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Lake Ponchartrain
& New Orleans (shaded area)
(click to view larger)

The US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is in the process of awarding large contracts to repair and strengthen flood control infrastructure in New Orleans and the vicinity.

The lastest contract, for $195 million, was awared to Kiewit Louisiana Co. in Fort Worth, TX to upgrade 4 pump stations on the east bank of Lake Pontchartrain in Jefferson Parish, LA. This contract follows a $278.8 million contract awarded to Odebrecht-Baker in Coral Gables, FL for levee improvements to the Chalmette Loop in St. Bernard Parish, and a $33.3 million contract awarded to Tetra Tech EC in Norcross, GA for construction of a hurricane risk reduction floodwall and 5 floodgates in the Lake Ponchartrain area of New Orleans.

These are a few of the many USACE contracts under the Hurricane & Storm Damage Risk Reduction System (formerly the Hurricane Protection System). USACE has developed an interactive map with the status of all of the projects under this program in the New Orleans area…

Under the recent Kiewit Louisiana contract, awarded Nov 6/09, the contractor will build fronting protection at the Duncan, Elmwood, Suburban, and Bonnabel pump stations to protect the stations from storm surge and associated waves, as well as to prevent any water from backflowing through the pump stations.

Kiewit will build T-walls in front of the pump stations and extension of the pump discharge tubes through the floodwalls, as well as valves to prevent any water from backflowing through the pumps. The fronting protection floodwalls will tie into the existing levees on either side of the pump stations.

Construction will begin on the Elmwood and Suburban pump stations first. The fronting protection at these pump stations will also include improvements to the existing breakwaters. Once this work is completed, construction will begin on the Duncan and Bonnabel pump stations. Separate contracts have already been awarded to build new breakwaters at these pump stations. The new breakwaters are scheduled to be complete before the 2010 hurricane season.

Kiewit expects to complete construction on the Elmwood and Suburban pump stations by June 2011, and construction on the Duncan and Bonnabel pump stations by the summer of 2013. The breakwaters currently being built will provide the 100-year level of risk reduction in the interim.

The USACE is working with the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority, the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development, the Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection Authority-East, and the East Jefferson Levee District, as well as Jefferson Parish and the City of Kenner on this project.

Bids for this project were solicited on the web with 6 bids received by the USACE New Orleans District, LA (W912P8-10-C-0007).