Block, Melissa. "Wetlands and Flooding in New Orleans." NPR. 29 Aug. 2005. National Public Radio. 26 Mar. 2008 <http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4822549>.
Drehle, David V., and Jacqueline Salmon. "Displacement of Historic Proportions." Washingtonpost.Org. 2 Sept. 2005. The Washington Post. 25 Mar. 2008 <http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/01/AR2005090102406.html>.
Featherstone, Liza. "Race to the Bottom." Grist. 8 Sept. 2005. GristMagazine, Inc. 24 Mar. 2008 <http://www.grist.org/news/maindish/2005/09/08/featherstone-katrina/>.
Logan, John R. "The Impact of Katrina: Race and Class in Storm-Damaged Neighborhoods." Brown.Edu. Brown University. 24 Mar. 2008 <http://www.s4.brown.edu/katrina/report.pdf>.
"Louisiana Coastal Area Acosystem Restoration Project." US Army Corps of Engineers. 30 Aug. 2004. US Army Corps of Engineers. 25 Mar. 2008 <http://www.mvn.usace.army.mil/prj/lca/>.
Nasa. "New Orleans Topography." NASA.Com. 30 Aug. 2005. NASA. 25 Mar. 2008 <http://www.nasa.gov/vision/earth/lookingatearth/h2005-neworleans-082905.html>.
"New Orleans, Louisiana." Wikipedia.Org. 25 Mar. 2008. Wikimedia. 25 Mar. 2008 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Orleans,_Louisiana#Geography>.
Sansalone, John. "New Orleans, Toxic Flood Lifts Lid on Common Urban Pollution Problem." Medical News Today. 21 Sept. 2005. MediLexicon International LTD. 25 Mar. 2008 <http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/30909.php>.
Schroeder. "New Orleans Topography and Flooding." Blogspot.Com. 3 Nov. 2005. Blogspot.Com. 25 Mar. 2008 <http://peoplegetready.blogspot.com/2005/11/new-orleans-topography-and-flooding.html>.
Sullivan, Bob. "Wetlands Erosion Raises Hurrican Risks." MSNBC.Com. 29 Aug. 2005. MSNBC. 25 Mar. 2008 <http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9118570/>.
"Survey of Hurricane Katrina Evacuees." KFF.Org. Kaiser Family Foundation. 26 Mar. 2008 <http://www.kff.org/newsmedia/upload/7401.pdf>.
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Question 3
3- How did Hurricane Katrina affect the spatial placement of blacks, whites, and peoples of different income levels?
"Instead of water flooding in, we've got people flooding in."
~ Mike Walker, of the East Baton Rouge Parish Council
It has long been known that the placement of blacks and the poor in New Orleans place them directly in the line of fire of natural disasters, while the richer residents of the city live on higher grounds such as the French Quarter. When Mayor Ray Nagin of New Orleans announced a mandatory evacuation just before Hurricane Katrina, a majority of the ethnic minorities and the poor in the city did not have access to a television or radio to know that there even was an evacuation. In a survey by the Kaiser Foundation of a group of evacuees in Houston, Texas, 56% of them could have found a way to evacuate if they had.
What followed would be a displacement greater than many historical events
, such as the 350,000 left homeless by the Kobe Earthquake in 1995. It was the largest displacement of Americans since the Civil War. Hurricane Katrina uprooted more people from their homes in a few days than the Dust Bowl did in the 1930's. More than half a million people were displaced from their homes in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.
Evacuees were moved to shelters in a seven-state region-Alabama, Mississippi, Florida, Georgia, Texas, Arkansas and Louisiana. People went to sports arenas, hotels, churches, schools, or the homes of relatives or friends.
Currently, a worry of growing concern relating to the reconstruction of New Orleans is whether or not minorities and the poor will be included in the new city plan for New Orleans. Urban planners and city developers have the power to cancel blacks out of the equation, for many simply cannot afford returning back to New Orleans. Before Hurricane Katrina hit, the city was for the most part black- 67%. Now, it may be close to none.
"Instead of water flooding in, we've got people flooding in."
