Contract for Reach A in Terrebonne Parish Construction Awarded

On July 17, 2024, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) awarded a $7.6 million contract for Reach A of the Morganza to the Gulf (MtG) Hurricane Risk Reduction Project to Justin J. Reeves, LLC of Houma, La. Three miles of earthen levee will be built at the westernmost end of the MtG system near Gibson in Terrebonne Parish.

USACE Senior Project Manager Lacy Shaw said, “Riding on the tails of the instrumental work that the locals and State have undertaken to build over 80 miles of levees on Morganza to the Gulf, we are delighted that Federal funds were made available to initiate construction on the first Phase of Reach A. This is the first step in closing the gap to reduce the community’s vulnerably to storm surge.”

The MtG Project is a 98-mile system consisting of earthen levees, floodgates, environmental water control structures, road/railroad gates and fronting protection for existing pump stations. Major project features include two floodgates in the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW) and a lock complex on the Houma Navigation Canal (HNC) consisting of a lock and an adjacent floodgate.

Terrebonne Levee and Conservation District, South Lafourche Levee District, North Lafourche Levee District, and the Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority have constructed over 80 miles of levees in the vicinity of the authorized MtG levee system, and this new contract initiates the first levee construction along Reach A.

-Morganza Action Coalition (MAC)