Why is the flood gate located at Lapalco Boulevard, rather than farther south in the canal?
The floodgate was located as far south as possible without major interruption of the interior drainage system. When closed, no water can be pumped into the canal north of the flood gate as the canal would quickly overflow from the discharge of this rain water. The current operational plan for closing the flood gate requires that the Harvey Pumping Station at Patriot Street shut down. To accommodate this requirement additional pumping capacity is being constructed at the Cousins Pumping Station. To achieve the 1% project elevation, plans are now being drafted to place a flood gate in the GIWW south of the Harvey and Algiers Canal. That project will require the construction of a 20,000 cfs (cubic feet per second) pump station, one of the largest in the country, designed to move rainwater from the protected side of the floodgate to the unprotected side of the floodgate. Funding issues that prohibited the construction of this facility are no longer an issue as the congress has appropriated
