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Coleen Perilloux Landry | all galleries >> Galleries >> Bonnet Carre' Spillway in St. Charles Parish, Louisiana Gallery > Spillway Gauge on May 24, 2009
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24 May 2009 Coleen Perilloux Landry

Spillway Gauge on May 24, 2009

Bonnet Carre' Spillway



Photo of April 11, 2008 - day of Spillway Opening

In 13 days the Mississippi River has risen five feet at this gauge. We are almost on the marker where the Corps opened the Spillway in 2008. They seem to be balking at the idea.
The New Orleans Times Picayune on May 24, 2009 carried an article that read "Spillway opening safe, studies say" and "No lasting damage found in '08 event".
"Carlton Dufrechou, executive director of the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation, said that the Corps is missing the boat by not moving at least some of the water through adjacent wetlands, which are starving for the nutrients in the river water." A Corps person told me the owners of the wetlands do not want that. Since when has the Corps ever considered what owners of property want?
The report further stated that there was no drop in the blue crab catch, oyster or fish catch in area waters because of the opening of the Spillway.
Areas that should be helped by the fresh river water are slowly dying and, what was once a beautiful cypress swamp, has become a graveyard of dead trees reaching to the sky.


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Cindi Smith25-May-2009 00:55
I hate that beautiful swampland is dying. It makes my heart sad.
sschex25-May-2009 00:52
The answer to Louisiana's coastal loss is in this picture. The Spillway is proof positive of how to keep south louisiana from washing into the gulf.
laine25-May-2009 00:35
Hope no mistakes are made !!!
Guest 25-May-2009 00:16
We went over the US 190 bridge in Baton Rouge this morning and notices the Mississippi....... very high. Don't know how much higher the corps will let it go before they do something. Atchafalays at Krotz Springs is very high also, we may see both Bonne Carre and Morganza open this year.
Chris Cox24-May-2009 23:14
From what I've heard, blue crabs are abundant this year, one of the best years ever so evidently previous opening did not hurt the blue crab population! Good Job Coleen! CC