Editorial: Better Flood Control
Monday, May 14, 2007 - Bangor Daily News
http://bangordailynews.com/news/t/viewp ... &zoneid=34
The Army Corps of Engineers, the country's construction branch, is
known for dredging and dam projects that serve political needs rather
than public safety or environmental needs. A reform bill now before the
Senate would change this by requiring independent review of Corps
projects and, if an amendment sponsored by Sen. Susan Collins is
enacted, an assessment of the climate change implications of its
projects. Given the importance of Corps projects and the dangerous and
expensive consequences of more powerful storms and other climate
changes, these improvements are needed and long overdue.
Last year, the Senate passed an Army Corps reform bill, but it was not
reconciled with a weaker House version. With a new Congress, rewriting
the Water Resources Development Act has begun again, informed by the
problems revealed by Hurricane Katrina.
In its evaluation of the performance of the New Orleans and Southeast
Louisiana Hurricane Protection System during Hurricane Katrina, the
Corps wrote that the city's levees failed because of poor design and
flawed construction. For example, the Corps did not account for poor
soil quality or that the ground was sinking in some areas. It did not
reconsider the height of the levees after being warned of this sinking.
Failure of the levees flooded huge portions of New Orleans.
An independent review of the levee design and construction may have
identified the need for modifications before the inadequate flood
protection system was built and, ultimately failed. The Hurricane
Katrina levee failures are the largest and most recent example of
problems with Army Corps projects.
In Saco, residents of the Camp Ellis area blame the Corps construction
of a breakwater at the mouth of the Saco River for beach erosion there.
The area was hard hit by the April 16 storm, which destroyed seven homes
in Camp Ellis.
The bill contains $25 million to rebuild the breakwater, a project that
will be improved by ensuring that the faults with the current jetty -
such as directing waves toward homes - are remedied.
On climate change, a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
Committee hearing last month highlighted government insurance
programs* failure to prepare for climate change while private
companies are already addressing an expected continued growth in losses
from worsening storms.
The Pentagon is already planning for the consequences of abrupt climate
change, which for the United States could include a flood of starving
immigrants from Mexico, South America and the Carribean Islands, causing
the country to strengthen its borders. Tensions with Mexico could
escalate if the United States reneges on a treaty that guarantees that
some water from the Colorado River flow into Mexico. The consequences
would be worse for Europe, Asia and East Africa, according to the
Pentagon.
Given what the military and private companies are doing, it would be
irresponsible for the Army Corps, which builds dams and levees for flood
protection and dredges rivers and harbors for navigation, not to plan
for changes in the climate.
The amendment, along with improvements in the Corps* project planning
and review, will ensure the agency better protects communities and the
environment.
