COCHRAN ASSESSING MISSISSIPPI DELTA FLOOD THREAT,
LOOKS TOWARD RECOVERY NEEDS

Flood Mitigation Needs Highlighted as State Braces for Mississippi River Surge

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Thad Cochran (R-Miss.) today said he is confident that the state of Mississippi, the Army Corps of Engineers and other agencies are doing all they can to prepare Mississippians for widespread flooding this week.

Cochran encouraged residents to cooperate with local, state and federal officials in trying to mitigate the damages and losses expected from historic flooding throughout the Mississippi Delta.  Cochran late last week discussed the Army Corps of Engineers’ preparations with Col. Jeffrey R. Eckstein, commander of the Corps’ Vicksburg District.

“Mississippians understand that seasonal flooding can be a fact of life, but this year is proving to be exceptionally bad.  I appreciate all the advance work being done by Governor Barbour, local officials and the Corps to prepare the Mississippi Delta for an onslaught,” said Cochran, who has directed his Washington and state staff to be ready to be available to assist constituents, state agencies and federal officials in responding to the flood threat.

“The Corps of Engineers has the immediate responsibility of trying to manage the Mississippi River and its tributaries during this significant flood threat.  In the end, however, many agencies must cooperate to help recover homes, businesses, farms and basic services after the floodwaters recede,” he said.

Cochran, who serves on the Energy and Water Development Appropriations Subcommittee that funds the Army Corps of Engineers, indicated that he will pay close attention to the flood mitigation resources that may be required in the Mississippi Delta after the flooding ends.

At a hearing last month, Cochran questioned the Corps’ plan to meet ongoing flood protection needs in the lower Mississippi Delta if, for instance, federal funding for the Yazoo Backwater Project is eliminated.  All unobligated funding balances for the project would be cancelled under the President’s FY2012 budget request to Congress.

“The flooding we will see in the Delta this week could very well accentuate the risks of simply cancelling flood control undertakings like the Yazoo Backwater Project,” Cochran said.

The Yazoo Backwater Project was authorized by Congress in 1941 as an important flood control project for the lower Mississippi Delta, a region that continues to be troubled with wastewater pollution and property damage from flooding.  There is also pending litigation against the Environmental Protection Agency for wrongfully using an administrative veto to cancel the backwater pump project.

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