in school science class because they are cheap and readily available. You can just put the dried bean in the ground in well drained soil and grow them in spring-summer weather in the United States.

Read more: http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Where_do_they_grow_Pinto_beans#ixzz1MSlqRjo8

[muawiyah]

Man does not live by pinto beans alone.

BTW, the reason we grow so terribly many beans in the US is that there is, so far, only one predator. In Meso-America where they developed there are hundreds of predators.

"Fancy beans" refers to all the various species and varieties with species that make eating beans worthwhile.

[dennisw]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lentil

Canada is a prime grower of lentils. Lots of our dried beans are grown in Northern tier states like North Dakota and Minnesota up into Canada

__________
__________

Beans sourced in Minnesota’s Red River Valley; black beans in Michigan and pintos in Colorado and South Dakota. Sweet corn in Minnesota’s rich dark soil; and durum wheat flour from the North Dakota Bread Basket.

We are fortunate to be located in the soil-rich upper Midwest, near the best bean growing area in the United States. Where cool nights and long sunny days with plenty of rainfall create the finest growing conditions for beans and vegetables with premium taste, color, and textures.

We also pick our beans and vegetables at the height of flavor and pack them while they’re fresh to capture the delicious fresh flavor and crisp fresh texture.
http://www.faribaultfoods.com/capabilities/raw_materials/

[dennisw]

If you are talking about canned and frozen green beans, peas, black eyed peas.... Then I think the region you mentioned might be prime growers and suppliers