Latest Mississippi River Delta news: Jan. 5, 2016

Rising river: Authorities keep close eye on swelling Mississippi River
By Camille Whitworth, WDSU. Jan. 4, 2016.
*features John Lopez, Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation
“Local, state and federal agencies are keeping a close eye on the Mississippi River as it continues to swell. Officials will announce Tuesday if the Army Corps of Engineers will take any action. All crews were on high alert Monday. River levels were at 13.5 feet, and the goal was to keep levels below 17 feet…” (read more)

Mississippi River Winter Floods to Test Government Response, Army Corps Defenses
By Michael Grass, Route Fifty. Jan. 4, 2016.
*features John Lopez, Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation
“While historic winter floodwaters in the St. Louis area began to fall over the weekend, the threat is not over for downstream communities along the Mississippi River. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, along with state and local governments along the river continue to be mobilized for what could be a strenuous few weeks as the flood crest moves south toward Louisiana and the Gulf of Mexico…” (read more)

Levees among possible cause of more frequent Mississippi River flooding
By The Associated Press. Jan. 4, 2016.
“The Mississippi River floods more often than it used to, and at higher levels. Richard Knaup thinks he knows why. The veteran emergency management director for southeast Missouri’s Cape Girardeau County is fighting floods again, just as he did last year, and the year before that, and the year before that. ‘Prior to levee building, the river was a wild thing and it spread out between the river bluffs,’ Knaup said Monday. ‘Now we’ve tried to tame it. Mother Nature and Old Man River will fight back.’…” (read more)

Mississippi River hits flood stage in Baton Rouge on Monday; decision on Bonnet Carré expected by Saturday
By Amy Wold, The New Orleans Advocate. Jan. 4, 2016.
“Those watching the water rise in the Mississippi River at Baton Rouge saw levels hit the 35-foot flood stage Monday, foreshadowing what people living south of the capital city can expect as the river continues to rise in the coming days and weeks…” (read more)

State bans driving, walking on Mississippi, Atchafalaya river levees during high water
By Mark Schleifstein, The Times-Picayune. Jan. 4, 2016.
“The state Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority announced Monday (Jan. 4) it has banned all vehicle and foot traffic on levees along the Mississippi and Atchafalaya rivers until further notice, in response to high water levels in both rivers…” (read more).

Memphis officials say flood won’t rival 2011 as Mississippi River crest forecast lowered
By The Associated Press. Jan. 4, 2016.
“The Bonnet Carre (BON’-nee KAIR’-ee) Spillway will probably be opened to divert Mississippi River floodwaters away from New Orleans through Lake Pontchartrain, but it’s too early to tell about the Morganza Spillway…” (read more).

Looking to promote coastal restoration, New Orleans collects Christmas trees
By Polly Mosendz, Newsweek. Jan. 4, 2016.
“New Orleans is giving new life to post-holidays Christmas trees with a recycling system designed to help promote coastal restoration…” (read more)

Enthusiasts flock to Thibodaux area for Christmas Bird Count
By Bridget Mire, Houma Courier. Jan. 3, 2016.
“Equipped with binoculars and notebooks full of species names and tally marks, bird enthusiasts traveled around the Thibodaux area Saturday for the National Audubon Society sponsored Christmas Bird Count…” (read more)

BP was ‘near death’ after Gulf oil spill, CEO tells BBC
By Jennifer Larino, The Times-Picayune. Jan. 4, 2016.
“BP and the federal government are expected to finalize the details of the $20 billion settlement over the Gulf of Mexico oil disaster this spring, bringing some sense of closure to Louisiana nearly six years after oil first hit its shoreline. Even so, much of the Gulf Coast is still recovering from wounds left by the disaster — both environmental and economic…” (read more)