Louisiana State University
Professor of Geography at Louisiana State University, editor of Geographical Review and author of An Unnatural Metropolis: Wresting New Orleans from Nature
PROFILE
Craig Colten
Guest
FROM Craig Colten
Which Way, L.A.?
Can Man Control the Mighty Mississippi River? Since the great flood of 1927 killed hundreds of people, the Army Corps of Engineers has built 2000 miles of levees to tame the Mississippi. Now the system's being tested as never before, as the Corps is faced with opening spillways to devastate some places in order to save others. At stake either way are homes, businesses, billions in property damage and entire communities. Is the River untamable after all? We hear from the Corps and its critics and from the Mayor of Vicksburg, Mississippi, one city that's bracing for a catastrophe.
To the Point
Has Flood Control Led to a False Sense of Security? The Mississippi watershed is the world's third largest after the Amazon and the Congo. Since record flooding in 1927, the Army Corps of Engineers has spent billions of dollars on an intricate 2000-mile system of levees, spillways and flood zones designed to allow homes, farms and industrial development to thrive along the river and its many tributaries. Now that system is being severely tested, as the Corps is faced with opening spillways to devastate some places in order to save others. At stake either way are homes, businesses, billions in property damage and entire communities. Is the river untamable after all? We hear from the Corps and its critics and from the Mayor of Vicksburg, Mississippi, one city that's bracing for a catastrophe.
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To the Point
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To the Point
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To the Point
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