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Submitted by Senator Roger Wicker
“These flood threats should not going away and require investments in new infrastructure,” Wicker writes.
This week marks 17 years since Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast. Since that horrific storm, now we have taken important steps to forestall future disasters by bettering our drainage methods, flood partitions, and levees. The identical can’t be mentioned for residents of metro Jackson and the South Delta, who proceed to face persistent flooding.
Simply final week, heavy rains triggered flash flood harm throughout Mississippi, and in February 2020, Jackson floodwaters rose to their third-highest degree on document. In the meantime, South Delta residents have suffered repeated property harm, crop failure, and even dying due to backwater floods, which have been particularly extreme in 2019. These flood threats should not going away and require investments in new infrastructure.
Pearl River Undertaking Nears Ultimate Choice
I’ve constantly pushed for flood management tasks throughout Mississippi, and final week was an vital milestone in shifting the ball ahead. Final Tuesday, I met with native mayors, county supervisors, and Military Corps of Engineers officers to debate the necessity for the Pearl River Flood Management Undertaking in Jackson. This proposal, which is being reviewed by the Military Corps, would widen the Pearl River, enlarge levees, and take away chokepoints which have triggered upstream flooding. This plan would defend Hinds and Rankin counties from greater than $1 billion in potential damages, shielding our properties, roads, hospitals, rail, and different infrastructure. Research present that 92 p.c of the buildings affected by the 2020 flood would in truth be protected underneath this plan.
Final 12 months, I helped safe $300,000 for the Military Corps to finish a research of this proposal, and a ultimate determination ought to be launched quickly. If the venture is permitted, Jackson space residents will profit from safer residing circumstances and improved high quality of life.
Biden Officers Hear From Delta Residents
South Delta residents have additionally suffered drastically from an absence of flood safety. In 1941, Congress promised to offer flood management to areas up and down the Mississippi River, and for the South Delta, this included a system of levees, flood gates, and backwater pumps. Nonetheless, for greater than 80 years, federal forms and misinformation have delayed the ultimate part of this venture – the backwater pumps. Because of this, rainwaters have regularly been trapped within the Yazoo Backwater Space, leading to flooded properties, ruined crops, and billions of {dollars} in harm. To our nice frustration, the Environmental Safety Company (EPA) has blocked the pumps venture twice within the final 15 years, leaving Delta residents weak to continued flooding.
Final week, I joined Congressman Bennie Thompson and Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith to host Biden officers within the South Delta, the place we held conferences with native leaders and mentioned the necessity for the Yazoo Pump Undertaking. We had representatives from a number of federal companies, together with the EPA, FEMA, the Military Corps of Engineers, the Division of the Inside, and the President’s Council on Environmental High quality. Our most vital occasion was a listening session that was attended by a whole lot of South Delta residents who shared their unfiltered tales of loss and hardship. It was clear that nearly each Delta resident in attendance had suffered immensely from the continued flooding.
These federal officers realized rather a lot, and I can solely hope they have been moved by listening to from residents who must stay with the concern that their properties or companies will flood each time now we have a heavy rain. I used to be inspired that the group appeared keen to work with us towards an answer, and I’ll proceed to carry them accountable to that dedication till they lastly ship on the promise of flood management for South Delta residents.
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Submitted by Senator Roger Wicker
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