Additional $453 million announced for West Shore hurricane protection
Published 5:19 pm Wednesday, January 19, 2022
- Local and state dignitaries joined the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to break ground on the federally funded West Shore Lake Pontchartrain Levee Project in July 2021.
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LAPLACE — Congressman Garret Graves (R-Louisiana) announced an additional $453 million for the West Shore Lake Pontchartrain levee protection allocated through the Hurricane Ida Supplemental Disaster Relief bill, bringing the total funding for the project to more than $1.2 billion.
Graves also announced $8 million for engineering and design related to Upper Barataria Basin hurricane protection in St. Charles, St. John, St. James, Jefferson, Ascension, Lafourche and Assumption parishes.
Since Hurricane Ida struck Southeast Louisiana on August 29, Graves has worked with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the White House Office of Management and Budget to commit funds from September 2021 Hurricane Ida Recovery Legislation to support Louisiana’s most urgent flood protection needs.
Graves recently spoke to Louisiana native Shalanda Young, director of the White House budget office, about how Congress intends for the hurricane recovery funds to be spent.
“Within one month of Hurricane Ida making landfall, we were able to pass a law with billions of dollars in recovery funding and flood protection investments for Louisiana. After months of working with top Corps and White House officials, billions of dollars in key hurricane protection, flood control, levee improvements and dredging are on the way,” Graves said.
Key investments from Hurricane Ida recovery funding represent more than $2.5 billion to improve flood control and increase protection from hurricanes.
The West Shore Levee and Upper Barataria Basin projects are among the new top investments, which also include funding for Comite Diversion flood protection, Morganza to the Gulf hurricane protection, Mississippi River levees, dikes and revetment projects, Atchafalaya Basin, Mississippi River dredging, Atchafalaya River dredging, Lake Pontchartrain and Vicinity hurricane protection (in St. Charles, Jefferson, Orleans and St. Bernard), Angola Ring Levee, and Ascension and East Baton Rouge sewer investments.
