Corps shoots holes in report that puts cheaper price tag on preferred outfall canal work
A private engineering firm’s finding that locally preferred methods of fortifying three New Orleans outfall canals are cheaper than Army Corps of Engineers’ estimates omits the cost of land acquisition, engineering and design, construction management, an environmental review and other key components, according to the corps.
On Obama’s Cue, La. Senator Pushes Ambitious Gulf Coast Restoration Vision
Sen. Mary Landrieu wants to create a new government agency funded to the tune of as much as $1 billion annually to direct the long-term Gulf Coast environmental restoration that President Obama called for in his Oval Office address last week.
Some have compared the ambitious plan to the creation of a new Tennessee Valley Authority or Port Authority of New York & New Jersey — government agencies charged with carrying out economic and environmental tasks within their regions.
Putting A Stake in the Heart of the Earth: Actions-Response to the BP Oil Drilling Disaster New Orleans, Louisiana May 25, 2010
Local Leaders gather to address BPODD
On May 25th the New Orleans institute @ Cityworks, together with the Urban Conservancy and a diverse array of other sponsors drew over seventy academics, activists, non-profit leaders and local community leaders living and working in the New Orleans region to discuss the economic, social and environmental implications of the [...]
Rachel Maddow of MSNBC video: Wetlands are more than just pretty green nature
Rachel Maddow of MSNBC illustrates the vital importance of healthy wetlands to the safety of the metro area by comparing storm surge heights in Chalmette to Slidell and size of the wetland buffer. She explains the importance of wetlands to the protection of the entire Gulf Coast region – wetlands that are already eroding at an [...]
Preferred outfall canal options cheaper than corps’ estimates, reports the Times-Picayune
The Times-Picayune (nola.com) has an informative article about idependent contractor AECOM’s report that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers may have over-estimated the costs of the outfall canal design options preferred by many New Orleanians. The paper reports,
According to the report by AECOM Inc. of Los Angeles, both corps designs that call for building [...]
Sustainable Cities showcases sustainably-minded urban design projects
Sustainable Cities, a site produced by the Danish Architecture Centre, showcases a broad array of sustainably-minded international urban design projects. The site contains a wealth of information about individual projects, interviews with major planning and design figures, and intuitive categorization of articles on topics like “issues” and “sustainability.”
Visit Sustainable Cities: http://sustainablecities.dk/
CABE’s planning and design resources
The Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE) in Britain has a great website with tons of resources: Case Studies, Publications, Videos, and Client Guides. Many of these materials relate directly to responsible and sustainable water management at the scale of the building or block.
Sustainable Landscapes from the American Society of Landscape Architects
The American Society of Landscape Architects has put up a great site devoted to sustainable practices in future landscape design. It Includes 10 examples, including Turenscape’s Red Ribbon Tanghe River Park (pictured).
Richard Campanella on Delta Urbanism and New Orleans
In a couple great articles about Delta Urbanism and New Orleans, published on Design Observer, Tulane geographer Richard Campanella sounds a warning about “plandemonium” and describes the “difficult choices” made in the aftermath of Katrina:
In most cases, momentum from the past is good for landscapes and cityscapes. It creates value, generates wealth, and makes [...]
Pavement to Parks San Francisco
Pavement to Parks, a “a collaborative effort between the Mayor’s Office, the Department of Public Works, the Planning Department, and the Municipal Transportation Agency” of San Francisco, is a project with many merits and much relevance to the Dutch Dialogues and the discussion of water management in New Orleans. In addition to creating [...]
