MISSISSIPPI RIVER AND TRIBUTARIES PROJECT

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1 MISSISSIPPI RIVER AND TRIBUTARIES PROJECT COL Michael Ellicott Memphis District, Commander February 1, October 2016

2 AGENDA 2 Corps of Engineers Overview Mississippi River and Tributary Overview Early Involvement on the Mississippi River Establishment of the Mississippi River Commission Great Flood of 1927 Flood Control Act of 1928 Project Design Flood Mississippi River Levees and Floodwalls Mississippi River Floodways and Backwater Areas Mississippi River Channel Improvement Tributary Improvements Future Challenges

3 CORPS OF ENGINEERS OVERVIEW 3

4 4 CORPS OF ENGINEERS OVERVIEW

5 MEMPHIS DISTRICT AREA OF RESPONSIBILITY Portions of 6 States 12 Senators 10 Congressmen 400 Dikes 10 Harbors 3 Major Pump Stations St. Francis Basin 600 Miles of Navigation Channel 1,000+ Miles of Federal Levees

6 MISSISSIPPI RIVER AND TRIBUTARIES OVERVIEW 6 Comprehensive Flood Control and Navigation Project Protects 36,000 square miles. Worlds Busiest Waterway 11,000 vessels annually 500 million tons of cargo 60% of Nations' grains 380,000 jobs $37 Billion in Revenue $3.8 Billion in Tax Revenue 46 to 1 return on investment

7 MR&T: FLOOD CONTROL OVERVIEW 7

8 MR&T: NAVIGATION OVERVIEW 8

9 9 EARLY INVOLVEMENT ON THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER

10 EARLY INVOLVEMENT ON THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER : First levees constructed near New Orleans 1811: First steamboat arrives on the river 1812: Louisiana Purchase, opens westward expansion 1826: Rivers and Harbors Act authorized Federal navigation improvements, assigned to Corps of Engineers 1849: Swampland Acts of 1849 and 1850, gave proceeds for the sale of land to local levee and drainage districts. 1870: Average life of a steamboat is 18 months.

11 ESTABLISHMENT OF THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER COMMISSION th Congress, Session I. Ch : An act to provide for the appoint of a Mississippi River Commission for the improvement of said river from the Head of Passes near its mouth to its headwaters. Sec 4. It shall be the duty of said commission to take into consideration and mature such plan or plans and estimates as will correct, permanently locate, and deepen the channel and protect the banks of the Mississippi River; improve and give safety and ease to the navigation thereof; prevent destructive floods; promote and facilitate commerce, trade, and the postal service.

12 12 GREAT FLOOD OF ,000 acres inundated 700,000 people impacted 500 Deaths Damages = $350 million

13 FLOOD CONTROL ACT OF Jadwin Plan Named for then Chief of Engineer, Major General Edgar Jadwin Mississippi River and Tributaries Project Authorized Comprehensive Navigation and Flood Control Project Levees and Floodwalls Floodways and Backwater Areas Channel Improvement and Stabilization Features Tributary Basin Improvements (subsequent Acts)

14 PROJECT DESIGN FLOOD 14 Represents the worst probable scenario. Based on a series of past multiple storm events and hydrologic modeling. January 1937 January 1950 February 1938 Project designed to protect against this scenario.

15 15 MISSISSIPPI RIVER LEVEES AND FLOODWALLS Backbone of the MR&T Project 3,700 miles if levee in system 2,200 miles of mainline levee Design Incorporates soil mechanics and technological advances Berms Relief Wells Trenches

16 MISSISSIPPI RIVER LEVEES: AREA PROTECTED 16

17 17 BACKWATER AREAS AND FLOODWAYS Plan allows Room for the River Floodways and Backwater areas provide a relief valve during significant flood events - Used in 2011 Flood

18 18 MISSISSIPPI RIVER CHANNEL IMPROVEMENT Dikes Channel Improvement Program prevents the river from forming new meanders and maintains an adequate depth for navigation. Dredge Revetment

19 CHANNEL IMPROVEMENT: DREDGING 19 Corps uses dredges to remove problem spots in the navigation channel. Dredges remove sediment from the channel bottom and deposits it outside the navigation channel.

20 CHANNEL IMPROVEMENT: DIKE CONSTRUCTION 20 Hard points deflect the river current. River current scours channel bottom, maintaining efficient depth.

21 CHANNEL IMPROVEMENT: REVETMENT 21 Evolved Over Time Willow Mats Asphalt Rock Articulated Concrete Mat Regional Effort Mat Casting and Loading Bank Clearing and Snagging Bank Grading Mat Sinking Upper Bank Paving

22 22 MAT CASTING AND LOADING

23 CLEARING AND SNAGGING UNIT 23

24 BANK GRADING 24

25 25 MAT SINKING

26 26 UPPER BANK PAVING

27 TRIBUTARY IMPROVEMENTS 27 Congress amended the MR&T through numerous pieces of legislation. White St. Francis West TN Tribs Yazoo Each specific piece of legislation provides for project-specific features Red Atchafalaya

28 FUTURE CHALLENGES: FUNDING Funding Declines Infrastructure Degradation Backlog of construction and maintenance projects Modernization of Revetment Program 28

29 29 FUTURE CHALLENGES: GROUNDWATER DEPLETION

30 FUTURE CHALLENGES: WEST TENNESSEE Channel Degradation Impacts Infrastructure Erodes Channel Banks Downstream Channel Blockages Environmental Habitat Erosive Soils 30 Increased Development Post West TN Tributaries Project Population Growth No Comprehensive Plan

31 31 QUESTIONS