Conservation Groups Say Report on Dangerous Shipping Channel Not Good Enough

Contact: Paul Harrison, 202.572.3376, pharrison@ed.org
Sharyn Stein, 202.572.3396, 202.460.6512 (cell), sstein@ed.org

Washington, D.C. – Conservation group leaders criticized an interim report to Congress released by the Army Corps of Engineers that identified closing Mister Go to all navigation as the best option, but stopped short of providing a full plan for restoration while putting off a final decision until at least late next year. (Read the report [PDF]). The groups called on the Corps to expedite the restoration of protective wetlands in Louisiana and praised Senator David Vitter (R-LA) for demanding that the Corps use already-appropriated funds to begin closing the Mississippi River Gulf Outlet, also known as “MRGO” or “Mister Go.” Mister Go is a dangerous channel that devastated New Orleans’ former natural hurricane protection.

The conservation experts said that the report was a good first step, but inadequate in light of New Orleans’ continued vulnerability to hurricanes.

“Hurricane Katrina taught us that there is no time to waste before closing the deadly Mister Go,” said Paul Harrison, Louisiana Coastal Project Director for Environmental Defense. “Senator Vitter hit the nail on the head when he said that the Corps should get started immediately and use authorized funds to close the channel at Bayou la Loutre.”

“The Corps often says that it doesn’t make the big decisions, Congress does,” said Mark Ford, Executive Director of the Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana. “Well, Congress has made the decision that $75 million is available to start closing Mister Go. Now all the Corps has to do is listen.” Earlier this month, environmentalists and local officials presented a report entitled “Mister Go Must Go” [PDF] that relied on scientific modeling to describe a complete fix of the Mister Go problem. Today, environmentalists were disappointed that the Corps report overlooked critical elements to be analyzed in next year’s Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration (LACPR) study.

“Critical wetlands restoration tasks like the freshwater diversion at Violet and marsh creation are not ‘opportunities,’ they are required actions,” said Susan Kaderka, Gulf Coast Regional Director for the National Wildlife Federation.

Environmentalists also noted that the report does not take steps to address storm surge or wave attacks on vulnerable levees. “Instead of fixing the problem, the Corps has decided to ignore science, in favor of taking baby steps,” said Melissa Samet, Senior Director of Water Resources at American Rivers. “This half hearted approach leaves thousands of people who live in New Orleans and St Bernard Parish at risk, and calls into question just how serious the Corps is about providing real hurricane protection to the area.”

Mister Go is an artificial channel built by the Corps in 1965 to be a shipping shortcut from the Gulf of Mexico to the New Orleans inner harbor. The Corps created the channel by slicing through the natural land bridge and barrier islands that separated New Orleans from the Gulf, which allowed millions of gallons of saltwater to flow into the area’s freshwater bayous and lakes. The salt water killed tens of thousands of acres of cypress forest that had served as a natural hurricane barrier.

The design of MRGO also allowed it to act like a funnel, accelerating the rate at which hurricane-churned wind and water headed toward the New Orleans area. The loss of natural hurricane barriers and the increased storm surge from the MRGO “funnel” allowed Hurricanes Katrina and Rita to slam into the coast at full force, putting unprecedented strain on manmade levees – some of which failed.

MRGO has been an economic disaster as well. It costs taxpayers almost $12 million each year for maintenance on the outlet, plus the cost of the near-constant dredging needed to keep it open, but MRGO is only used by about half a dozen ships a day. On average, taxpayers get $20,000 bill to taxpayers each time a ship uses the shortcut.

After Hurricane Katrina, Congress directed the Corps to develop a plan to stop deep-draft shipping on MRGO. Congress will need to take further action now that the Corps has delivered its interim report.