Corrected version
Flooding on the Mississippi River earlier this year has taken a toll on the complex system of levees that run the length of the mighty waterway.
Save the Delta, a grassroots organization, is attempting to call attention to the problem by encouraging a letter-writing campaign to get $3 billion in federal funding.
David LaValle, chief spokesman for the group, said the flooding of late April and early May was historic by anyone’s standards, but he said levees prevented more than $100 billion in damages.
“You think about what this region produces in terms of agriculture. ... About the towns that are protected. The economic development, navigation of the river, is a very, very important part of this,” he said.
The campaign is personal for LaValle, a native of New Madrid, Mo., a river town, who also serves on the St. Johns Levee and Drainage District Board.
On May 23, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers breached levees and diverted rising Mississippi River flood waters away from Cairo, Ill., which in turn flooded thousand of acres of Missouri farmland.
In all, according to the Corps, between 3.6 million and 6.8 million acres were inundated.
Total insured losses are estimated at between $2 billion and $4 billion.
“As a result of that, there was a meeting of the minds that we needed to be active and engaged. Once the water subsided and receded, we were going to have to convince people of the need” for restoring the levee system to its pre-flood condition, he said.
LaValle said that required bringing together the various stakeholders, such as farmers, business leaders and levee officials across the six-state region from Illinois to Louisiana.
“That began in late May. We’ve been going forward since then,” he said.
The campaign is being directed by the Mississippi Valley Flood Control Association of Germantown, Tenn., LaValle said.
He said there’s been some “crawfishing” on rebuilding the levee system from leaders in Washington.
“Whether it is for lack of funds or lack of will, I can’t say. But it is a federal responsibility,” he said.
LaValle credits U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson, R-Mo., with helping to redirect almost $1 billion in funding in the 2012 House Energy and Water appropriations bill to help address the situation.
“Not all of that is dedicated to the Mississippi River and tributaries. The problem is that is a drop in the bucket. We have $3 billion in damages that were incurred,” he said.
Times are tight, and Washington isn’t likely to provide full funding for the levee system’s repair, LaValle said.
“I’m realistic on the challenges that Congress faces. I can’t dictate what that number might be,” he said.
Now the House bill is awaiting action in the Senate. Efforts are underway to get Mississippi senators, Republicans Thad Cochran and Roger Wicker, among others to get behind the levee funding effort.
“The ball is in their court,” LaValle said.
The first billion, if it gets through the U.S. Senate and ultimately signed by President Barack Obama, will be a starting point, Lavalle said.
“We need, from a national priorities standpoint, whether it’s a billion dollars this year, a billion dollars next year and a billion dollars two years from now, to do this,” he said.
Writing letters to elected officials isn’t the only thing citizens can do, he said. They can also go to the campaign’s website, www.savethedelta.org, for more information or visit it on Facebook.
LaValle said the levee system for the Mississippi River and its tributaries has cost $13.9 billion since its beginning in 1928 and has prevented $478 billion in losses — a return on investment of 34 to 1, he said. The levee system is 89 percent complete, he said.
“Congress needs to finish the work,” LaValle said.
• Contact Bob Darden at bdarden@gwcommonwealth.com.
