Posted on August 25, 2016
By Jessica Goff, theadvertiser
As water recedes through portions of Louisiana, local and state officials are focusing on how such a disaster can be prevented in the future.
U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy made stops Monday in New Iberia and Morgan City to talk with residents and members of the businesses community on how to move forward from the massive flood.
The state must do better to work with the federal government on a backlog of projects that could improve drainage and restore the coast, Cassidy told members of the Greater Iberia Chamber of Commerce on Monday.
“Whether it is south or north Louisiana, we’ve got a lot of levees that need to be updated. We’ve got flood protection that needs to be redone,” he said. “The advocacy of the people who are in affected communities is essential… No one else can present your case as well as you.”
The blame game on just what or who has neglected much needed improvements in infrastructure will likely continue as the state recovers from the worst flooding it has seen in at least a decade.
A weekend report from The Baton Rouge Advocate delved into the history of some forestalled projects in Louisiana communities hard hit by the flood water.
Officials in the town of Central have blamed the lack of funding from the state and federal government, particularly the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, on stalled plans that could have prevented water encroachment, The Advocate reported.
“Clearly, Army Corps of Engineers issues are big,” Cassidy said Monday. “It’s big for the Port of Iberia. It’s big for flood protection. We know we’ve got an issue in this state.”
Some parishes in northern Louisiana still lack the resources to handle the rapidly rising water, the senator said.
“When north Louisiana was flooded several months ago, we got a call from Grant Parish. Now, Grant Parish is north of Alexandria,” Cassidy said. “That parish needed an airboat and we had to get an airboat from St. Mary Parish. When Grant Parish needs and airboat, you’ve got a problem.”
Now the state must focus on how certain future projects could affect neighboring parishes in terms of water flow, Cassidy said.
Louisiana must also strengthen its relationship with the federal government and take a closer look at core improvement plans and how to make them more affordable for faster completion.
“We have to cut out some of the red tape, but we also have to begin thinking kind of regionally,” he said. “Because otherwise you could fix something in one parish and water travels rapidly and the next parish takes a bigger bath. And that’s the wrong way to do it.”
Source: theadvertiser
