The levee was dry -- today
The Levy Project looks askance, as I do, at the story in this morning's paper that provides a sympathetic forum for public officials from the mayor of NLR up to the governor and members of Congress. They are objecting to FEMA's get-tough orders on levee maintenance and flood plains around the country.Yes, it will cost money. Yes, it could be inconvenient. Yes, some more people might have to pay more for flood insurance in flood plains.
Simple question: Did we learn nothing from Katrina about the cost of building in flood plains, about inadequate insurance, about inadequate levee maintenance? Pay now or pay a lot more later. FEMA learned a lesson, perhaps. Mayor Pat Hays apparently did not. And he's busily trying to give away tax money to help fill wetlands that, coincidentally, absorb excess water in moist times.
