45 years of Flood Risk Management (FRM) efforts for Jackson and 4 separate Lake projects
The human cost of betting on another Lake project Consider the human cost of going down another labyrinthine Lake path. Just 4 years ago, in 2020, residents in NE Jackson suffered through evacuations and returned to homes inundated with up to 4 feet of floodwaters. Flood insurance costs increase every year and many homeowners are only able to purchase partial flood insurance. Hurdles to approving a Lake project Alternative D, the new Lake plan, has the same problems as the "One Lake" plan that was found to be "not feasible". It is prohibitively expensive, above the maximum budget threshold allowed by Congress; according to USFWS, it could require a potential $1 billion+ in environmental mitigation costs; it disturbs hazardous waste sites that will introduce contaminants to our drinking water source; according to MDOT, it could cause failure of 7 bridges including I-20 and I-80; and it will CAUSE flooding of up to 5" or greater at first floor elevation to 52 structures in federally-designated “disadvantaged communities”. With rapidly rising flood insurance costs and the threat of further flooding, residents literally cannot afford to wait. The CTO Alternatives D and E will require a lengthy process of additional NEPA (National Environmental Policy Act) studies and analysis. Many critical studies and analyses are missing or incomplete in the 2024 USACE DEIS. The USACE states in the document that many of the studies required NEPA process will not be conducted until the Pre-Construction, Engineering, and Design (PED) Phase, which occurs after the USACE Assistant Secretary of Civil Works makes his Record of Decision about the project. A few of the further required studies are listed below. None of these studies will be required for Alternative A1.
Last week, the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) released the 2024 Pearl River Flood Risk Management (FRM) Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS). The Rankin Hinds Pearl River Flood and Drainage Control District (Drainage District) has endorsed USACE Alternative D, CTO (combination thereof) with weir, an altered version of the "One Lake" project. According to the USACE "Commander's Report" released with the DEIS, the "Projected First Cost" for Alternative D is $100-$200 million higher than the "Total Authorized Project Cost".
Currently, only $221 million out of the $487-$655 million needed for the Alternative D Lake has been funded. In 2022, Senator Wicker received a $221 million federal appropriation of Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding for the Pearl River Flood Risk Management project. This funding will be used to pay for the federal cost-share of the project. According to the "Commander's Report", the Non Federal Sponsor (NFS)(Drainage District) shall contribute 35 percent of total project costs. Drainage District cost share for the Alternative D Lake ranges from $170-$229 million. (The $221 million in federal funding cannot be used to pay for the Drainage District cost share.) The Drainage District has not indicated how they will pay for their portion of the project costs.* The local Drainage District Board of Directors includes the Mayors of Jackson, Flowood, Richland, and Pearl, representatives from the Hinds and Rankin County Boards of Supervisors (Supervisors Robert Graham and Jay Bishop), and a Governor-appointee. The Governor-appointee position on the Board has been vacant since January 2021. Drainage District revenues are obtained through a 4.75-mil tax assessment on properties protected by the levee system. The majority of the tax revenue comes from properties located in Rankin County. The state-owned properties on the Jackson side of the Pearl River do not pay this tax. A Drainage District spokesperson stated in 2018 that "Property owners who benefit from the One Lake Project would likely face a special assessment tax if the estimated $340 million project becomes reality." It is unlikely that special assessment taxes could raise enough funding to pay for the $170-$229 million local cost-share for the Alternative D Lake. (*Drainage District spokespersons did not respond to requests for information regarding project funding.) |
AuthorPearl Riverkeeper is a licensed member of the Waterkeeper Alliance, the largest and fastest growing nonprofit solely focused on clean water. Archives
July 2024
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