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IANA SEC THE LOUISIANA IS T U IO O N L CIVIL ENGINEER ACADIANA BRANCH • BATON ROUGE BRANCH NEW ORLEANS BRANCH • SHREVEPORT BRANCH 1914 Journal of The Louisiana Section
Volume 15 ¥ Number 1 November 2006
Louisiana Engineering Center | 9643 Brookline Avenue | Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70809-1433 | 225.926.1662 FEATURE: Failures in the New Orleans levee system during Hurricane Katrina
Introduction NEWS: Welcome Flood protection authorities Home Changing directions Section website Information Opportunity: Journal Congressional Fly-In News Fellowships Calendar Employment FUTURE: Listing / Ads Annual Spring Meeting and Hurricane Relief Conference in Shreveport Awards March 22-23, 2007
Organization Deep South Conference Governance Operations in Ruston Sections March 23-24, 2007 Branches Student Chapters Links Site Map
® Timothy M. Ruppert, PE ENGINEERS WEEK 2007 Section President 2006-2007 February 18-24
Seeking new professional horizons . . . teaching, learning, networking: serving together in the ASCE. 13760 Nov06civil 11/3/06 5:12 PM Page 2
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THE LOUISIANA CIVIL ENGINEER PUBLICATIONS COMMITTEE: Timothy M. Ruppert, PE, Chair (504) 862-2106 CONTENTS Branch Presidents, Members President’s Message ...... 4 James C. Porter, PE, Editor (225) 242-4556 Failures in New Orleans levee system Yvette Weatherton, PE, Student Chapter News (225) 771-5870 during Hurricane Katrina ...... 5 PUBLISHER: News from the Branches ...... 8 Franklin Press, Inc., Baton Rouge, LA Student Chapter News ...... 14 The Louisiana Civil Engineer quarterly journal is an official publication of Section News and Information ...... 15 the Louisiana Section of the American Society of Civil Engineers with an Fellowships ...... 16 average circulation of approximately 1900. The Section does not guarantee Opportunity: Congressional Fly-In ...... 18 the accuracy of the information provided, does not necessarily concur with Changing directions ...... 19 opinions expressed, and does not claim the copyrights for the contents in this Section website ...... 20 publication. Please submit letters and articles for consideration to be pub- lished by facsimile to (225) 242-4552, by e-mail to jimporter@dotd. Nominating committee position filled ...... 21 louisiana.gov, or by mail to the Publications Committee c/o James C. Porter, Professional Listings ...... 2, 30-31 PE ¥ 2608 Terrace Avenue ¥ Baton Rouge, LA 70806-6868. Services and Suppliers ...... 2, 32 LOUISIANA SECTION ¥ AMERICAN SOCIETY OF CIVIL ENGINEERS Louisiana Engineering Center ¥ 9643 Brookline Avenue ¥ Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70809 ¥ (225) 923-1662 SECTION BOARD OF DIRECTORS Baton Rouge Branch Younger Member President President Sairam V. Eddanapudi, EI Timothy M. Ruppert, PE Brant B. Richard, PE Professional Services Industries, Inc. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Stanley Consultants, Inc. Past President President-Elect President-Elect Ashley T. Sears, EI E.R. DesOrmeaux, PE Robert W. Jacobsen, PE Aillet, Fenner, Jolly and McClelland E.R. DesOrmeaux, Inc. URS Corporation Vice President Vice President BRANCH TECHNICAL COMMITTEE CHAIRS Ali M. Mustapha, PE William H. Wall, PE Baton Rouge City of Shreveport NTB Associates, Inc. Structures Secretary-Treasurer Secretary-Treasurer Danny J. Deville, PE Christopher P. Knotts, PE Jeffrey L. Duplantis, PE McKee & Deville Consulting Engineers, Inc. Louisiana DNR SJB Group Geotechnical Past President Director Gavin P. Gautreau, PE Kim M. Garlington, PE Clinton S. Willson, PE Louisiana Transportation Research Center Louisiana DOTD Louisiana State University Environmental Directors-at-Large Director Stephen D. Fields, PE Andre M. Rodrigue, PE Adam M. Smith, EI Water Resources ABMB Engineers, Inc. Owen and White Morris Sade, PE Kurt M. Nixon, PE Associate Director Miraj Envirotek Coyel Engineering Company, Inc. Rudolph A. Simoneaux, III, EI Management Christopher G. Humphreys, PE Louisiana DNR Michael N. Dooley, PE Professional Services Industries, Inc. New Orleans Branch Sigma Consulting Group, Inc. Dax A. Douet, PE President Pipeline C.H. Fenstermaker & Associates, Inc. Christopher L. Sanchez, PE Roy A. Wagenspack, PE Branch Directors Stuart Consulting Group Owen and White, Inc. M. Jamal Khattak, PE President-Elect Transportation University of Louisiana at Lafayette Ronald L. Schumann, Jr., PE P. Brian Wolshon, PE Brant B. Richard, PE DMJM HARRIS|AECOM LSU Baton Rouge Stanley Consultants, Inc. Vice President New Orleans Christopher L. Sanchez, PE Nathan J. Junius, PE Structures Stuart Consulting Group Linfield, Hunter and Junius, Inc. John J. Housey, Jr., PE Elba U. Hamilton, EI Treasurer Orleans Materials and Equipment Company, Inc. Aillet, Fenner, Jolly and McClelland Benjamin M. (Ben) Cody, PE Geotechnical Assigned Branch Directors Eustis Engineering Company, Inc. William W. Gwyn, PE Daniel L. Bolinger, PE Secretary Eustis Engineering Company, Inc. DMJM + Harris, Inc. Johann L. Palacios, PE Environmental and Water Resources Andre M. Rodrigue, PE Zehner and Associates Dennis Reed ABMB Engineers, Inc. Director New Orleans Sewerage and Water Board Margaret S. (Meg) Adams, PE BRANCH OFFICERS MSA Technical Services Acadiana Branch Director STUDENT CHAPTERS IN THE SECTION President Reid L. Dennis, PE Presidents/Faculty Advisors M. Jamal Khattak, PE Sewerage and Water Board of New Orleans LSU Jason Duhon University of Louisiana at Lafayette Past President P. Brian Wolshon, PE President-Elect William H. Sewell, Jr., PE La. Tech Nathan Linhardt Joseph P. Kolwe, Jr., PE Sewell Engineering Luke Lee Civil and Structural Engineers, Inc. Shreveport Branch McNeese Nick Pestello Vice President President Janardanan (Jay) O. Uppot, PE Clint S. McDowell, PE Elba U. Hamilton, EI Southern Kevin Cowan SITE Engineering, Inc. Aillet, Fenner, Jolly and McClelland Yvette P. Weatherton, PE Treasurer President-Elect Tulane Joe Simpson Joshua P. Stutes, PE Rusty L. Cooper, EI John H. (Jack) Grubbs, PE Sellers and Associates, Inc. Alliance, Inc. ULL Justin Peltier Secretary Secretary Emad H.. Habib David J. Girouard, EI J. Cody Goodwin, EI UNO Eric Dallimore C.H. Fenstermaker & Associates, Inc. Alliance, Inc. Gianna M. Cothern, PE Past President Treasurer Dax A. Douet, PE Jarred C. Corbell, EI C.H. Fenstermaker & Associates, Inc. Aillet, Fenner, Jolly and McClelland Section Delegates to District 14 Council The Louisiana Section is located in ASCE Zone II, District 14. Miles B. Bingham, PE Timothy M. Ruppert, PE Ralph W. Junius, PE URS Greiner U.S. Army Corps Linfield, Hunter & Junius, Inc. Zone II consists of Districts 6, 7, 9, 10 and 14. District 14 consists Woodward Clyde of Engineers of the Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia Sections.
