re: Cancellation of Mid-Barataria Diversion project could cost Louisiana at least $700 million

The Advocate went a little further on this. Some of the money that the contractor could be owed could be nullified by the fact that the contractor did not apply for the necessary parish permits. But a tit for tat like this only enriches the attorneys representing the state and companies.

The project just needs to be built it is probably one of only ways to naturally move water into the basin.


One idea that was floated in the 1990’s was a conveyance channel that started east of Donaldsonville and roughly paralleled Bayou Lafourche to Valentine where it would split in two where one channel would go to Barataria and the other would go into the Terrebonne basin. The big issue with that one is construction costs to dredge a channel.


One parallel idea I thought of recently would be to build a channel to Lake Des Allemands and add fresh water and sediment from there and create a flow into the basin. It shouldn’t impact oyster fishermen as much unless there are oyster leases that far up the basin. It would be a much larger scale Davis Pond, and levees would need to be constructed along the rim of the lake and Bayou and near places like Chackbay and Pleasure Bend.

On the other hand, anytime it rains a lot the Barataria Bay can get so fresh that the water is fresh enough to drink even as far south as Grand Isle.