Are shifts in Earths crust causing New Orleans to sink?
Hurricane Katrina’s devastating strike on New Orleans last fall highlighted shortcomings in the city’s levee system. It also focused attention another long-term problem: The city and the area around it are sinking, reports The Christian Science Monitor. New research suggests, however, that at least for nearby Michoud, La., the dominant driver pulling the region under may not be among the usual suspects: oil extraction, pumping groundwater to the surface, or diverting the Mississippi for navigation. Instead, the King of Slump may be a deep fault that cuts across southeastern Louisiana and under Michoud. See Christian Science Monitor article New Orleans recovery could take 25 years Much of New Orleans’ rebirth from Hurricane Katrina hinges on factors beyond the government’s control and could take up to a quarter-century to complete, the Bush administration’s Gulf Coast recovery chief, Don Powell, told The Associated Press Thursday. Powell said luring homeowners and businesses back to the
