South Louisiana Comprehensive Coastal Protection and Restoration

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LA Coastal Protection and Restoration Reports to
CongressWhat is Category 5 Protection?
Rebuilding the New Orleans Region Forum September
2006
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Overview of Presentation

• The New Orleans setting and coastal challenges
• Hurricane Katrina
• Congressional Direction to the Corps of Engineers
• Defining a Category 5 storm
• Engineering challenges
• Need for engineering innovations
• Coastal lines of defense strategy
• Options for Protecting New Orleans
• Questions

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The Setting of New Orleans and Coastal Challenges
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New Orleans
Lake Pontchartrain
Lake Borgne
Mississippi River
Breton and Chandeleur Sounds
Barataria Bay
Gulf of Mexico
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Existing New Orleans Area Hurricane Protection
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Hurricane Katrina
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Katrina at LA Landfall
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Mississippi River Gulf Outlet Orleans Parish, LA
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Transportation Infrastructure
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I-10 twin spans Orleans Parish, LA
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Highway39 Plaquemines Parish, LA
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Rail Road in marsh Orleans Parish, LA
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Flood Protection Systems
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17th Street Canal Orleans Parish, LA
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Bayou Bienvenue Floodgate St. Bernard Parish, LA
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Gulf Intracoastal Waterway Orleans Parish, LA
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Communities
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Chalmette St. Bernard Parish, LA
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Chalmette St. Bernard Parish, LA
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Coastal Wetlands Losses
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Wetlands on the East Orleans Land Bridge
Pre-Katrina
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Wetlands on the East Orleans Land Bridge
Post-Katrina
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Fort Pike at The Rigolets Orleans Parish, LA
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Congressional Direction
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Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2006
(P.L. 109-148)

• SEC. 5009. Public Law 109103 amended as follows
• Chief of Engineers, is directed to conduct a
  comprehensive hurricane protection analysis and
  design at full federal expense to develop and
  present a full range of flood control, coastal
  restoration, and hurricane protection measures
  exclusive of normal policy considerations
• submit a preliminary technical report for
  comprehensive Category 5 protection within 6
  months
• submit a final technical report for Category 5
  protection within 24 months
• consider providing protection for a storm surge
  equivalent to a Category 5 hurricane within the
  project area and may submit reports on component
  areas of the larger protection program for
  authorization as soon as practicable
• analysis shall be conducted in close
  coordination with the State of Louisiana and its
  appropriate agencies.

Proctor Point St. Bernard Parish, LA
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Key Project Directives

• Fully coordinate with the State of Louisiana
• Reports to Congress and state Master Plan should
  be complimentary
• Use the best and brightest talents from within
  the USACE and from external entities
• Use innovative designs and technologies
• Involve and educate the public

Stone Island Breton Sound, LA
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Team Composition

• USACE-MVN, USACE-MVD, USACE-ERDC
• USACE Planning Centers of Expertise
• State of Louisiana, Coastal Protection
  Restoration Authority, LDNR, LDOTD, LDWF, LDEQ
• LSU, UNO, Tulane, Notre Dame, Univ North
  Carolina, Univ Maryland, Univ Delaware, MIT
• NOAA Hurricane Center, NMFS, EPA, USFWS, USGS,
  NRCS
• Dutch Reijkwaterstat
• Oceanweather, HDR, Group Solutions, others

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Independent Review Teams

• Technical Review
• Occurs within USACE outside of MVN
• Employs USACE Centers of Expertise
• Embedded technical managers and reviewers on PDT
  for continuous input

• Peer Review
• Conducted outside of USACE
• Review team member identities not known for
  preliminary effort
• Exploring options for bringing onboard National
  Academy for final review

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Defining a Category 5 Storm
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Standard Project Hurricane

• Derived by the National Weather Service in 1957
• Central Pressure 27.5 inches of Mercury
• Wind Speed 110 mph
• Radius of Maximum Winds 30 miles
• Forward Speed 5 11 knots