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President’s Message By Timothy Ruppert, PE
It is with honor and pleasure that I serve as lic safety and investment at risk, civil engi- Louisiana Section President this year. Our neers need to engage local building inspec- Section, established in 1914, has a long history tion and code officials to encourage thor- of protecting the public, promoting the profes- ough and appropriate reviews of new con- sion and supporting civil engineers working to struction. build our great state. ¥ Civil Engineers must speak to the public Without a doubt, 2005 will be remembered about risk, safety and what we as a profes- as a year of trial and disaster. Hurricanes sion are doing to safeguard the public. Katrina and Rita left permanent scars on our Sound engineering can practically remove people, our communities and our memories. The some risks and limit others, but there will damage directly inflicted to the coastal area always be some amount of risk remaining. reverberates throughout the state; everyone in We must speak out about that residual risk Louisiana feels the burden of this disaster. so that the public fully understands the risk But as harsh as Mother Nature has been and they assume and for which they must pre- will be, the people of Louisiana are made of pare. stronger stuff. We have endured nature’s harsh ¥ Our first ethical canon instructs us to hold attention is on the engineering profession. temper for many generations, and we will surely public safety above all other concerns. In I am happy to report that we have already do so for many more. the aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina and made progress on these issues. For instance, we Readers of this journal know that civil engi- Rita, we must redouble our pledge to uphold are already part of the revised Levee Board neers have a vital role to play in the future of this this ethic. Civil engineers must speak up organization. The ASCE is specifically named state. Engineers will undoubtedly be the ones and speak out on this issue, both in closed as one of the organizations with a seat on the who rebuild the infrastructure, repair the build- project meetings and in public forums. As nominating committee that will select members ings and restore public services. Engineers will decisions are made in critical projects, we for the new Southeast Louisiana Flood lead the way in the design of hurricane protec- must constantly remind our customers in the Protection Authority East and West Bank tion barriers, including levees, gates and coastal public, industry and government that human boards. Further, the new law requires a mini- features. Engineers will provide the construc- lives are at stake. mum number of the members of these new tion management skills and the project manage- ¥ Civil Engineers must engage lawmakers to boards be engineers or other professionals in ment experience to support efficient and effec- establish effective public policy. Too often, related fields. tive construction throughout the state. laws are passed after the fact or are based on Clearly, in the hour of need, Louisiana is But we must do more than simply clean up knee-jerk, panicked reasoning. Other pro- counting on the ASCE and its members to be the mess. We must be more than just the hired fessions and trades are actively engaged in leaders in the protection of our coastal area. I labor that does all the heavy lifting with no deci- the legislative process and successfully pledge to do my part and I know I can count on sion-making authority. We need to be a part of maintain a dialogue with decision makers on each of you to do the same. planning a future that protects our communities issues of concern. Civil engineers must also from future storm events. We need to be out make themselves available and their exper- About the cover: The cover page contents front and leading the way. tise accessible to representatives at all levels for this issue are framed with an early draft ver- Here is how we will do this: of government. sion of the Section’s website graphics ¥ Civil Engineers must speak out about build- These issues are of importance to all citizens of (www.lasce.org/draft) that are presently being ing safer, smarter homes. Louisiana recent- Louisiana, not just those in the coastal area. redeveloped. For the Section news when it is ly adopted the International Residential Growing communities such as Shreveport and news in the interim between the quarterly issues Code for the coastal area. But I think we all Baton Rouge might not be threatened by hurri- of this journal, the .pdf files of past issues of this know that no matter what the code says, no cane storm surge, but the need to build safer, journal, extensive information about the organ- matter how thoroughly designed and stronger homes is just as important. The oppor- ization, governance and operation of the detailed, new buildings will only be as good tunity to engage lawmakers and the public in Section, visit the Section’s website as what contractors build on-site. With pub- policy formulation is now while the public’s (www.lasce.org). Did you know...... that the National Crash Analysis Center ty of a fatality in a traffic accident — cur- 80,000-square-foot indoor facility in Ashburn — (NCAC) in Ashburn, Virginia, is a partnership rently 70 percent — NCAC research led to compare physical and computer model results to between George Washington University and the improving seat belt design to eliminate an validate and calibrate the computer models. The USDOT’s Federal Highway Administration and abnormally high probability of liver lacera- $70,000 typical cost of a crash test is equivalent National Highway Traffic Safety Administration tion. to the cost of 90 typical simulations performed and that it conducts research to make highways ¥ improving the interaction or compatibility with the computer models. An advantage of the safer with the ever-evolving vehicles produced between different size vehicles — mainly computer simulation of crashes is the ability to by the industry? Nabih Bedewi is a George sport utility vehicles and small cars — and adjust the speed of vehicles and the boundary Washington University professor of engineering the behavior of vehicles related to roadside conditions to test the various design standards. and the director of the Center that relies on high- hardware Highway safety measures conforming to current performance computers and cameras in its ¥ testing security barriers to protect embassies but aging design standards are periodically test- research. According to Bedewi, the NCAC and other government buildings against ed for the changed road conditions since their addresses the total safety problems of roads and vehicle bomb attacks implementation. For example, their effective- cars such as: ¥ effectiveness of proposed infrastructure for ness is tested relative to changes in the character ¥ reducing the number of highway injuries and homeland security of the vehicle fleet — such as that caused by the fatalities due to traffic accidents — currently Full-scale crash tests at the NCAC Federal increased portion of sports-utility vehicles. 42,000 fatalities a year Outdoor Impact Laboratory in McLean, Virginia - Washington Times 1/29/04 ¥ the use of seat belts to reduce the probabili- — scheduled to be replaced in 2005 by an
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Failures in the New Orleans levee system during Hurricane Katrina By Gordon P. Boutwell, PE, and Billy R. Proschaska, PE
Summary undrained shear strengths on the order of 100 to It is well known that the failures of the New 200 psf. These strengths increase with depth at Orleans hurricane protection system (HPS) — a rate of around 10-15 psf per foot of depth. In levees and floodwalls — during Hurricane the area of the various drainage canals and the Katrina caused massive flooding that resulted in IHNC, there is a massive buried sand ridge. The over 1300 lives lost and untold billions of dollars depth to the top of this ridge varies from less in damages. The various investigations have than 10 to 30 feet below the ground surface. The proved that the vast majority of the failures in entire area is subsiding due to natural causes this catastrophe were due to the failure — from breaching — of HPS components and not to ¥ settlement from drainage improvements floodwater overtopping from storm surges. ¥ compaction of deep sediments and It will be demonstrated that the different ¥ movements along deep buried fault planes. levees failed for different technical reasons, but Typical subsidence rates are on the order of 1 to Gordon Boutwell the overriding root cause was overall inadequate 3 feet per century with higher rates locally. design. The 17th Street Canal floodwall under- Figure 1 illustrates the general geology of New went a foreseeable slope stability failure at less Orleans. than design load because of improper soil strength selection. The London Avenue Canal History and development of the levee system failures resulted from clearly incorrect estima- The founders of New Orleans selected the tion of the groundwater pressure regime. The highest natural levee of the Mississippi River in Mississippi River Gulf Outlet (MRGO) and New the area to establish the city. With the exception Orleans East levees failed in erosion because of of the flooding from occasional Mississippi conscious decisions not to armor them against River floods and hurricane surges, the water overtopping. One Inner Harbor Navigation from normal rainfall drained away from the Canal (IHNC) floodwall failed because the River by gravity to the adjacent marsh and designers used the wrong land-side geometry, cypress swamps and eventually ended up in another failed due to incorrect estimation of the Lake Pontchartrain. groundwater pressure regime and lack of land As the City grew, canal systems were built side scour protection. to enhance drainage. Canals, however, are like a This many different and foreseeable causes double edged sword. They can serve their for failure indicate a widespread systematic designed purpose — conducting the water to the design problem which led to the largest civil desired location — but they can also defeat their engineering disaster in American history. The purpose by conducting unwanted water to the civil engineering profession — especially the area intended to be drained. hydrologic and geotechnical areas — has Drainage improvements had two undesir- learned many valuable lessons from this disas- able side effects. First, they allowed develop- Billy Prochaska ter, but at a terrible cost. Surely we can do bet- ment into former low swamp areas. Second, the ter next time. resulting drop in the groundwater level incurred settlements in the underlying soft materials. The The New Basin Canal was constructed dur- Introduction net result was that New Orleans became a bowl ing the 1830s. It was excavated through the — or series of bowls — and the ground surface Metairie Ridge that had served as a levee to pro- Geologic setting over much of the City was before and/or is now tect the city from the waters of Lake The whole New Orleans area lies in an area below sea level. Here is how this canal system Pontchartrain. This canal was the source of the that was eroded to depths of 60 to 100 feet dur- developed, together with the levee system that it 1871 flooding of the city. During a period from ing the last Ice Age. The resulting valley was made necessary. the 1930s to the 1950s this canal was backfilled. filled with relatively weak and compressible The first New Orleans Canal was construct- An 1833-34 survey by Charles Zimpel indi- deposits — typically clays. At various times, ed under the direction of the Spanish governor in cates that portions of the Orleans Canal, also deposition slowed and peat bogs formed, and 1794. This Old Basin Canal began at Basin known as the Girod Canal, had been excavated therefore, peat layers are often found. The upper Street in the French Quarter and terminated at to convey the waters of Bayou Metairie into 4 to 6 feet are normally clays that are stiff in Lake Pontchartrain. It was hand excavated by Lake Pontchartrain. A system of ditches had consistency due to desiccation. Below that slaves and prisoners. This canal was later filled also been completed to carry water to a steam- level, the clays and peats are very soft, with as other canals were constructed. powered pump station at the upper Orleans
Gordon P. Boutwell, PE, is a licensed civil engineer in Louisiana and Mississippi with 45 years of experience as a geotechnical engineer in private practice. He earned his BS and MS degrees in civil engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology and his PhD from Duke University. Boutwell is President of Soil Testing Engineers, Inc. in Baton Rouge and serves as an adjunct professor of civil engineering at the University of New Orleans. He is a member of ASCE, LES and NSPE, and has served on the Editorial Board of ASCE and is a member of ASCE G-I’s Technical Coordinating Council. He has served as a member of both the ASCE and NSF teams evaluating the levee failures in New Orleans. Billy R. Prochaska, PE, is a licensed civil engineer in Louisiana and Mississippi. He served 4 years in the US Navy Civil Engineering Corps fol- lowed by a 41-year career as a geotechnical engineer in private practice. He earned his BS degree from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette and his MS degree in civil engineering from the University of Florida. Prochaska retired as President of Soil and Foundation Engineers, Inc., in Baton Rouge and is currently a private practitioner. He is a member of ASCE, LES, NSPE, and LGWA, and the Civil Engineering Advisory Board at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. He served as a member of Team Louisiana — the Governor’s panel investigating the failure of the levees in New Orleans.
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pletion date was projected as 2015. But, remem- ber, even the Romans could not build Rome in a day. The original estimated construction cost of $95 million presented to Congress was approach- ing $1.0 billion when the project was investigat- ed by the General Accounting Office in 1982. Today, the New Orleans drainage system drains 95 square miles in Orleans and Jefferson Parishes through 90 miles of covered canals and 82 miles of open channels. The system has 22 main pumping stations with a total pumping capacity of 47,000 cfs and there are 50 of the Wood Screw Pumps still in service. In many cases, the present levees are constructed over the spoil banks from the excavation of the original canals. Through the years many levee projects have been completed and the elevations of the levees were raised with the most available fill material that was not always the select fill suited for levee construction. To minimize costs, rights of way were not enlarged as the elevations of the levees were raised. To attain the increased elevation required to protect from storm surge, the now Figure 1. Block diagram of New Orleans geology (Seed, et al, 2006). famous/infamous I-walls that are cantilever sheet piles driven through the levees were used to avoid having to purchase the right of way to Canal that transferred its water to Bayou St. S&WB in 1903 and by 1905, 46 additional miles enlarge the base of the levee to support the raised John. of canals had been constructed. crest elevation. By this time, the City area was During the period of 1854 to 1858 the Upper With the improved drainage, the real estate divided as shown in Figure 2 into several polders Line Protection Levee — now 17th Street Canal developers extended their projects to more low or basins that are totally surrounded by — was constructed. Since rainwater was trapped areas requiring additional drainage system con- levees/floodwalls. The primary polders enclosed between the Mississippi River levees and the struction. The invention of the Wood Screw ¥ Metro New Orleans, Metairie Ridge, a system of collection canals Pump in 1913 greatly facilitated the pumping ¥ New Orleans East served by 4 steam-powered pump stations was capacity. These pumps were 12 feet in diameter ¥ St. Bernard Parish and the Lower 9th Ward, designed and constructed. This work was and powered by a 25 Hz AC motor. In 1915 the and accomplished by 4 drainage districts created by city let a contract for 13 of these pumps to be ¥ Plaquemines Parish. the legislature in 1859 and given the taxing installed in 3 pump stations that year. The levee and floodwall designs reviewed by power to fund and the authority to construct the The IHNC or Industrial Canal was complet- the authors were intended to achieve a safety fac- pump stations. ed in 1923. This canal is owned by the Dock tor of 1.3. For comparison, the Louisiana After the failure of the Hayman Canal levee Board and was constructed to support maritime Department of Environmental Quality requires a in 1871 a political crisis developed. The City traffic between the Mississippi River and Lake safety factor of 1.5 against the slope stability fail- Surveyor, W. H. Bell, advised the city to move Pontchartrain. Later the Gulf Intracoastal ure of a sanitary landfill. This would lead one to the pump stations to the lake front or heavy Waterway (GIWW) was tied into the IHNC and question which is more consequential — a side storms would result in water backup in the the MRGO was connected to the GIWW several failure in a landfill or the loss of a city? The HPS canals, culminating in overflow into the city. miles to the east in 1963. Although not associat- was tested by Hurricane Katrina and it failed to Does this sound familiar? Over the following ed with the drainage system, another double- achieve its purpose — protect the City and its years various canal systems were constructed edged sword had been created. These waterways surrounding metropolitan area. and in 1878 the city assumed control of the 36- served to conduct Hurricane Katrina’s storm mile-long system of canals draining into Lake surge to the heart of the city just as City Flooding Pontchartrain. This system was limited to Surveyor, Bell, in 1871 warned the canals to Hurricane Katrina induced extensive damage removing 1.5 inches of rain per hour. With the Lake Pontchartrain would do. If we would only to the HPS throughout the New Orleans area. increase in population from 8,000 in 1800 to study history! The locations of the major failures of the HPS are 300,000 in 1900, better drainage was needed for After Hurricane Betsy in 1965, Congress illustrated in Figure 2. Some levees/floodwalls the available areas, particularly as the low areas passed Public Law 89-298, that authorized the were overtopped but were damaged so little that outside Broad Street began to be developed. Lake Pontchartrain Louisiana and Vicinity flood their functionalities were not impaired. In 1893 a hurricane generated a storm surge control project. Under this law, the New Orleans Conversely, others collapsed — breached — pro- of 13 feet on the south shore of Lake HPS was to be “...substantially in accordance viding little or no resistance to the onrushing Pontchartrain. As a result the shoreline levee was with the recommendations of the Chief of floodwaters. An analysis of the relative effects of constructed to an elevation of 6 feet above nor- Engineers” (Clough, et al, 2006). The U.S. Army breaching and overtopping provides the answer mal lake level. Later that year, the city council Corps of Engineers (USACE) was assigned of why New Orleans experienced the catastrophe created the Drainage Advisory Board to develop responsibility for the design and construction of of the magnitude it did. the necessary topographic and hydrologic data to the HPS (IPET, 2006). These flood control Unlike high river waters retained by the develop recommendations to solve the drainage improvements were financed by 70 percent fed- Mississippi River levees for weeks at a time, hur- problems. This resulted in the first report in eral and 30 percent local funds. Their construc- ricane storm surge waters are retained for a rela- 1895, the creation of the New Orleans Drainage tion was delayed by environmentalist lawsuits tively short period of time. Illustrated in the Commission in 1896 and the first contracts for and turf wars between the Orleans Levee Board hydrographs shown in Figure 3, Katrina’s storm new pumping stations in 1897. In 1899 a tax was and the S&WB throughout the project. Due to surge water was typically within 4 feet of its peak approved and later that year the Sewage and these problems and the sporadic funding by value for only 4 to 6 hours. Water Board (S&WB) was established. The Congress, the project is still not complete 41 If a levee/floodwall does not breach, the Drainage Commission was merged with the years later. Prior to Hurricane Katrina the com- overflow time period is relatively short and the
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Figure 2. Map of main polders in the New Orleans area.
