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Bonnet Carré Spillway
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Bonnet Carré Spillway
The Bonnet Carré Spillway /ˈbɒniː ˈkɛriː/ is a flood control operation in the Lower Mississippi Valley. Located in St. Charles Parish, Louisiana, about 12 miles (19 km) west of New Orleans, it allows floodwaters from the Mississippi River to flow into Lake Pontchartrain and thence into the Gulf of Mexico. The spillway was constructed between 1929 and 1931, following the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927, and has been designated as a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark by the American Society of Civil Engineers.
The Bonnet Carré Crevasse was one of several levee breaches in the Bonnet Carré area in 1871. Local drainage systems were unable to contain the floodwater and strong winds caused the water to enter Lake Pontchartrain and surrounding urban areas. The river levee was not restored until 1883.
The spillway was built in response to the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 that inundated much of the Mississippi River basin. It was first opened during the flood of 1937.
In 2007, extraction operations began on a 42-acre (170,000 m2) square section of spillway property. The 7,600-acre (31 km2) spillway, designed to divert rising water out of the Mississippi River during flooding seasons, long has been a major source of sand and clay that is used in construction projects throughout the area. But in the post-Katrina era, clay extracted from the spillway will be crucial to raising the levees in St. Charles Parish and east Jefferson Parish.[citation needed]
The several openings of the spillway have had a significant effect on marine fisheries in the Mississippi Sound, which resulted in a federal award of damages in 2011 and ongoing federal litigation over the management of the spillway.
The 2019 opening began February 27, 2019, when river levels were predicted to rise to minor flood stage in New Orleans on March 19, 2019. The Army Corps of Engineers initially opened 38 of the 350 bays and increased this number to 206 bays when the flood crest arrived later in March. The Army Corps of Engineers closed the spillway on April 11, 2019, only to reopen it again on May 10, 2019. This marks the first time in the spillway's history that it was opened twice in one year. In April 2020 the Spillway was again opened from April 3, 2020, until May 1, 2020, a total of 29 days.
The Bonnet Carré Spillway consists of two basic components: a control structure along the east bank of the Mississippi River and a floodway that transfers the diverted flood waters to the lake. The control structure, located between the towns of Montz and Norco, is a mechanically controlled concrete weir that extends for over a mile and a half parallel to the river. When opened, the control structure allows overflow volume to flow into Lake Pontchartrain. The lake's opening to the gulf is sufficient to absorb and dissipate any conceivable volume of flood flow. Thus, the flood surcharge portion of the water from the Mississippi is divided between the main river and the diversion channel, with the surcharge bypassing the New Orleans metropolitan area, resulting in the Mississippi being lower (through that area) than it could have been and reducing the stress on the area's levees that line the river. Confined by guide levees, the floodway stretches nearly six miles (9.7 km) to Lake Pontchartrain, with a design capacity of 250,000 cu ft/s (7,100 m3/s). The spillway is crossed by U.S. 61 and Interstate 10.
The spillway's secondary function is as a recreational area. It is used for off-road vehicles, biking, boating, hiking, hunting, and fishing. It is designated a protected wildlife management area by the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. To enhance fishing in the spillway, the clay extraction pits were filled with water and stocked with bluegill, largemouth bass, and other fish.
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Bonnet Carré Spillway
The Bonnet Carré Spillway /ˈbɒniː ˈkɛriː/ is a flood control operation in the Lower Mississippi Valley. Located in St. Charles Parish, Louisiana, about 12 miles (19 km) west of New Orleans, it allows floodwaters from the Mississippi River to flow into Lake Pontchartrain and thence into the Gulf of Mexico. The spillway was constructed between 1929 and 1931, following the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927, and has been designated as a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark by the American Society of Civil Engineers.
The Bonnet Carré Crevasse was one of several levee breaches in the Bonnet Carré area in 1871. Local drainage systems were unable to contain the floodwater and strong winds caused the water to enter Lake Pontchartrain and surrounding urban areas. The river levee was not restored until 1883.
The spillway was built in response to the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 that inundated much of the Mississippi River basin. It was first opened during the flood of 1937.
In 2007, extraction operations began on a 42-acre (170,000 m2) square section of spillway property. The 7,600-acre (31 km2) spillway, designed to divert rising water out of the Mississippi River during flooding seasons, long has been a major source of sand and clay that is used in construction projects throughout the area. But in the post-Katrina era, clay extracted from the spillway will be crucial to raising the levees in St. Charles Parish and east Jefferson Parish.[citation needed]
The several openings of the spillway have had a significant effect on marine fisheries in the Mississippi Sound, which resulted in a federal award of damages in 2011 and ongoing federal litigation over the management of the spillway.
The 2019 opening began February 27, 2019, when river levels were predicted to rise to minor flood stage in New Orleans on March 19, 2019. The Army Corps of Engineers initially opened 38 of the 350 bays and increased this number to 206 bays when the flood crest arrived later in March. The Army Corps of Engineers closed the spillway on April 11, 2019, only to reopen it again on May 10, 2019. This marks the first time in the spillway's history that it was opened twice in one year. In April 2020 the Spillway was again opened from April 3, 2020, until May 1, 2020, a total of 29 days.
The Bonnet Carré Spillway consists of two basic components: a control structure along the east bank of the Mississippi River and a floodway that transfers the diverted flood waters to the lake. The control structure, located between the towns of Montz and Norco, is a mechanically controlled concrete weir that extends for over a mile and a half parallel to the river. When opened, the control structure allows overflow volume to flow into Lake Pontchartrain. The lake's opening to the gulf is sufficient to absorb and dissipate any conceivable volume of flood flow. Thus, the flood surcharge portion of the water from the Mississippi is divided between the main river and the diversion channel, with the surcharge bypassing the New Orleans metropolitan area, resulting in the Mississippi being lower (through that area) than it could have been and reducing the stress on the area's levees that line the river. Confined by guide levees, the floodway stretches nearly six miles (9.7 km) to Lake Pontchartrain, with a design capacity of 250,000 cu ft/s (7,100 m3/s). The spillway is crossed by U.S. 61 and Interstate 10.
The spillway's secondary function is as a recreational area. It is used for off-road vehicles, biking, boating, hiking, hunting, and fishing. It is designated a protected wildlife management area by the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. To enhance fishing in the spillway, the clay extraction pits were filled with water and stocked with bluegill, largemouth bass, and other fish.
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