The Corps is proposing to use the fly ash as part of a lime slurry mixture for some kind of grouting to stabilize the levees according to the article. Environmentalists are concerned about the potential impacts of residual toxins in the fly ash. However, they are drawing comparisons to the TVA coal ash dam failure. From my perspective, this is an unfair comparison since this fly ash would be mixed with lime and in theory any toxins would be bound up in the grout matrix. But it never hurts to be cautious regarding potential contaminants that close to such an important waterway. [Source: bnd.com via ASCE SmartBrief]
Geologic Hazards
National Geographic Article on New Orleans Levees
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Project Related
USACE wants 6 sea walls at Pismo Beach
Coastal erosion is threatening existing structures at Shell Beach and northern Pismo Beach near San Luis Obispo, California. The Army Corps of Engineers suggests 6 sea walls to protect infrastructure such as two sewage treatment […]
Miscellaneous
Profile of James Demby, Head of FEMA National Dam Safety Program
Came accross and interesting profile of this gentleman from FEMA who is their top Dam Safety expert. James Demby is the senior technical and policy adviser and program manager for the FEMA National Dam Safety […]
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I agree that the toxins will be chemically bound into the grout. There may be some leachate but nothing that compares to TVA coal ash dam failure, a dam that was built to hold back a toxic sludge. It was the sludge that caused the contamination not the dam. It would be like comparing a drip of oil from my truck to the Horizon debacle in the Gulf of Mexico. I guess the ACOE could just do nothing, will the environmentalists be there when the levees fail?