low head of the water over the crest of the levee 1000 times more water per lineal foot than an the east side of the IHNC had not breached, they results in low flow velocities. On the other hand, unbreached levee. More detailed analyses have would have allowed the passage of only 20 per- if a levee/floodwall is breached, water flow been made by the USACE (IPET, 2006), Team cent of the floodwater that actually entered the through the breach into the protected side of the Louisiana (Van Heerden, et al, 2006), and by the Parish. This would have resulted in the water levee continues for an extended period of time lead author for St. Bernard Parish. The USACE level in the lower Ninth Ward not exceeding until the water level on the “protected” side estimated that some 2/3 of the floodwater volume Elevation +1 to +2 feet or 0 to 2 feet above grade. equals the water level on the storm surge side. came through the breaches and 1/3 of it from If the IHNC levee system had not breached and it The depth of the head of the water over what may overtopping. The results of the calculated flood- had been built and maintained to its design ele- remain of the levee is much greater, resulting in water levels and flooded areas made by Team vation, almost no water would have come into a high flow velocity. The significant difference Louisiana are summarized in Table 1 for each of the lower Ninth Ward. The floodwaters in the time of flow, its velocity and the depth of 3 major basins — Orleans Metro, New Orleans approaching Chalmette and Meraux from the water over a levee crest compared to that through East and St. Bernard. IHNC would not have overtopped Paris Road. a levee breach results in a significantly different The lead author studied the flooding of St. Waters coming from the MRGO would have volume of water reaching the protected side. Bernard Parish extensively (Boutwell, 2006) and been stopped by the 40-Arpent Canal Levee and Typically, a levee breach can transmit 100 to concluded that if the levees and floodwalls along (Continued on Page 25)
20 MRGO IHNC Relative Flooding: Overtopping versus Breaching 17TH STREET Without Breaches Actual 15 APPROX. TIMES OF Basin (Overtopping Only) With Breaches FAILURE (SEED, et.al., 2006) Area Avg. Area Avg. (Acres) Depth (Acres) Depth 10 (ft) (ft)
Orleans Metro 6,000 2 21,000 5 5 Orleans East 9,000 2 15,000 4
St. Bernard 8,000 2 21,000 10 0 SURGE ELEVATION (feet, NAVD88/2004.65) (feet, ELEVATION SURGE 0000 0600 1200 1800 2400 Overall 23,000 2 57,000 6 TIME (CDT): 08/29/2005 SOURCE: IPET (2006)
Figure 3. Storm surge hydrographs. Table 1.
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News from the Branches SHREVEPORT By Elba U. Hamilton, EI, President
The planning of the Section’s 2007 Annual The Board would greatly appreciate member Society. The speaker for this meeting was Spring Meeting and Conference that will be host- ideas and insights about how the Conference Representative Mike Powell who represents the ed by the Branch is now under way. The may be improved and made more attractive to 6th House district contained in Caddo and Conference has been scheduled for March 22 — participants. We are in the process of identifying Bossier Parishes. He serves on the House 23 and the Branch plans to continue to host it as and soliciting potential speakers for the technical Transportation, Highways and Public Works in the past in the Clarion Hotel — the former sessions planned and seeking vendors to provide Committee, Education Committee and Judiciary Sheraton Shreveport Hotel in Shreveport. C. booths during the Conference. If you know of Committee. Representative Powell briefed us on Eric Hudson, PE, was appointed by the Board to someone who you believe can provide an inter- the highly anticipated Youree Drive project. serve as the Chair of the Conference to lead the esting technical session during the Conference or Representative Powell was instrumental in secur- planning process. if you are interested in a particular subject as a ing funds for the phase of the project that con- The dates scheduled for the Conference were technical session, please let an officer know so sists of, among other improvements, drainage on selected to coincide with the Deep South that your interests can be accommodated if pos- both sides of the road and an improved Portland Conference of student chapters scheduled for sible while the search for speakers is active. cement concrete pavement. March 23 — 24 in Ruston. This is intended to Also, if you have any other ideas concerning the The October Branch meeting was particular- accommodate attendance for both conferences Conference, please feel free to share them with ly interesting for those members from the and particularly for attendance during the tradi- any Branch officer. Please watch for future Shreveport/Bossier area that have been seeing tional student activities and awards ceremony announcements and updates concerning the 2007 dynamic message signs along the interstates with being planned as part of the Awards Banquet held Annual Spring Meeting and Conference as plans the message “DOTD SIGN UNDER TESTING” in conjunction with the Conference. are advanced. being displayed. To help us understand the moti- The Board plans to spotlight engineering vation behind these new signs, the speaker for projects in the newly designed Branch newslet- this meeting was B. Keith Tindell, PE. He is the ter. Therefore, Branch members are hereby district traffic engineer for the Louisiana DOTD being solicited to submit brief articles describing District 04 with its headquarters located in their recently completed projects. A Branch Bossier City. Keith additionally briefed the member whose article is chosen to be published Branch members in attendance on the largest in the newsletter will receive a gift certificate to Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) project a local restaurant. This is a great opportunity for ever in the State. Branch members who cannot attend the monthly The officers of the Branch who were elected membership meetings due to distance but would to serve on the Board of Directors for its 2006- like to participate in Branch activities. 2007 administrative year were installed in May In other matters the Board agreed to contin- during the Branch membership meeting and ue the canned food drive that the Younger luncheon that was held in conjunction with The Member Group has organized for the past 2 Spring Classic golf tournament — an annual years. The Board also approved, as it has in past, event sponsored by the Branch. The officers who a reduced price of $5 each for the Louisiana Tech will serve on the Branch Board of Directors are students and professors who attend any Branch ¥ Elba U. Hamilton, EI, President membership meetings during this administrative ¥ Rusty L. Cooper, EI, President-Elect year. ¥ J. Cody Goodwin, EI, Secretary The September Branch membership meeting ¥ Jarred C. Corbell, EI, Treasurer Elba Hamilton was a traditional joint meeting with the ¥ Ashley T. Sears, Past President Shreveport Chapter of the Louisiana Engineering
Ashley Sears Rusty Cooper Cody Goodwin Jarred Corbell
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BATON ROUGE By Brant B. Richard, PE, President
As I begin my term as President of the time of rebuilding. Our reputation and credibili- will be the primary basis for mass communica- Branch, I want to thank the Board for nominating ty are important factors that must remain a pre- tion with Branch members. Here are some other me and each member for the vote of confidence. vailing concern as we pursue our work. We will items that we are working on: I would like to personally thank past Branch continue to have the opportunity to better assert ¥ Publishing employment opportunities on the President, Tommy Roberts, for the guidance and ourselves in seeking and gaining a place at the Branch website direction he provided over the past year. I hope table with the decision makers concerning the ¥ A monthly luncheon sponsorship program that I can continue his efforts to effectively pro- future growth and development in this region that for consultants mote the Society and be a resource for all civil so significantly depends on civil engineering ¥ More opportunities to promote member par- engineers in the Branch community. works. ticipation in — and public exposure to — the I believe that it is an exciting time to be a My goals during my term in office are to be Society’s work civil engineer. As unfortunate as the hurricane an effective voice and representative of the A change in venue for the October member- devastation of the Gulf coast region is, it has cre- Branch membership, promote the ASCE and our ship meeting and luncheon to the LSU campus ated opportunities for civil engineers to assist in profession to the best of my ability, and develop featured Jason Soileau, Assistant Director of the rebuilding efforts for years to come. There a strong, influential voice for civil engineers in Facilities Services, as our speaker. He presented will be many opportunities to participate in the Baton Rouge community. With these goals, I an overview of the LSU Master Plan. It includ- storm-related infrastructure projects typically add a personal opportunity to demonstrate the ed projects proposed for additional parking, new including roadway, water, sewer, wastewater, site integrity that will encourage more young people buildings, and limited vehicular access to on- development, and other utility projects in both — the future of our profession — to become civil campus streets. These projects are being the private and public sectors. This will allow us engineers. designed in keeping with the aesthetics of LSU’s as civil engineers to grow careers and thus open I am very excited about the work being done beautiful campus. doors and public awareness of the importance of to restart our Branch website Following the membership meeting, Calvin our profession. http://branches.asce.org/batonrouge/index.htm C. Thomas, Jr., PE, presented a PDH seminar We will face many challenges during this planned to be completed in November 2006. It (Continued on Page 24)
Brant Richard Bob Jacobsen Bill Wall Jeff Duplantis
Clint Willson Adam Smith Rudy Simoneaux Tommy Roberts
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NEW ORLEANS By Christopher L. Sanchez, PE, President
As it is now well known, the Branch opera- election of the 2006-2007 Board of Directors and Awards tions were brought to a complete halt during the the presentation of the Branch membership The Board approved the recipients of the late months of 2005 in the aftermath of recognition awards occurred during the August Branch awards recognizing the exceptional Hurricane Katrina. They remained disrupted at membership meeting. This meeting was held in achievements of these civil engineers in the best well into the early months of 2006. We the Audubon Tea Room in Uptown New Orleans Branch community. They are were and are rebuilding the Branch as we were and was attended by nearly 80 Branch members. ¥ Angela Desoto Duncan, PE, Outstanding and are simultaneously rebuilding our lives and It was clearly an important event reaffirming the Government Civil Engineer careers. The results of the hard work of those sense of importance and continuity provided by ¥ Dale C. Biggers, PE, Outstanding Civil serving in the Branch leadership that includes the ASCE in the professional lives of our mem- Engineer the Board and the various committee personnel bers. ¥ Heather Emery Myers, EI, Outstanding have been extremely gratifying considering the Young Civil Engineer new momentum being achieved. The 2005- New Board ¥ John L. Niklaus, Lifetime Achievement 2006 administrative year ended with what can The Branch Board of Directors for the 2006- ¥ Waldemar S. Nelson, PE, Wall of Fame and only be interpreted as a great success. It came 2007 administrative year was elected during the ¥ John J. Housey, Jr., PE, President’s Award only with the willingness of the Branch leader- August Branch membership meeting and These Branch awards were presented and installed with the Section Board of Directors dur- the recipients honored during the August