~ Mike Walker, of the East Baton Rouge Parish Council
It has long been known that the placement of blacks and the poor in New Orleans place them directly in the line of fire of natural disasters, while the richer residents of the city live on higher grounds such as the French Quarter. When Mayor Ray Nagin of New Orleans announced a mandatory evacuation just before Hurricane Katrina, a majority of the ethnic minorities and the poor in the city did not have access to a television or radio to know that there even was an evacuation. In a survey by the Kaiser Foundation of a group of evacuees in Houston, Texas, 56% of them could have found a way to evacuate if they had.
What followed would be a displacement greater than many historical events
, such as the 350,000 left homeless by the Kobe Earthquake in 1995. It was the largest displacement of Americans since the Civil War. Hurricane Katrina uprooted more people from their homes in a few days than the Dust Bowl did in the 1930's. More than half a million people were displaced from their homes in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.Evacuees were moved to shelters in a seven-state region-Alabama, Mississippi, Florida, Georgia, Texas, Arkansas and Louisiana. People went to sports arenas, hotels, churches, schools, or the homes of relatives or friends.
Currently, a worry of growing concern relating to the reconstruction of New Orleans is whether or not minorities and the poor will be included in the new city plan for New Orleans. Urban planners and city developers have the power to cancel blacks out of the equation, for many simply cannot afford returning back to New Orleans. Before Hurricane Katrina hit, the city was for the most part black- 67%. Now, it may be close to none.
Question 2
2- How has man affected the ecosystem of the New Orleans area, and what is the feedback of that?
It is often talked about that New Orleans is one the worst placed to build a city geographically. After Hurricane Katrina, that statement could be seen as true. However, what about Hurricane Betsy? Hurricane Betsy was a Category 3 hurricane from 1965 that was just as strong as Hurricane Katrina. However, the reason it didn't cause as much damage to New Orleans as Katrina was because of the coastal wetlands that act as a buffer to "drain" Hurricanes of their strength. Because hurricanes feed off of warm water from the ocean, when it hits any sort of land, such as the vegetation found in the wetlands, the hurricane's strength lessens. In fact, for every 2.7 miles of wetlands, storm surges are reduced by about 1 foot. Take that into account when considering that over 1,900 square miles of wetlands have eroded since the 1930's.
It is often talked about that New Orleans is one the worst placed to build a city geographically. After Hurricane Katrina, that statement could be seen as true. However, what about Hurricane Betsy? Hurricane Betsy was a Category 3 hurricane from 1965 that was just as strong as Hurricane Katrina. However, the reason it didn't cause as much damage to New Orleans as Katrina was because of the coastal wetlands that act as a buffer to "drain" Hurricanes of their strength. Because hurricanes feed off of warm water from the ocean, when it hits any sort of land, such as the vegetation found in the wetlands, the hurricane's strength lessens. In fact, for every 2.7 miles of wetlands, storm surges are reduced by about 1 foot. Take that into account when considering that over 1,900 square miles of wetlands have eroded since the 1930's.
Not only does erosion of the wetlands affect humans, but many different species of wildlife have a home there, and if that is gone, where will they live?
So, what is causing the coastal wetlands to erode? 70% of the cause are man made levees. From my previous blog entry, you read that the construction of levees along the Mississippi River to prevent flooding have also caused the New Orleans area to slowly sink below sea level (although that topic is up to much debate). Another side-effect is the erosion of the wetlands. Without the levees, normal flooding every Spring from the Mississippi would bring vital sediment, nutrients, and fresh water to the wetlands, causing life in that area. But, with the man-made levees in place, flooding does not occur, cutting short the very things the wetlands need to survive.
What are we doing to help? Currently, about $14 billion is needed to manually deposit sediment and divert river water. However, a recent energy bill has given $540 million, about half a billion dollars, to anti-erosion projects. This may seem like a lot, but it is only enough to recover about 10-15% of the lost wetlands. About $2 billion is earmarked for Army Corps of Engineers projects in a new water resources bill that is as of now making its' way to Congress.
A way New Orleans is affecting the ecosystem of its' area is by the drainage of flood waters from Hurricane Katrina, which bring back with it the particulate matter and organic chemicals that are commonly found in an urban environment. The main reason for these chemicals presence in the flooded water is from broken sewers and flooded industrial plants. The stretch of the Mississippi Rover between Baton Rouge and New Orleans contains more than 140 chemical plants and oil refineries. This stretch of land is commonly referred to as Cancer Alley because of its' detrimental effects on the community surrounding it. The dumping of chemicals from plants such as these is what has contributed to the contaminated runoff. The reason these chemicals are dangerous is because once they get back into lakes, rivers, and oceans, they kill the wildlife. Organic chemicals dangerously reduce the amount of oxygen found in water, disabling the waters' ability to support life. Particulate matter clouds the water, which diminishes the amount of sun able to reach plants and enable them to grow.
