CWPPRA Restoration Technique: Freshwater and Sediment Diversions
The present location of the Mississippi River has been confined by levees constructed in response to the devastating flood of 1927. Although necessary for protecting life and property, the levees prevent the natural processes of delta building and sediment deposition that are vital for sustaining wetlands. Without this nourishment, the wetlands will eventually succumb to subsidence, storms, and anthropogenic impacts.
The CWPPRA program has been finding solutions to optimize river resources and help rebuild wetlands with minimal impact to other stakeholders. Controlled diversions route river water through strategic locations in the levees to feed starving marshes. Crevasses, or cuts, are constructed through levees to allow passive creation of smaller deltas. Siphons suction fresh river water and direct flow into wetlands suffering from saltwater intrusion. Water-control structures and channel maintenance help distribute river water diverted from large-scale structures constructed under other authorities.
The river presents the greatest opportunity for rebuilding land but also the greatest challenges, as competing needs are inevitable. The human and natural environments must be able to coexist because they are inextricably connected. Together with stakeholders, CWPPRA projects are helping to reverse land loss on an ecosystem scale and support the economy on which coastal Louisiana has come to depend.
CWPPRA 