mem- ship to continue programs as soon as possible ing the Section Annual Meeting in September bership meeting and luncheon. The citations for with an unknown but significant risk of financial that was hosted by the Branch. They are each of the recipients follow: failure. ¥ Christopher L. Sanchez, EI, President After having no choice but to cancel the ¥ Ronald L. Schumann, PE, President-Elect Angela DeSoto Duncan, PE, was selected May membership meeting and luncheon that is ¥ Nathan J. Junius, PE, Vice President by the Branch Board of Directors to receive the usually scheduled for the election of officers and ¥ Benjamin M. (Ben) Cody, PE, Treasurer Branch Outstanding Government Civil Engineer then having to postpone the June membership ¥ Johann L. Palacios, PE, Secretary Award. She is employed as a Technical Manager meeting and awards luncheon, the Branch was ¥ Margaret S. Adams, PE, Director and Team Leader by the U.S. Army Corps of finally able to host an August membership meet- ¥ Reid L. Dennis, PE, Director Engineers and she is a licensed engineer in ing and luncheon for the election of officers and ¥ Heather Emry Meyers, EI, Director Louisiana. Duncan is a member of the ASCE, the presentation of awards. So the important ¥ William H. Sewell, Jr., PE, Past President the Louisiana Engineering Society and the American Concrete Institute. She earned her BS degree from Tulane University in 1988. In ASCE, Duncan served as the chair of the national Committee on Licensure and Ethics, an a member of the Task Committee on Academic Prerequisites for Professional Practice, as a member of the national Committee on Professional Practice, as a member of the Task Committee on Government Engineers, as the chair of the national Committee on Younger Members and as the President of the New Orleans Branch. In the Louisiana Engineering Society, she served as President of the New Orleans Chapter and Chair of the MathCounts competition. Duncan served as a judge for the American Concrete Institute, Louisiana Chapter Outstanding Concrete Project of the Year.
(Continued on Page 11) Chris Sanchez Ronald Schumann
Nathan Junius Ben Cody Reid Dennis Bill Sewell
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Angela Duncan is honored as the Outstanding Dale Biggers is honored as the Outstanding Heather Meyers is honored as the Outstanding Government Civil Engineer for 2006 and Civil Engineer for 2006 and receives his com- Young Civil Engineer for 2006 and receives her receives her commemorative plaque from memorative plaque from President Sewell. commemorative plaque from President Sewell. President Sewell.
Duncan is a member of the Tulane MWH — Environmental Engineering, subconsultants. She is currently the project man- University Alumni Admissions Committee Construction Water and Power and an active ager for the evaluation of the Jefferson Parish recruiting prospective students. She has been a member in the ASCE and the Society of Women recycling program that is temporarily suspended volunteer for BeachSweep for 6 years, a Engineers. following the hurricanes. Christmas in October for 3 years, and a senior Myers was an active member of the Tulane John L. Niklaus was selected by the Branch judge for the Louisiana Science and Engineering ASCE Student Chapter where she served on the Board of Directors to receive the Branch Lifetime Fair for 13 years and recently served as head Chapter’s concrete canoe competition team and Achievement Award. Niklaus began his engi- judge for the senior team category. as Secretary and Vice President on its Board of neering career as a consultant and an instructor A coauthor of the Interagency Performance Directors and was responsible for organizing specializing in traffic and transportation engi- Evaluation Task Force performance evaluation of Chapter social activities. Myers has been an neering while working on his advanced degrees. the New Orleans and Southeast Louisiana hurri- active member of the New Orleans Branch He earned his BS and MS in civil engineering cane protection system report, Duncan is also the Younger Member Committee and its Water from Tulane university in 1955 and 1961 and his Technical Manager for the Southeastern Resources Committee and a volunteer for the PhD in civil engineering from the University of Louisiana Urban Flood Control, Orleans and Branch’s Box City outreach effort in the Washington in 1967. Niklaus joined the Tulane Jefferson Parishes, and the Technical Manager Children’s Village during the New Orleans Jazz faculty in its Civil Engineering Department in for the Cousins Discharge Channel, Culvert and Fest. 1963 and became the Chair of the Department in Floodwalls. She is a lead designer for approxi- Myers is an active member of the Greater 1984 — a position that he held until his retire- mately $30 million in hurricane protection proj- New Orleans Section of the Society of Women ment. During his tenure on the Tulane faculty ects in the New Orleans area. Engineers. She has served in the offices of his specialty areas expanded to include structur- Dale C. Biggers, PE, was selected by the Secretary and Treasurer on its Board of Directors al engineering while also teaching a much wider Branch Board of Directors to receive the Branch and she has chaired several of its committees. range of subjects. Outstanding Civil Engineer Award. Biggers is The Section won the Membership Program During his career, Niklaus served as a mem- employed by Boh Brothers Construction Award for small sections under her leadership as ber on the St. Charles Parish qualification-based Company, LLC, where he serves as the Vice chair of its Membership Committee and Myers’ selection committee for the selection of engi- President of its Piling and Marine Department. service has been twice recognized with the neering firms to perform services for the Parish, Biggers is a licensed engineer in Louisiana and Section’s Distinguished Member Award. the advisory committee to revise the New earned his BS degrees in math and civil engi- Myers has served on the Board of Directors Orleans land use plan and zoning ordinance, and neering from Tulane University in 1966 and of the Green Project with the mission “To match the technical committee to develop a statewide 1968. He graduated from the U.S. Coast Guard the issues of limited landfill space, neighborhood intermodal transportation plan for Louisiana. He Officers Candidate School in 1969 as an Ensign blight, pollution and waste, with solutions that also served as the director for the Canal Street in the U.S. Coast Guard. will benefit the Greater New Orleans area.” She improvement project for the New Orleans Biggers served as the chair of the technical initiated an office-level community outreach Chamber of Commerce. committee of the Pile Driving Contractors effort in her company and served as its commu- Niklaus is a member of the ASCE, the Association where he led the writing of the nity coordinator for 2 years. The effort supports Louisiana Engineering Society, the Society of installation specifications for driven piles and he beach cleaning, Christmas tree recycling, food Tulane Engineers, Tau Beta PI, and the Institute presented them to the American Association of bank, scholarship fund raising and other activi- of Traffic Engineers. Prior to retirement, he was State Highway and Transportation Officials for ties. Myers volunteered for community a licensed engineer in Louisiana. As a member their inclusion in its guidelines. He is a member improvement projects with the Young Leadership of the ASCE, Niklaus served 2 terms as President of the ASCE and he has served on the board of Council, supporting the rebuilding efforts fol- of the New Orleans Branch, as a member of the directors for the New Orleans Opera for 18 lowing Hurricanes Katrina and Rita including steering committee of the Branch’s Structures years. light demolition, construction and painting. Committee, and two terms as a Director on the Heather Emery Myers, EI, was selected by Following the hurricanes, she assisted volunteer Louisiana Section Board of Directors. He also the Branch Board of Directors to receive the groups of college students nationwide to coordi- served on the host committees for 2 ASCE Branch Outstanding Young Civil Engineer nate their volunteer rebuilding efforts in New national conventions held in New Orleans. Award. Myers is a certified engineer intern in Orleans with local non-profit organizations. Niklaus served a term as the President of the Louisiana and she earned her BS and MS in As project manager of the Water Master Plan Society of Tulane Engineers. Environmental Engineering in 1998 and 2006 for the City of New Orleans, Myers oversaw the Waldemar S. Nelson, PE, was selected by from Tulane University. She is employed by daily tasks of the project team that includes 3 (Continued on Page 12)
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(Continued from Page 11)
John Housey is honored with the 2006 John Niklaus is honored with the Lifetime Waldemar Nelson is posthumously honored as a President’s Award and receives his commemora- Achievement Award and receives his commemo- member of the Civil Engineering Wall of Fame tive plaque from President Sewell. rative plaque from President Sewell. and his son Ken Nelson receives the commemo- rative plaque from President Sewell. the Branch Board of Directors to posthumously mechanical engineer in 44 states. He was Fellow Engineering Center from a vision to a reality,” receive the Branch Civil Engineering Wall of and Life Member of the ASCE. the Center’s Waldemar S. Nelson Conference Fame Award. He was Director Emeritus of Nelson served as Chair of the Louisiana Room was dedicated in 1999. Waldemar S. Nelson and Company, Inc. at the State Board of Registration for Professional Other honors received by Nelson include the time of his death on November 15, 2005. Nelson Engineers and Land Surveyors, Treasurer of the Times-Picayune Loving Cup, the James E. West earned his BS in Mechanical Engineering and National Council for Engineering Examiners and Fellow — National Endowment Award; the Electrical Engineering from Tulane University in received the NCEES Distinguished Service Southeast Louisiana Council of the Boy Scouts 1936 and he was licensed as a civil, electrical and Award. He was a founding member and served of America — Distinguished Citizen Award; the as President of the Board of Advisors of the Valley Forge Freedom Foundation, New Orleans Tulane University School of Engineering, a Chapter — George Washington Honor Medal; trustee of the Tulane Engineering Foundation the Junior Achievement of New Orleans — and the 1997 inductee into the Tulane Entrepreneur of the Year, and inductee into the Engineering Hall of Fame, the 1992 Tulane Junior Achievement Business Hall of Fame; and University Volunteer of the Year and the 1976 the Young Leadership Council — Role Model of Tulane University Outstanding Engineering the Year in Engineering. Alumnus. Recipient of the ASCE New Orleans Branch Special acknowledgment Lifetime Achievement Award in 1998, Nelson The membership of the Branch and the was an active member of the Louisiana Section received the following special acknowl- Engineering Society where he served a term as edgment by letter dated October 9, 2006. It is its President. In honor of his “outstanding ser- from Ken Nelson, who accepted the Louisiana vice to the LES, in an unselfish manner in keep- Section 2006 Wall of Fame award for his father, ing with the highest professional standards of Waldemar: conduct, including active participation and lead- On behalf of the entire family and company, ership within the Society,” the LES Waldemar S. I would like to thank the membership of the Nelson President’s Award was instituted. Also in ASCE Louisiana Section and New Orleans Peter Casbarian receives his Life Member honor of Nelson’s “exemplary leadership and Certificate from President Sewell. overall guidance to bring the Louisiana (Continued on Page 13)
William Caver receives his Life Member Adrian Combe receives his Life Member Shashikant Suthar receives his Life Member Certificate from President Sewell. Certificate from President Sewell. Certificate from President Sewell.
