Posted on 09/08/2005 3:55:04 AM PDT by William Tell 2
Compassionate Liberalism Part 3 Environmentalists Partly Responsible for Flood By Michael P. Tremoglie
Instead of desperately searching for ways to help – some liberals and Democrats - have been desperately searching for reasons to blame President Bush for the flood of New Orleans caused by Hurricane Katrina. Their blatant attempt at political exploitation has been reprehensible to say the least.
While doing so they have shot themselves in the foot. Researching the bogus claims of the liberal hate mongers I learned that liberal environmentalists may bear some responsibility for the flood of New Orleans.
The first of three articles I wrote concerning the political exploitation of the Hurricane Katrina disaster addressed the bogus claims by Democrats and liberals that global warming was to blame - ergo Bush’s environmental policies were ultimately the cause of New Orleans flooding.
This lie was revealed when hurricane experts said there was no correlation between Hurricane Katrina and global warming.
The second article addressed the equally bogus claim that the Iraq war and Bush tax cuts caused a lack of funding of levee projects in New Orleans and led to the New Orleans flood.
Once again, experts discredited this fabrication. Officials from the Army Corps of Engineers (ACE), and academicians said that there was no correlation between the projects with reduced funding and the flooding.
I concluded there were two reasons for this. One was that the funding cut was only for preliminary plans – and was the result of a new budgeting process. Two was any project would take approximately twenty years to complete.
However, I noticed that there was a proposed flood prevention project, aborted nearly thirty years ago, which would have alleviated the flooding of New Orleans by Hurricane Katrina. This project was to build floodgates at Chef Menteur and Rigolets passes to block storm surges from the Gulf causing Lake Pontchartrain to flood New Orleans – which is what happened during Hurricane Katrina.
Why was this project aborted? Environmentalists sued to have it stopped. An environmentalist group stated the proposed Rigolets and Chef Menteur floodgates of the Lake Pontchartrain Hurricane Prevention Project would have a negative effect on the environment.
During the course of the trial the defense counsel, US Attorney Gerald Gallinghouse, felt so strongly that the project should continue that, according to one source, he said, “…. He would go before the United States Congress with (Congressman) F. Edward Hebert to pass a resolution, exempting the Hurricane Barrier Project from the rules and regulations of the National Environmental Policy Act because, in his opinion, it is necessary to protect the citizens of New Orleans from a hurricane. “
Despite this, the judge ruled in favor of the environmentalists and the project was aborted. However, the ACE considered this project so important they never scrapped the plans for it.
Indeed the September-October 204 edition of Riverside (the magazine of the New Orleans District Army Corps of Engineers Public Affairs Office) referred to this lawsuit and project. Eric Lincoln’s article titled, Old Plans Revived for Category 5 Hurricane Protection, stated:
“In 1977, plans for hurricane protection structures at the Rigolets and Chef Menteur Pass were sunk when environmental groups sued the district. They believed that the environmental impact statement did not adequately address several potential problems, including impacts on Lake Pontchartrain’s ecosystem and damage to wetlands. Ultimately, an agreement between the parties resulted in a consent decree to forego the structures at the Rigolets and Chef Menteur Pass. ….The new initial feasibility study will look at protecting the area between the Pearl River and Mississippi River from a Category 5 storm. …. alternatives that would be studied in the initial feasibility report are: Construction of floodgate structures, with environmental modifications, at Rigolets and Chef Pass …” (emphasis mine)
This time the Army Corps of Engineers would modify the original plans because of the environmentalists. However, the project was already delayed more than two decades because of the environmentalist’s lawsuit. If begun immediately it would take another two decades to complete -- a forty-year delay.
According to Professor Gregory Stone, the James P. Morgan Distinguished Professor and Director of the Coastal Studies Institute of Louisiana State University, these floodgates would have alleviated the flooding of New Orleans caused by Hurricane Katrina. " The floodgates would have blocked the flow of water from the Gulf of Mexico, through Lake Borgne, through the Rigolets (and Chef Mentuer) into Lake Pontchartrain. This would likely have reduced storm surge coming from the gulf and into the Lake Pontchartrain, " Professor Stone told me during an interview September 6.
The New Orleans Army Corps of Engineers and Professor Stone were not the only people cognizant of the consequences that could and did result because of the environmental activists. While speaking with Sean Hannity on his radio show, Labor Day, former Louisiana Congressman Bob Livingston also referred to environmentalists who prevented hurricane prevention projects.
Many politicians are asking for hearings. If there are hearings, they should include the contribution to the flooding made by environmental groups, which aborted or delayed hurricane prevention projects.
The disaster of Hurricane Katrina has illustrated once again the ignorance, fanaticism, and incompetence of liberals. This is just more evidence that most policies proffered by liberals and Democrats – whether it concerns crime, the Cold War, the Global War on Terror, or the environment - are deleterious to the nation.
As Ronald Reagan once said: “…. the trouble with our liberal friends is not that they are ignorant, but that they know so much that isn’t so!
Why was this project aborted? Environmentalists sued to have it stopped. An environmentalist group stated the proposed Rigolets and Chef Menteur floodgates of the Lake Pontchartrain Hurricane Prevention Project would have a negative effect on the environment.
And nobody thought a hurricane wouldn't have more of a negative effect? Morons. It goes to show that they know nothing about science and don't bother it use it to back themselves up. It should really cut into there credibility.
BTTT
No matter where we look, we see the Democrats contributing to the destruction of New Orleans.
I guess that's why they're pointing their dirty fingers at The President. Hey - don't look at us! PLEASE don't look at us. Awww, you looked at us, and spoiled the spell.
Good article, William Tell 2.
I'm sure the networks will be contacting you, and they'll feature this aspect of the hurricane foul-ups night after night for the next three months.
I'll hold my breath waiting.
Thanks.
The sad part is that even the conservative talk radio shows won't even contact me. I don't know what their criteria is.
This has to be a different lawsuit. He mentions the suit was settled in 1997 and concerned levees. I didn't konw about this one.
The one I am writing about was settled in 1977 and concerned the floodgates for Rigolets and hef Menteur. Acording to the LSU professor I interviewed this would have alleviated the flooding. IN fact they were redoing the propoisal.
If it had been built during the 70's like it was supposd to be the flooding would not have been so bad.
This leads to a good question: I wonder how many lawsuits there have been by environmentalists?
I've heard there are currently 7,000 lawsuits filed by eco-fascists. Here's one example -
Jim Chilton, a fifth generation rancher, successfully sued the Center for Biological Diversity for defaming land management principles he practiced in his ranching operations. The court agreed that deceptive photographs were used in an attempt to harm the rancher and his operations. The judge ordered the watermelon cultists to pay the rancher $600,000.
At the trial, the Center claimed to have filed over 170 lawsuits against federal agencies. Chilton said these lawsuits have stopped school construction, terminated thousands of lumber production jobs, put Arizona and New Mexico communities into economic distress, and driven many western ranchers to the verge of bankruptcy. These lawsuits also prevent agencies and landowners from actually working to recover species.
The trial revealed that the Center collected nearly $1 million from the federal government in 2003 by suing the federal government under the ESA.
Win, lose or draw, these Marxists are allowed to collect attorney fees and court awards from the taxpayer. And the proverbial vicious circle is established. Money collected from these lawsuits allow these groups to file more lawsuits against agencies for not meeting deadlines because they were busy defending themselves against lawsuits.
Thanks.
I meant just involving the Lake Pontchartrain Hurricane Prevention project to stop floods.
Bump and bookmark
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