re: Planned freshwater diversions will doom LA salt fishing

Also there are huge differences between a sediment diversion and a freshwater diversion in the design.

Everything that has been designed previously is a water diversion first and the design did not really incorporate sediment transport into it.

The new ones will be designed as sediment diversions so expect to see something that looks like Morganza flood way or bonnet carre spillway. Something wider and flatter instead of a large box culvert.

They also don't need to be operating at full capacity (in theory) all the time. The sediment load of the river peaks prior to the flood water peak. If designed and operated properly the sediment can be captured while the peak flood flow can be sent down the river to wash out the mouth of the river (SW pass).

That concept would hopefully allow the state to get a permit from the corps which previously required the state pay for increased dredging of shipping channels due to water flow changes from diversions. The increased dredging cost requirements has killed many water/channel re-alignment and proposed diversion projects in the past.