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ACADIANA By Jamal Khattak, PE, President
The Branch is back to business after a fairly administrative year, the branch developed an 2006-2007 administrative year was accom- quiet summer. During the 2006-2007 adminis- intricate PowerPoint presentation about civil plished as part of the business of the September trative year, the Branch plans to focus on imple- engineering that particularly focused on the civil Branch membership meeting. All of the officers menting Phase II of its campaign to market civil engineering programs and projects in the serving on the current Board agreed to be nomi- engineering as a profession of choice to local Section. nated advancing them in position and David high school junior level students. The previous The Branch also plans to focus on coordinat- Girouard with C.H. Fenstermaker & Associates ing a sprint technical seminar in 2007 that will be agreed to be nominated to the position of a 2-day event specializing in only one civil engi- Secretary. The slate of officers nominated was neering technical specialty. In the interim, the elected by a unanimous vote of the membership Branch plans to continue focusing on providing present. high quality monthly membership meetings that The installation of the new Branch officers focus on providing professional development was part of the business of the October Branch hours for its members. membership meeting hosted in new LITE facili- Congratulations are extended to Branch ty in Lafayette. On behalf of the Branch I would member Ray DesOrmeaux for being selected for like to thank E.R. DesOrmeaux, PE, President- the second consecutive year by the Section Elect of the Section, who installed the new offi- President to receive the President’s Medal. This cers. The following are the new officers on the medal is given to a Section member for outstand- Branch Board of Directors for the 2006-2007 ing service to the profession during the previous administrative year. calendar year. Congratulations are also due ¥ M. Jamal Khattak, PE, President another Branch member Kenneth McManis, PE, ¥ Joseph P. Kolwe, Jr., PE, President-Elect who was recently selected as the new Civil ¥ Clint S. McDowell, PE, Vice President Engineering Department Head at the University ¥ Joshua P. Stutes, PE, Treasurer of Louisiana at Lafayette. ¥ David J. Girouard, EI, Secretary The nomination and election of the slate of ¥ Dax A. Douet, PE, Past President Jamal Khattak new officers to the Board of Directors for the
David Girouard Joe Kolwe Clint McDowell Joshua Stutes
(Continued from Page 12) Branch for posthumously naming Waldemar Life Members offshore seminar and another seminar scheduled Nelson to the wall of fame. It has been very Also during the August Branch membership for latter part of 2005 were cancelled. However, heartwarming to have so many of his friends and meeting the following Branch members recently most of the Executive Committee members were colleagues express their respect for him since his achieving their Life Membership status were rec- back in New Orleans by the end of the year and passing. His honor is an affirmation of his dedi- ognized and they received their Life Member planning for the ongoing activities of the cation to his profession, and an inspiration for us certificates: Committee. The engineering auditorium at all to try to follow in his footsteps. As we work ¥ William W. Caver, Jr., PE University of New Orleans was damaged during to put the Gulf coast back together after the ¥ Adrian J. Combe, III, PE the flooding caused by Hurricane Katrina and the recent hurricanes, we will often be reminded of ¥ Peter A.O. Casbarian, PE Committee had to temporarily find a new venue. his assertion that, “engineering is the foundation ¥ Shashikant M. Suthar, PE Finally, the Committee started the year by of civilization.” The efforts of civil engineers hosting the Annual David Hunter Seminar in have been crucial to the development of the Structures Committee (Annual Report 2006) April 2006 that proved to be successful. The region, and Waldemar would have been proud By Om P. Dixit, PE Committee has either hosted or is planning to that his fellow ASCE members considered his host the following seminars: life’s work to be worthy of recognition. Thanks Like the other functions of the Branch, the again to all who had a part in the granting of this activities of the Structures Committee were dis- (Continued on Page 21) honor. rupted following Hurricane Katrina. The annual
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STUDENT CHAPTER NEWS
UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA AT LAFAYETTE By Sehati Atieh, Secretary
The first Chapter membership meeting of the school year was in August. Many of the recent- ly enrolled civil engineering students — both freshmen and sophomores — were accompanied by the upperclassmen to this function. The 60 plus students present had the opportunity to meet and hear a presentation by Dr. Kenneth L. McManis, PE, the newly appointed head of the Department of Civil Engineering. He discussed his vision for and the expected direction of the Department. The Chapter officers encouraged all students present to begin planning for the 2007 Deep South Conference. In addition, the officers revealed their plans for the Chapter’s alumni awareness program that is intended to acquaint local engineers and engineering firms with the activities of the Chapter for the current academ- ic year. The annual barbecue in Girard Park adjacent to the campus was held in September. The stu- dents present had the opportunity to visit social- ly with professional civil engineers who practice Group picture of the civil engineering students, faculty and practitioners who attended the annual in the local community and the faculty members barbecue in Girard Park. of the Department of Civil Engineering. LOUISIANA TECH UNIVERSITY By Nathan Linhardt, President
The 2006-2007 academic year at Tech is a busy one for the Chapter. A new level of partic- ipation along with a larger group size has allowed us to partake in many worthwhile social, professional, and community service events. Thanks to the participation of our 33 members and the efforts of our officers, this year has already been filled with memorable events. To kick off the year for our chapter and the Tech College of Engineering and Science, the Chapter hosted the COES Tailgate at the first home game with a dunking booth for the enter- tainment of fans of all ages. The honorary dun- kees were Professor Dixie Griffin and Chapter President Nathan Linhardt. It was a huge suc- cess. Also to welcome our new and returning members, we held the Fall Burger Burn. It is a great opportunity to mingle with the faculty and the ASCE members in the professional commu- nity. Tech Student Chapter members attending the October membership meeting of the Shreveport Branch. We have continued to provide professional From left are John Brown, Charlie Franklin, Michael Rister, Nathan Linhardt, Hailey Prince, Mary activities and networking opportunities for Lou Schwaller, Carlos Vidas, Elba Hamilton, Shreveport Branch President, and Paul Will. members through a series of guest speakers dur- the academic year which is marked by some sig- from NCI Building Systems from Houston, ing the monthly Chapter meetings and attending nificant events Texas. the membership meetings of the Shreveport ¥ Up Till Dawn at Louisiana Tech University, ¥ Annual Civil Engineering Banquet will fea- Branch. In September, Shelly Brock from our student chapter will be helping to raise ture guest speaker William Marcuson, III, PE, Applied Research Associates, Inc. made a pres- money for St. Jude’s Hospital to support President of the ASCE. We will be honoring entation on security engineering and progressive cancer research and awareness (November our outstanding students for academic and collapse analysis of structures. In October, Kyle 2, 2007). For more information contact Paul service achievements, and presenting the fac- Blank from Pate Engineers, Inc. made a presen- Will at [email protected]. ulty awards for Professor of the Year and the tation on projects related to hydrology, struc- ¥ The December Chapter membership meet- Crying Towel (February 13, 2007). tures, and transportation planning. ing will feature guest speaker Jeff Feaster We are looking forward to the remainder of (Continued on Page 21)
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Section News and Information Highlights of the August Board of Directors meeting
The Section failed to receive copies of the least moved to CDs to improve the investment support the Chapter with a $1500 contribution in annual report from any of its 7 student chapters return. However, this cannot happen until a its efforts to host the 2007 Deep South for the 2005-2006 administrative year. Board member gains access. Conference of student chapters. It was noted that Consequently the Section’s $200 contribution The Board acted to eliminate the Section’s there were also funds budgeted to support any of made to its student chapters in conjunction with Outstanding Civil Engineering Senior Student the 7 student chapters in the Section that may win the receipt of the student chapter annual report Award. The recipient of this award was selected a competition in the regional contest and advance was not made this year. from among the recipients of the Distinguished to compete in the national competition. The money for the graduate fellowships Civil Engineering Senior Student Award selected There seemed to be some confusion about funded out of the Hurricane Relief Fund was by the civil engineering department chairs and the Section’s participation in the Rebuilding New scheduled to be disbursed to representatives from student chapter faculty advisors of the Section’s Orleans Forum, that is under the auspices of the the recipient universities during the Board meet- 7 universities with a student chapter. The reason Georgia Institute of Technology. Participation in ing. Louisiana State University, University of the Section’s Outstanding Civil Engineering the Forum is limited to invited guests only and Louisiana at Lafayette, Southern University and Senior Student Award was recommended to be there is confusion about what role the Section the University of New Orleans were represented. discontinued was that the opportunities on the members who are invited will play if any. Their representatives present were respectively various campuses to participate in campus organ- A formal report of the Legislative Steve S.C. Cai, PE, Assistant Professor Civil and izations and fraternities vary substantially and Committee Chair was presented orally and in Environmental Engineering Department; Patrick seriously affect the candidates’ chances in the writing covering the issues raised by — and the Carriere, PE, Chair of Civil and Environmental judging process. The Distinguished Civil final disposition of — the various bills that Engineering Department; Mark Zappi, PE, Engineering Senior Student Awards to members would affect the practice of engineering and Dean of Engineering, and Norma Jean Mattei, of the 7 student chapters will be continued with engineering businesses that were considered dur- PE, Associate Professor, Department of Civil and some upgrades in their recognition. ing the 2006 regular legislative session. The 2 Environmental Engineering. They were each It was proposed and tentatively adopted in bills that passed were first, HB 284. It changed photographed with representatives of the Section the unapproved Section budget that “gifts” of the engineering registration law. However, it was Board of Directors receiving the money to fund $1000 per year each be made to the universities substantially amended to gut it of offending reg- the fellowships. with student chapters to subsidize their civil ulations that would have inappropriately affected The Section’s investment accounts, the engineering students’ needs. There are no recur- engineering business in Louisiana. This left a Fidelity Fund, Spartan Money Market and ring funds in the Section’s income to fund this revision to the dates of the terms served by the Spartan Market 500 Index Account, are not per- and some other proposals made. It was vaguely members of the Louisiana Professional forming as well as ordinary CDs. The paperwork suggested that the Section’s reserves should be Engineering and Land Surveying Board. for the authorization for current Board members spent down to cover these costs and no direction Second, HB 689 provides that all surveys that to gain access of these accounts has been com- was given beyond that eventuality. include elevations be referenced to the NAVD88 pleted but not filed with the respective invest- The Board acted to approve the funds datum and reference the LSU continuous opera- ment account administrators. It was suggested requested by the faculty advisor, Luke Lee, of the tion reference or some other established refer- that these accounts should be liquidated and at Louisiana Tech Student Chapter for the section to ence mark. Highlights of the September Board of Directors meeting The desire was expressed to only schedule accomplishments and time frames set for The Board selected Jerome M. Klier, PE, as the Board meetings from the aggressive number accountability. its recommendation to