With everything like this happening in New Orleans ecosystem, I find it sad that this is what man has done to the home that nature has given it.
Question 1
1- How does the physical environment of New Orleans affect the city, and how does the city affect the physical environment?
In this blog entry I will attempt to examine how the physical environment of New Orleans, mainly the topography, affects the city, and vice-versa.
In this blog entry I will attempt to examine how the physical environment of New Orleans, mainly the topography, affects the city, and vice-versa.
First of all, I think it is important to understand that New Orleans is basically a bowl. The average elevation of New Orleans is 1 to 2 feet below sea level, with some points touching as low as 10 feet below sea level. The reason water does not constantly flood New Orleans is because of levees- long walls that protect the city against storm surges of 18-20 feet. Some of the levees are natural- New Orleans was actually originally settled along a natural levee on the bank of the Mississippi River. This levee formed from years of sediment from the Mississippi building up on the banks. In fact, New Orleans became the capital of French Louisiana, replacing Mobile, Alabama, because of its' location making it less vulnerable to hurricanes. However, once more people came to New Orleans, more land had to be developed to make room for everyone.
In 1965, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers built extensive flood walls and levees around a larger portion of New Orleans to accommodate the rising population of New Orleans, which involved making normally swampy territory habitable. What is up
to debate is whether this interference from humans on natural land is causing subsidence, or the lowering of land. New Orleans lies upon layers of clay and silt, very soft substances. Normally, naturally occuring subsidence would happen, but occasional flooding from the Mississippi River would bring in new sediment from the river to take the place of the land that had lowered, minimizing the impact of subsidence. Now, however, the levees prevent most flooding, which prevents sediment from reaching the ground surface. The result is most of New Orleans slowly sinking below sea level, making Hurricanes a bigger threat. Before the levees were constructed, flooding in the spring time were considered common place, and residents of New Orleans would canoe to work, or the richer members of the community would simply take a vacation during the flood season.
The levees designed by the Army Corps of Engineers were designed to be very strong. However, the validity of that statement was proved false when Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast area, causing catastrophic failure of the levees, flooding 80% of the city. The levee system was breached in about 50 areas, 5 of which caused massive flooding. About 1,464 people died in the New Orleans area alone. It is estimated that if the levees and flood walls hadn't failed, and the pumps had worked, about 2/3 of the deaths could have been avoided. As of now, New Orleans is set to have a 100-year-flood protection, which means that the new protection will be able to hold against the worst possible storm in a 100 year period.
The way in which New Orleans affects its' physical environment, and vice-versa is a very interesting and classic example of that relationship today.Sunday, March 23, 2008
Welcome
Hi! My name is Ben Kercheval, and this blog is my final project for the class called Urban Geography I took at Avalon School, located in St. Paul, Minnesota. Throughout Urban Geography, we have studied many different topics relating to geography in urban areas, such as: blacklisting/redlining, density, urban renewal, architecture, and urban design. These topics only begin to scratch the surface of the wealth of information available on this topic.
Recently, I attended a service trip to New Orleans, Louisiana in order to tutor students at Martin Luther King Science and Technology Charter School in the Lower Ninth Ward. The dropout rate from middle school to high school was so high, they needed outside help. I used this trip as an opportunity to research several questions I will cover in this blog. Those questions are:
Recently, I attended a service trip to New Orleans, Louisiana in order to tutor students at Martin Luther King Science and Technology Charter School in the Lower Ninth Ward. The dropout rate from middle school to high school was so high, they needed outside help. I used this trip as an opportunity to research several questions I will cover in this blog. Those questions are:
1- How does the physical environment of New Orleans affect the city, and how does the city affect the physical environment?
2- How has man affected the ecosystem of the New Orleans area, and what is the feedback of that?
3- How did Hurricane Katrina affect the spatial placement of blacks, whites, and peoples of different income levels?
I will allot one blog entry per question.
I got the idea for these questions from a packet entitled "The Urban Mosaic" that I received in Urban Geography, that talks about different aspect of city planning and environments. I hope you enjoy what I have to share!
~Ben
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