Editorial: Long-range plan for levees

Tuesday, May 30, 2006 | 7:22 a.m.

The Corps of Engineers, which maintains the New Orleans levees, on June 1 is scheduled to release a report it commissioned to examine what went wrong during Hurricane Katrina. But an independent panel, which released its findings this past week, determined that there were failures all around.

The investigation team led by the University of California, Berkeley, found that fast-rising waters breached levees and flood walls due to weak soil in the levees, bad engineering and failures of sections that joined different types of flood protection, according to the Associated Press.

The Berkeley team concluded that the Corps is "dysfunctional" and in need of sweeping reforms. It recommended establishing an independent agency to oversee the Corps. The study also faulted state and local authorities for improperly maintaining the levees, recommending reforms to the local agencies that have oversight of flood protection. In addition, the study criticized Congress for spotty funding in the last five decades.

June 1 marks the beginning of the hurricane season, and forecasters say it could be another busy one. It will not be easy or cheap to fortify New Orleans. The lead investigator, Berkeley's Robert Bea, reported that it could take 40 years and perhaps $40 billion - far more than the federal government intends to spend. Congress has approved $3.3 billion so far.

Regardless of whatever the Corps' report concludes, the Berkeley report should be taken seriously. New Orleans and Louisiana authorities should carefully weigh the study's recommendations. Congress should make necessary changes at the Corps, and devise a long-term plan to pay for the necessary levee work, including "armoring" the earthen levee slopes with plastic or stone pavement.

Furthermore, Congress should find a way to pay for the restoration of wetlands that act as natural hurricane barriers. In short, the report should not be filed away on some federal agency shelf until it is dusted off after the next disaster.