Compare Isle de Jean Charles to a nearby community

Compare Isle de Jean Charles to a nearby community to be protected by the "Morganza to the Gulf" hurricane protection levee

Readings

• Revisit the fact sheet on the Morganza to the Gulf Levee project.
• Also, read the Times Picayune Article from May 2013

Examine the maps in these links and locate the towns of Montegut, Chauvin, and Dulac. These communities are at a similar distance from the Gulf as is Isle de Jean Charles, but they will be within the footprint of the Morganza to the Gulf Levee. As the Times Picayune article states, the elevation of the levee will be between 10.5 and 24 feet (3.2 – 7.3 meters). This is an average of about 5 meters. We will use this number in a calculation.

Use Google Earth to measure the distance from the Trinity Island to Dulac.

Record the distance in your worksheet.

Using the hypothetical storm surge of 10 m at landfall and the estimated surge reduction factor used previously (1 km of land reduces the surge height by 10 cm), to calculate the height of the storm surge be when it reaches Dulac.

Enter your answers in your worksheet.

Will the new levee protect Dulac in this case?

Enter your answer in your worksheet.

What level of storm surge, as measured at the barrier Islands (landfall) will Dulac be protected from once the levee is built?

Enter your answers in your worksheet.

Note Title

Disclaimer: this is just an estimate for the purposes of understanding the challenges faced by those living in these coastal communities. We cannot quantify exactly how the various landscape features protect now and in the future, sea level rise and further erosion of barrier islands and marshes must be factored in to any calculations.

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Figure 8.11: Raised House, Isle de Jean Charles.
Credit: Gary Allen