serve as the ASCE of those tentatively scheduled to be consistent ¥ identifying the important issues that will be appointed representative to the subject nominat- with good reasons to meet. The remainder of the programmed and actively pursued through ing committee for the members of the Southeast tentatively scheduled Board meetings that are not the Section committee structure or by other Louisiana Flood Protection Authority — East necessary will be canceled. This need will be means, and cease appointing chairs to the and the Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection predicated mostly on handling the Board’s busi- several committees that historically have Authority — West Bank subject to the approval ness by email communications when the business been inactive or functioning ineffectively. of the Committee on Government Affairs. His is not subject to the need for interactive debate. ¥ defining a clear relationship between the name will be submitted to the ASCE Committee The initial presentation and discussion of Section and its branches and as a subset of on Government Affairs. developing and adopting a parallel vision and a this the division of labor between the There was an extensive discussion about dis- resulting series of goals for the Section similar to Section, its branches and other ASCE enti- pensing the “surplus” Section funds to the what the national organization has adopted was ties. branches and the original intent. There was con- placed on the table for ongoing discussion in The Board was advised that there is a mem- cern that some of the Branches were not pro- future Board meetings. The initial email feed- orandum of understanding has been developed gramming the expenditure of these funds on pro- back on the subject requested did not yield the that establishes the relationship between the grams to effectively serve their membership as significant input needed to begin an effective dis- Section and the national ASCE organization they were intended. Instead it would appear that cussion in a Board meeting. The Board members through its Committee on Government Affairs. the surplus funds are being held indefinitely in were asked to give the subject some thought and This MOE establishes the process by which the some branch reserves. It was decided that when provide the needed feedback before the next Section will take the initiative to select a candi- the Section’s surplus funds to be disbursed have scheduled Board meeting. date for the ASCE appointed member to the nom- been determined, the branches — to receive the Some of the most important issues that the inating committee for the members of the disbursement — will be requested to present Section needs to resolve to more effectively exe- Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection Authority their plans to expend the disbursements consis- cute its business that is essentially to effectively — East and the Southeast Louisiana Flood tent with their intent. Part of these plans will serve its members are: Protection Authority — West Bank subject to the include the plans for the immediate use or the ¥ providing clarity to the issues through clear- approval of the Committee on Government ly stated goals and programs with expected Affairs. (Continued on Page 18)
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Fellowships By E. Raymond DesOrmeaux, PE
The Section announced on August 14, 2006 DesOrmeaux who chaired the Section’s Tom Smith the distribution of money for graduate fellow- Hurricane Relief Committee. Assistant Executive Director ships from the Hurricane Relief Fund to the uni- We on staff appreciate you all and General Counsel versities in the Section and their eligible gradu- including us in this very worthwhile ate students who were affected by Hurricanes project. We were proud to be able to As the memorandums of understanding con- Katrina and Rita. Representatives from each of help, and the real thanks goes to you, cerning the administration of the graduate fel- the recipient universities were present for the Tim, Norma Jean and the rest of the vol- lowships were being executed by the officials of brief ceremony and the presentation of the funds unteer leadership ... who have pulled the participating universities prior to this cere- during the Section Board meeting in Baton together during difficult times to do this. mony, each of the university deans of engineer- Rouge August 11, 2006. These fellowships were I am not sure if anyone knows how hard ing and/or civil engineering department chairs incorrectly referred to as scholarships in an ear- you have worked on this project, but it is unanimously expressed appreciation on behalf of lier article titled “Scholarships Announced.” very gratifying to see the fruits of your their universities. They also acknowledged the On being advised of the news, Tom Smith, labor for the benefit of the profession, ASCE for its leadership in the timely commit- the member of the ASCE headquarters staff that the ASCE, the Louisiana Section and I ment of resources and assistance to the profes- had been very instrumental in helping the am sure some very grateful students. sion and to higher education particularly in terms Section develop the plans to award the graduate Congratulations and thanks again for of the direct assistance to their students. scholarships from the Hurricane Relief Fund that your dedication and leadership. Best had accumulated, sent this note to Ray regards.
Pictured from the left are Bill Sewell, Norma Jean Mattei, Ray Pictured from the left are Yvette Weatherton, Patrick Carriere, Ray DesOrmeaux, Kim Garlington and Tim Ruppert as Ray DesOrmeaux pres- DesOrmeaux, Kim Garlington and Charles Eustis as Ray DesOrmeaux ents to Associate Professor Norma Jean Mattei the Section’s contribution to presents to Civil and Environmental Department Chair Patrick Carriere the the University of New Orleans graduate fellowship. Section’s contribution to the Southern University graduate fellowship.
Pictured from the left are Roy Wagenspack, Stephen Cai, Ray DesOrmeaux Pictured from the left are Dean of Engineering Mark Zappi, Ray and Kim Garlington as Ray DesOrmeaux presents to Assistant Professor DesOrmeaux, Ray Authement and John Landry as Ray DesOrmeaux pres- Steven Cai the Section’s contribution to the Louisiana State University ents to University President Ray Authement the Section’s contribution to the graduate fellowship. University of Louisiana at Lafayette graduate fellowship.
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Section Board installed The Section Board of Directors was installed Arnaud’s Restaurant in the French Quarter. Officers: during the Section Annual Meeting and banquet The Board for the 2006-2007 administrative ¥ Timothy M. Ruppert, PE, President hosted by the New Orleans Branch in September. year was elected earlier in March during the ¥ E.R. DesOrmeaux, PE, President-Elect This event was held the evening following the Section Annual Spring Meeting hosted by the ¥ Ali M. Mustapha, PE, Vice President conclusion of the Louisiana Civil Engineering Baton Rouge Branch in Baton Rouge. Thomas ¥ Christopher P. Knotts, PE, Secretary- Conference and Show sponsored by the New L. Jackson, Past President of the national ASCE, Treasurer Orleans Branch and The Louisiana Chapter of presided over the installation ceremony for the ¥ Kim M. Garlington, PE, Past President the American Concrete Institute. The Annual Section and the New Orleans Branch Boards of Meeting and banquet usually hosted in one of the Directors. The 2006-2007 Section Board of Directors-at-Large: local country clubs was hosted in the historic Directors are ¥ André M. Rodrigue, PE ¥ Kurt M. Nixon, PE ¥ Christopher G. Humphreys, PE ¥ Dax A. Douet, PE Branch Directors: ¥ M. Jamal Khattak, PE, Acadiana ¥ Brant B. Richard, PE, Baton Rouge ¥ Christopher L. Sanchez, PE, New Orleans ¥ Elba U. Hamilton, EI, Shreveport Assigned Branch Directors: ¥ Daniel L. Bolinger, PE, New Orleans ¥ André M. Rodrigue, PE, Baton Rouge There were two awards presented during the Annual Meeting. Waldemar S. Nelson, PE, was posthumously named to the Section’s Wall of Fame and E. R. DesOrmeaux, PE, was awarded the President’s Medal by President Kim M.
Tim Ruppert Ray DesOrmeaux (Continued on Page 18)
Ali M. Mustapha Chris Knotts Kim Garlington Andre Rodrigue
Kurt Nixon Chris Humphreys Dax Douet Daniel Bolinger
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Opportunity: Congressional Fly-In By Kurt M. Nixon, PE I had the privilege of representing our possessed in the civil engineering community is congressional delegation the legislation being Section at the ASCE national Congressional Fly- intimately related to many important governing emphasized by the ASCE during its policy week. In March 29-30, 2006. If you are not familiar issues and the resulting laws. How well the civil For me, this was a wonderful opportunity to rep- with this program, the ASCE national has been engineering community participates in the law- resent the Section, and learn important political sponsoring the Annual Leadership Training in making process can significantly affect the qual- skills and appreciate their value to civil engi- Government Relations Program in Washington, ity of the policy and the related decision making neers. I was very impressed by how much time DC, referred to as the Fly-In, for 6 years. It is a process. Therefore, any hesitancy or reluctance the members of our congressional delegation and way for members and leaders of the ASCE to of the civil engineering community to effective- their respective staff members spent with us dis- develop valuable skills in government relations ly participate in the lawmaking process is a detri- cussing the issues and the thoughtfulness of the and gain personal experience in influencing pol- ment that must surely be overcome. It is some- questions they asked in the process. icy during the lawmaking process. thing that I believe we — as responsible civil It was definitely a significant learning expe- The training began with Brian Pallasch, engineers — can easily affect to the benefit of rience for me in how the policy development Director of the ASCE Government Relations both our profession and society as a whole. process works in lawmaking and how we as civil Program and a full time lobbyist for the ASCE, The training culminated with a hands-on engineers can become involved and influential in giving the Fly-In participants an overview of the opportunity for each of the Fly-In participants to that process. The ASCE Government Relations legislation that ASCE was emphasizing during visit with the Senators and Representatives from staff did a superb job in preparing the Fly-In par- its policy week. These issues included the their individual state’s congressional delegation. ticipants and arranging for the visits with their renewal of the Dam Safety and Security Act of It gave us the opportunity to discuss with our respective congressional delegations in a way 2002 (HR 4981) that established the National that no prior knowledge or experience was Dam Safety Program, and the consideration of a required. new law to create a similar program, the National Therefore, I strongly recommend the Levee Safety Program Act (HR 4650). It turns Congressional Fly-In to the Section member who out that the bill, HR 4650, was a very hot item is interested in personally becoming an effective particularly among the Louisiana delegation, participant — or a more effective participant — many of whom are co-sponsors. As a follow up in the national, state and/or local lawmaking to the status of HR 4650, it is stalled and has yet processes. I believe the training and the first- to be considered by the House. hand experience that I gained by participating in After the legislative overview was presented this Congressional Fly-In will be invaluable to by Pallasch, he and Leslie Nolen, Senior anyone in achieving this goal. If this is your Manager in the ASCE Government Relations interest, I urge you to contact someone in the Program, led the Fly-In participants in a seminar Section’s elected leadership to express your on methods of being active in engineering policy interest and desire to be considered to represent issues at the local government level. The meth- the Section during the next scheduled Fly-In. ods presented where not revolutionary or earth- ______shattering but common sense ideas. They Editor’s note: A principal goal of the included such mundane things as Congressional Fly-In is to develop a cadre of ¥ writing letters grassroots ASCE members who will effectively ¥ making phone calls and participate and facilitate the effective participa- ¥ making personal visits. tion of others in the lawmaking processes. Most importantly, the ASCE government Through sharing his Fly-In experience here, Kurt relations staff did a great job of demonstrating Kurt Nixon (left) visits with Louisiana Nixon partially contributes to this goal and jus- how effective these methods actually are in influ- Congressman Jim McCrery to discuss pending tifies the investment that was made in his train- encing policy. It was emphasized quite effec- federal legislation as part of the ASCE ing. For this and his continuing service to our tively that the breadth and depth of knowledge Congressional Fly-In program. profession we should be truly grateful.
