The Lost City of New Orleans?

It may turn out that the first line of defense for coastal cities isn't the levee in your backyard, but that marsh in your backyard that the city built on top of.

1 minute read

February 3, 2006, 11:00 AM PST

By Chris Steins @planetizen

"Modern day New Orleans was a city that defied the odds. Built on a mosquito-infested swamp squashed between two vast bodies of water in what is essentially a bowl, its very existence seemed proof of the triumph of engineering over nature.

...The delicate flood system in New Orleans, which so many relied on to protect them was actually, year on year, adding to the risk of a catastrophe in the city.

...The Mississippi River had been controlled over the years to stop the annual floods with hundreds of miles of levees and dams. As a result sediments that were naturally brought down to replenish the land, were cut off.

Gradually Louisiana started to lose its coast and today it has the highest rate of coastal land loss in North America. An area the size of Wembley stadium is lost to the sea every 20 minutes."

FULL STORY: New Orleans 'risks extinction'

Thursday, February 2, 2006 in BBC

Environment Louisiana

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