Lake Pontchartrain and Vicinity HPP
Central Press (in)
Scale Number
Winds (mph)
Surge (feet)
1 2 3 4 5 Camille
28.9 28.5 - 28.9 27.9 28.5 27.2 27.9 lt
27.2 26.6
74 95 96 110 111 - 130 131 155 gt155
200
4-5 6-8 9-12 13-18 gt 18 24.6
West Bank and Vicinity, N.O. HPP
SPH Design
SPH PROJECTS
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Authorized Protection Levels
Saffir-Simpson Scale (1970)
Design Hurricanes
Katrina at LA Landfall
Congress currently authorizes protection from
flood waters resulting from winds of 90-115 MPH.
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Developing a Design Storm

• Saffir-Simpson is a wind damage scale
• Storm surge is not well calibrated in scale
• Storm characteristics and strike probabilities
  are key to defining protection strategy and
  design levels
• Computer simulations to aid design
• Future trends in climate and sea levels
• Developing long-term risk reduction strategy

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Screening Storms

• Probable Maximum Hurricane
• Maximum Possible Hurricane
• Minimal Category 5 event
• Hurricane Katina type storm
• 100 year storm

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Storm Tracks EvaluatedProbable Maximum Hurricane
(PMH)
Storm comparisons Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Camille Probable Max
Hurricane Central pressure
920 mb 908 mb
890 mb Max sustained winds landfall 127
mph 160 mph 166
mph Radius to max winds 30
NM 10 NM
11 NM Forward speed
14 knots 14 knots
10 knots
represents work completed to date by LACPR team
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Engineering and Design Challenges
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Design Challenges

• Coast in collapse
• Community recovery timelines
• Battling natures most powerful storms
• Extreme engineering conditions
• Innovative technologies interconnected systems

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Protection Strategies
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Category 5 Protection Strategies

• Coastal lines of defense
• Structural barriers
• Evacuation plans
• Local building codes

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Options for New Orleans

• Open tidal channels and higher levees
• Barriers at Pontchartrain tidal channels
• Low barriers ar tidal channels that allow
  overtopping during peak storm conditions
• South shore levees with no overtopping
• Restore coastal features

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LACPR primary alignment alternative
LACPR additional alignment alternative
MRGO/GIWW navigable closure potential alignment
Required levee lifts
BARRIER PLANS
NOTE additional LACPR alignments in development
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No overtopping
Block surges
Restore Wetlands Buffers
Surge transfer
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Concluding Comments

• Invite continuous involvement of the engineering
  community
• Recovery and survival of New Orleans depends
  upon hurricane protection works
• Wind thresholds
• Reduce system complexity
• Strong Houses Resist Storms
• Varying levels of protection
• Comprehensive approach

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QUESTIONS? Gregory Miller Project Manager(504)
862-2310Gregory.B.Miller_at_usace.army.mil
http//www.mvn.usace.army.mil/
SW Pass Light MS River delta
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Planning and Design Workshops

• Wind, Waves and Water (Dec 2005 Vicksburg, MS)
• Held to develop state of the science for
  estimating maximum hurricane for design
  comparison and analysis
• Included National Hurricane Center, LSU and Dutch
• Initial Plan Formulation (Feb 2006 Lafayette, LA)
• Assembly of coastal professionals to develop
  initial alternative alignments for model runs
  public presentation at scoping meetings
• Engineering Technical Approaches and Innovations
  (Mar 2006 Vicksburg, MS)
• Experts in various design fields to assess
  alternatives and apply both standard and
  innovative approaches to assist the team in
  preparation of information gathering plans and
  tools for analysis

Stone Island Breton Sound, LA
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Preliminary Technical Report

• Report completed in July 2006
• Outlines strategic approach
• Identifies key components
• Highlights remaining work needed to develop full
  plan

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