Monday, December 3, 2007

The Waters of New Orleans

New Orleans, Louisiana, has the opposite problem of Atlanta: It is surrounded by water and vulnerable to hurricanes. To the north, the very large and slightly brackish lake Pontchatrain, to the south, the Missispipi river works it's way to the sea. When hurricanes occur, they pull all of this water into a storm of wet destruction.

However, north and west of Louisiana lies a gigantic reservoir, deep underground, that is being vigorously tapped by the entire Midwest region for agricultural water. This hole is large enough to hold enormous amounts of water. This hole is the Ogallala aquifer, and it extends from Texas to South Dakota.

So I propose that Lake Pontchatrain by dammed off at Green's Ditch, where it connects to Lake Catharine, and this dam be open and closable by computer. At that point, a second dam would be built on the western edge of the lake, somewhere between Ruddock and Mandeville. While this expanse consists of lands, behind the dam would be a pipe, going north, west, and slightly down. Water going through this pipe would have to be desalinated like the Atlanta solution, but less so as there is less water, as well as the water being less salty in the first place. The desalinization could occur underground, easily. One could even do it without electrical power, as gravity would give the water pressure as it flowed downwards. A worker would need to change the filters once every other year or so, but that shouldn't prove too difficult.

This pipe would, after desalinization, be put into a second pipe going into the Ogalala aquifer beneath Texas. This water would eventually be used agriculturally, somewhere in the midwest.

Lastly, I propose that a third dam be built in a canal connecting the missipipi river to Lake Pontchatrain. Again, all three dams would be computer operatable. Preferably, this canal would be on the west shore.

With all of this in place, the mayor of New Orleans could, if another hurricane threatens, close the Cathrine dam, then open the Missisipi and Pontchatrain dams, draining those bodies of water (possibly only partially depending on how large they are and how much advanced warning he or she has). New Orleans can better weather the next hurricane, with extra water available for Nebraskan corn. Due to the computer control, whoever controls the dams controls the water level around New Orleans. Opening them lowers them. Closing it raises them.

Do you suppose the Ogallala states would complain every time the dams were closed?

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