"Hugely expensive pipeline could be avoided if predictions prove correct".
"Forecasts for when salt water advancing up the Mississippi River will reach the New Orleans area were drastically pushed back Thursday, potentially sparing most of the city and Jefferson Parish entirely from the threat while avoiding the need to build an emergency pipeline estimated to cost as much as a quarter of a billion dollars.
The updated forecast released by the Army Corps of Engineers, slowing the timeline by around a month in certain cases, was welcomed by officials throughout the metro area, providing respite from the scramble to protect drinking water. But the region cannot exhale completely, with some areas still predicted to be affected, and Corps officials noted that forecasts could again change.
New Orleans officials planned to push ahead with plans to build the pipeline, though not pull the trigger on the hugely expensive project unless needed. Jefferson Parish, which began work on its smaller-scale pipelines this week, will partially build them out."
Mike Smith reports for the New Orleans Times-Picayune October 5, 2023.
SEE ALSO:
"They Dredged the Mississippi River for Trade. Now a Water Crisis Looms" (Bloomberg Green)
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