The US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is entering into a $50 million agreement with the state of Louisiana to repair the Grand Isle storm-surge protection barriers. Governor Bobby Jindal signed the agreement on Thursday, April 2.
The project is to be fast-tracked and will use geotextile tubes packed with sand to form the core flood defense measure along much of a seven mile stretch. The previous storm-surge defenses were destroyed by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita (2005) and Gustav and Ike (2008).
The barrier system will be 13 feet high and will be composed of central, sand-filled, six-foot-diameter geotextile tubes with additional sand packed around them. It is designed to 50-year-storm-event strength (a 2% chance each year).
A similar system in Galveston, Texas held up to Hurricane Ike in 2008. The system has been shown to be strong and repair work is considered to be easier than for most systems.
The agreement ends a 14-year dispute on how to pay for this long-needed upgrade. USACE will fund the $25.7-million construction while the Grand Isle Levee District and the town will cover long-term maintenance and repair costs. Construction, the contract for which has been awarded to New Jersey-based Weeks Marine, is slated to begin in May and be completed by September.
Chris Kelsey is the editorial director for geosynthetica.net. He can be reached at chris@geosynthetica.net.
