The Reshaping of New Orleans Is a National Problem 6/12/2006
Let’s face it, New Orleans was a dying city before Hurricane Katrina devastated it last year, and the death now is almost complete. Instead of spending many billions of taxpayer dollars to restore the city to its pre-Katrina configuration, the time has come to start developing a plan for the city that embraces nature rather than fights it. Because of the vast amount of federal funding involved, this should be a national debate, rather than just a local one.
The New Orleans of today will remain a potential disaster area no matter what the nation does. Its location near the mouth of the Mississippi River, which drains middle America, guarantees that. Much of the city is 1 ft to 10 ft below sea level and parts are sinking 1 in. per year due to overdevelopment, loss of protective marshlands, seismic shifts and tremendous oil and gas pro- duction in the region.