(Continued from Page 15) dedication and scheduled use of the funds. ASCE members assigned to the Section geo- Account are still not accessible to the Section. Concern was expressed over the lack of par- graphically closer to a branch center. It was Access to these funds has been denied since ticipation in the Section that was indicated from noted that the Lake Charles area, the next largest 2003 due to a discontinuity in the membership of the rate — near 50 percent — of the ASCE mem- area after the Shreveport Branch, was previously the Board when the individual officer with bers who choose to pay their volunteer Section considered infeasible as a branch. authorized access resigned and moved out of dues. There were several situations that could It was noted that the immediate urban popu- state. The paperwork for the authorization for explain the apparent lack of interest expressed by lation of Shreveport and Bossier City in the the current Board members to gain access of the ASCE members assigned to the Section and Shreveport Branch was apparently not adequate these accounts was completed but never filed demonstrate it by not paying their section dues. to easily maintain a roster of newly minted offi- with the respective investment account adminis- They are the ASCE members who: cers sufficient to sustain its Board of Directors trators. ¥ live in the remote parishes far from the and its appointed leadership. It had previously densely populated center of the branches been observed that the Lake Charles Chapter of ¥ participate only in national ASCE committee the Louisiana Engineering Society that is proba- (Continued from Page 17) activities and programs. bly much larger in membership than a Lake ¥ maintain their membership for resume pur- Charles Branch of the ASCE would be is sus- Garlington, PE, for his exceptional service to the poses only. tained only by several of its perennially active Section as its Vice President during the 2005- ¥ do not need or seek the values that Section leaders being willing to regularly recycle them- 2006 administrative year. This is an award given membership offers selves as officers on its Board. by and at the discretion of the Section Presidents There was further discussion about the pos- The Section’s more than $40,000 in invest- to acknowledge the service of the individual who sibility of establishing additional, smaller ment accounts in the Fidelity Fund, Spartan in their estimate served exceptionally in the branches that would bring the remotely located Money Market and Spartan Market 500 Index Section’s leadership during their administration.
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Changing directions
Recent email communications between ness and to facilitate committee functions and will be effectively identified and implemented by Section leaders may be signaling a planned input through a chair that is also a member of the negotiating their scope and the annual expected change in the future character of the Section Board. achievements between the Board and the leadership and in the way it views its business — The actual experience has been almost the appointed committee chair/members. Further, popularly referred to in management literature as exact opposite of the original expectations. The for each committee at least one officer will agree a paradigm shift. Current President Tim Ruppert problem appears to be quite basic. There has not to serve as its champion encouraging, tracking and the President-Elect, Ray DesOrmeaux, have been a spontaneously precipitated and evolving and reporting its progress, facilitating its needs had discussions about how to begin what they see strategic plan that defines and regularly revisits and representing its cause to the Board. as a needed redirection of the Section’s leader- the informal vision, mission, goals and the relat- Through this active awareness, it is hoped ship and its related management. To succeed, ed objectives around which the Section’s priori- that the Section leadership will get on a steep their plans include how the planned redirection if ties and programs are developed and pursued by learning curve to more effective committee ser- effective may be given future impetus to be its leadership. The close association of the vice stimulated through clarified responsibilities ongoing and more effective in the management appointed (committee) and elected leaders of the and effective leadership provided by the Board. and leadership of the Section. Section being one and the same and in regular In this hothouse environment, program progress An ongoing observation and concern among attendance at board meetings did not naturally should be more measurable and regularly moni- the Section’s recent leadership has been the rela- precipitate planning with priorities and effective tored with few surprises relative to success or tive decline and near disappearance of the programs. failure. Based on the Section’s ongoing pro- Section’s standing and ad hoc committee activi- A more aggressive, formal and intentional grams and priorities identified by each new ties. Over 15 years ago, the Section Board of effort appears to be necessary. This effort will be administration, decisions can be made on Directors was increased by 4 directors-at-large expedited by the Board either acting as a com- whether to continue programs, try again or redi- with the intention to bring active and capable mittee of the whole or on the recommendation of rect efforts more productively based on changed section members into the Section elected leader- a strategic planning committee. The Board will priorities and past performance. For continuing ship and service thereby creating a potential pool attempt to go through a formal planning process programs, strong attempts should be made to for future Section officers. An ulterior motive and future plan updating cycles in successive retain the ongoing services of the effective com- was to assign the Section’s standing and ad hoc years to clarify and focus its priorities and pro- mittee chairs/members to sustain the momentum committee responsibilities to these directors-at- grams. In doing this, it is hoped that the of the previous success and avoid retooling. large as a means to demonstrate their effective- Section’s high priorities and related programs
Flood protection authorities — net surfing— On September 30 Louisiana’s voters consid- the two authorities. If you are interested in con- ASCE national organization: ered adopting the constitutional amendments tributing in the candidate search, please feel free http://www.asce.org that will enable the previously passed legislation to contact your Section of branch leadership. that establishes the Southeast Louisiana Flood The ASCE will have representation on the nom- Note: Most ASCE-related pages can also be Protection Authority — East and the Southeast inating committee. addressed through links at this website. All Louisiana Flood Protection Authority — West The organization of the authorities and the section and branch officers are listed at: Bank and overwhelmingly passed the first 3 pro- qualifications/eligibility for candidates for nom- http://www.asce.org/gsd/localofficers posed amendments covering the flood protection ination that includes licensed engineers and ASCE Acadiana Branch: authorities. In anticipation and expectation that related professionals is spelled out in Act 1 of the http://www.asceacadiana.net the voters would adopt the amendments, the First Extraordinary Session, 2006. The Act Section leadership begins a Section-wide search repeals, or amends and reenacts portions of Title ASCE Baton Rouge Branch: for qualified candidates to be considered by the 38, 42 and 49 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes. http://branches.asce.org/batonrouge/ nominating committee to fill the 18 positions of index.htm ASCE New Orleans Branch: - Career Benchmarks - http://www.asceno.org Louisiana Tech ASCE Student Chapter: Section members Allison K. Boucvalt, PE, bers of the ASCE. A copy of this issue of the http://www.latech.edu/tech/orgs/asce/ Stephen W. Buskie, PE, Naveen Chillara, PE, journal is sent to them as an informal introduc- Robert J. Delaune Jr., PE, Natalie J. Forbes, tion to the Section. If any of them wish to join UNO ASCE Student Chapter: PE, Clay E. Gottschalck, PE, and Christopher and/or find out more about the ASCE, they are http://www.uno/~engr/asce/asce.html W. Normand, PE, recently earned their profes- hereby invited to visit the ASCE national web- ULL ASCE Student Chapter: sional engineering license in Louisiana. If you site, http://www.asce.org. If you are in contact http://www.engr.usl.edu/cive are in contact with any of these engineers, please with any of these engineers, please consider for- offer your congratulations on their accomplish- mally introducing them to the Section by inviting LSU ASCE Student Chapter: ment. them to attend a branch meeting as your guest. http://www.ce.lsu.edu/~asce Louisiana residents Marshall L. Babin, PE, ______ASCE Louisiana Section: John L. Ball, PE, Caryn E. Benjamin, PE, Editor’s note: There are three disciplines http://www.lasce.org Anthony J. Bertucci, PE, Jason D. Cardon, that are licensed by the Louisiana Professional PE, Nicholas I. Chachere, PE, Micah J. Engineering and Land Surveying Board and that Louisiana Engineering Society: Crochet, PE, Katrinna O. Durbin, PE, Julie R. may be considered closely related to civil engi- http://www.les-state.org Fourrier, PE, Bill R. Irwin, PE, Theodore A. neering. They are the environmental, structural Louisiana Professional Engineering and Land Johnson, PE, Charles M. Munley, Jr., PE, and architectural engineering disciplines. As of Surveying Board: Scott M. Perrien, PE, Brian S. Smith, PE, June 2006, the active engineering licenses con- http://www.lapels.com Travis G. Smith, PE, Fang-Fu Tang, PE, ferred by the Board were approximately 5937 in Michael L. Thompson, PE, and Xuyong Wang, civil, 741 in environmental, 58 in structural and PE, recently earned their professional engineer- 8 in architectural. ing license in Louisiana and they are not mem-
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Taxing consequences: What to do with a large IRA that has been inherited or accumulated By Thomas R. Thurmond At some point you may come into a large ment plan, you may consider rolling the account You should also consider possible tax law sum of money or property as the beneficiary of a balance into an IRA. You may have increased changes. deceased IRA holder or from a distribution to flexibility with your investment options and 3 The tax laws are complex and subject to you as a retirement plan participant. withdrawals. Be sure to initiate a direct rollover change. This information is based upon current Understanding the tax consequences may prove of these assets from your employer’s retirement federal tax rules in effect at the time this was helpful. plan or mandatory withholding of 20 percent of written. the distribution may apply for income taxes. ______IRA beneficiary Thomas R. Thurmond, Senior Vice President, As an IRA beneficiary you have several For more information Wealth Advisor with Morgan Stanley in New options: Contact us about receiving an in-depth Orleans, Louisiana. He may be contacted by e- ¥ Take a lump-sum distribution of the IRA retirement review. We can also help you with an mail at [email protected] now.1 Lump sums from traditional IRAs are inherited IRA or a lump-sum retirement plan dis- or by telephone at (504)587-9669 or (800)659- generally subject to income tax, except for tribution.3 Be sure to consult a competent tax 0009. Any particular investment should be ana- the amount of nondeductible contributions professional as well. lyzed based on its terms and risks as they may made to the IRA, while Roth IRA distribu- ______relate to your circumstances and objectives. tions may be free from taxation. 