Mississippi sues federal government over river flooding
JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — The state of Mississippi on Monday sued the federal government, claiming a dam complex in Louisiana that keeps the Mississippi River from changing course is harming state land.
The suit seeks at least $25 million in damages and touches on one of the most sensitive engineering questions in the nation — the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' decades-long effort to keep the Mississippi in its current channel flowing past Baton Rouge and New Orleans.
Without what's known as the Old River Control Structure, the Mississippi River would likely shift course to Atchafalaya River in Louisiana, which offers a shorter, steeper route to the Gulf of Mexico. Such a shift would cut off the current source of fresh water for drinking in New Orleans and for industrial use at dozens of chemical plants in south Louisiana. It would also create major obstacles along a key shipping route.
Mississippi Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann said his state isn't challenging the decision to try to lock the river's current flow in place. But he said the state of Mississippi should get paid for increased flooding caused by siltation. The river carries sediment that is dropping out of the current and piling up on the riverbed, constricting its flow and causing water upstream to rise higher, especially during a flood.
Read more: https://www.news-journal.com/ap/national/mississippi-sues-federal-government-over-river-flooding/article_a5fa7853-4383-5cbe-9b1f-d58f3a05ab85.html
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