1 Withdrawals from a traditional IRA generally Information and data in this article were ¥ Surviving spouse beneficiaries may treat an are subject to ordinary income taxes. obtained from sources considered reliable and IRA received as a beneficiary as his or her Withdrawals from a traditional IRA or Roth IRA published for general information and educa- 1 own and name new beneficiaries to stretch prior to age 59 ⁄2 may be subject to a 10 percent tional purposes. Their accuracy or completeness the IRA to subsequent generations.2 federal penalty. Exceptions apply, including the is not guaranteed and the giving of the same is ¥ Non-spouse beneficiaries may take annual exception for withdrawals taken from an account not an offer or solicitation to sell or buy any required minimum distributions over their for an owner’s death. Roth IRA withdrawals may securities or commodities or participate in any own life expectancies and name a benefici- be income tax-free under certain conditions. trading strategy. Investments and services are ary to stretch out their remaining IRA bal- Required minimum distributions from traditional offered through Morgan Stanley DW Inc., mem- ance. and Roth IRAs must begin by December 31 of the ber SIPC. Morgan Stanley does not render ¥ Beneficiaries can withdraw the entire IRA year after the IRA owner’s death, with exceptions advice on tax or tax-accounting matters to balance at any time.1 Beneficiaries may take that apply if the surviving spouse is the sole ben- clients. This material was not intended or writ- more than the minimum required amount eficiary. ten to be used, and it cannot be used by any tax- from the IRA at any time. 2 A stretch IRA’s goal is to extend the period of payer, for the purpose of avoiding penalties that tax-deferred earnings beyond the lifetime of the may be imposed on the taxpayer under U. S. fed- Retirement plan lump sums person who created the account. It may not be eral tax laws. Consult your tax or legal advisers When the time comes to decide what to do appropriate for a person who will need the before making any tax- or law-related investment with your distribution from an employer’s retire- money for retirement or short-term expenses. decisions. Section website The development of the Section website, be very efficient, very fast and relatively inex- One branch in the Louisiana Section is www.lasce.org, is belatedly but well under way pensive compared to other means of communi- already using mass email as its exclusive form of and rapidly maturing. The front page of this cating and transacting business. More reliance communication with its general membership for issue is framed with an early draft of the Section on web access for communication will likely be meeting notices and newsletters. It no longer website page redesign. If you have not visited a continuing trend throughout the ASCE and for mails printed matter to members via the U.S. the site in recent months, please do. And if you this reason it is very important for you as an Postal Service. As part of this trend, you have identify a feature that is not present or not well ASCE member to keep your email address as surely noticed that in the recent national elec- developed that would be an asset to you, please active and current as your mailing address. You tions, alternative balloting on the web is offered send your comments to Jim Porter (jim- may be one of the over 300 Section members to the voting ASCE members. Similarly, an [email protected]) or Ray DesOrmeaux with no email address in your current contact alternative registration can be transacted on the ([email protected]). One particular fea- information or one of the estimated 200 Section web for most of the ASCE meetings and contin- ture that is planned to be used regularly in the members with an inactive email address listed. uing education seminars. near future by the Section and is already being Please check your email address. If your email To minimize the impact on some Section used by some branches is mass email. Mass address is not current, you may be substantially members who may have limited computer email will be used to inform Section members of limiting the effectiveness of your current and resources or who have complained and feel Section news and information, and of meeting surely your future communications with the imposed upon by receiving emails with volumi- opportunities on a more real time basis. ASCE. nous messages and/or with large attachments As web access becomes more ubiquitous Your membership contact information can such as the .pdf files of newsletters, the Section among the ASCE membership, the web can be be checked and updated only at the national plans at this time to send only very brief sum- expected to become a — if not the — primary level. This is accomplished most easily by mary email messages. The details for the brief means of communication. This will lead to the reviewing and updating your contact information summaries provided in the email message will national/section/branch websites becoming the on the national ASCE website www.asce.org — be referenced through one or more URLs in the primary means for the ASCE membership to the same way you can update your mailing same message for the members who may be communicate in and with the ASCE organization address and any other contact information. interested. The URLs will provide direct access structure and to make queries to keep themselves Membership contact information may also be to the details if and when a member wishes. informed. updated by the alternative means of calling the The typical experience appears to indicate ASCE national headquarters toll free at that email and website communications tend to (800)548-2723.
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Nominating committee position filled The national ASCE organization endorsed flood protection system that failed during al ASCE organization. In the process, the name the recommendation of Jerome M. (Jerry) Hurricane Katrina. The revised state statutes that of the individual selected by the Section Board as Klier, PE, to serve as the ASCE appointed mem- establish the nominating committee to provide a the recommendation of the Section is submitted ber of the nominating committee that will nomi- qualified slate of nominees for the Governor’s to and received by the ASCE Committee on nate the members who will serve on the consideration for appointment were recently Government Affairs for its review and considera- Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection Authority encoded into Louisiana Law when voters tion for approval. Once approved, the ASCE Ð East, and the Southeast Louisiana Flood approved the enabling amendments to the State appointment is submitted by the ASCE to the Protection Authority Ð West Bank. Jerry’s selec- Constitution. The Board acted early to make its State of Louisiana. tion as the Section’s recommendation was made selection so that any unexpected delays in the Notification of the endorsement of Jerry by the Section Board of Directors during its reg- process would be less likely to affect the repre- Klier as the ASCE appointment to the nominat- ular October meeting. sentation of the ASCE on the nominating com- ing committee came to the Section October 25, The statutes revised by act of the Louisiana mittee or delay the important business at hand. 2006 via email message. The image of the letter Legislature to form Southeast Louisiana Flood Klier’s selection was done in conjunction from the ASCE headquarters to Renee F. Free, Protection Authorities replace the old levee with the process established by a memorandum Deputy Undersecretary of the office of the boards that were considered a significant part of of understanding that established the required Louisiana Secretary of State, notifying her of the the problems that caused the deficiencies in the relationship between the Section and the nation- appointment was attached to the email.
(Continued from Page 13) ¥ 27 April 2006 The World Trade Center It will also remain the Structures Committee of Roussel, Jr., PE, died in September 2006. Investigation: Analysis and the Branch. After over 2 years of effort the Roussel was a member of the Executive Recommendations: Dr. Fahim Sadek from bylaws of the Committee were revised to change Committee from its inception. Another NIST, Washington, DC, presented the rec- the name of the organization to the ASCE-SEI Executive Committee member, Pramod M. Patel, ommendations from the investigations of New Orleans Chapter. Under the revised charter PE, moved to Houston, Texas in July. The The World Trade Center collapse. This was the Committee can freely serve all ASCE and Committee wishes him all the best. The services the Annual David Hunter Lecture. SEI Members. of both these gentlemen and their contributions ¥ 6 June 2006 New Orleans Levee Failure: The ASCE Institutes were formed to make it to our community will be missed. A new mem- Gordon P. Boutwell, Jr., PE, from Baton possible for a non-civil engineer professionals to ber, Jayant S. (Jay) Jani, PE, who is an accom- Rouge presented the facts from the participate in the ASCE through its institutes. plished consultant and a social volunteer, has Investigation Committee Report about the Similarly, a person without a civil engineering been added to the Executive Committee. New Orleans Levee Failures during degree and with expertise in the field of structur- The Structures Committee elected new lead- Hurricane Katrina. A record more than 150 al engineering can participate as a member of the ership for the 2006-07 administrative year. They members attended this seminar. ASCE-SEI New Orleans Chapter. The new are ¥ 17 August 2006 Achieving Flood-Resistant change will make it possible to serve the interests ¥ James R. Danner, Jr., PE, Chairman Design Seminar: Chris Jones from North of a larger group of members interested in — ¥ James R. Danner, Jr., PE, Treasurer Carolina gave a timely seminar about ways and/or associated with — the field of structural ¥ Thomas M. Smith, PE, Vice Chairman and to design structures that will be flood resist- engineering. From now on the operations steer- ¥ Mark H. Gonski, PE, Editor ant. ing committee in the ASCE-SEI New Orleans ¥ 26 October 2006 Sheet Pile Design Chapter will be referred to as its Executive (Continued from Page 14) Seminar (8 Hours): Dr. Richard Hartman Committee. from New Jersey will present an 8-hour sem- All seminars are held at the University of ¥ The Deep South Conference of student inar on sheet pile design. A handout of New Orleans. Seminar dates, pertinent informa- chapters is being hosted by the Chapter design examples will be part of this seminar. tion, and registration can be found posted on the (March 22-25th). For more information or if The seminar is a joint effort with the Joint Branch website at www.ascceno.org. You may you would like to be a sponsor please con- Committee for Continuing Education and L. add your name to the mailing list of the tact Mary Lou Schwaller at chair@deep- J. Foster and Co. Committee with an email request to Mark southconference.com or check out our con- ¥ 14 November 2006 Offshore Seminar: Gonski ([email protected]. ference website at www.deepsouthconfer- Jose Vasquez of Houston, Texas will present mil). The committee is always interested in new ence.com. the Annual Offshore Seminar on Soft Berth topics and speakers. Your recommendations for ¥ Hacker’s Classic Golf at Tech’s golf course. concept. topics and speakers can be sent to Jim Danner The annual Chapter fund-raiser will be ¥ 7 December 2006 Are you using ASCE- [email protected]. scheduled for early May. Please look for SEI 07/05 Correctly for Wind Design?: Dr The Committee has also continued its sup- announcements/flyers as plans mature. For Frank Bernardo from Florida will present the port of the MATHCOUNTS competition and the more information contact Michael Rister at ways to use ASCE-SEI 07/05 for wind regional science fairs. The Committee provided [email protected]. design. The new code has become very com- judges, monetary awards and donations to both. The ASCE student chapter is going strong, plex for normal use. Lessons learned from Committee member Norma Jean Mattei, PE, led by its officers practice in Florida will be part of the semi- organized the annual ASCE-sponsored outreach ¥ Nathan Linhardt, President nar. event at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage ¥ Michael Rister, Vice President Most of our committee members are back in Festival held at the Fairgrounds. The event is an ¥ Jim Ellingburg, Treasurer town as may be indicated by the number in atten- activity that attempts to foster an understanding ¥ Hailey Prince, Treasurer and dance during the recent seminars. The New in some aspects of civil engineering in younger ¥ William Watson, Marshall Orleans Levee Failure seminar attracted over 150 children. The Committee provided funds to and its committees members and other seminars are also being very University of New Orleans Student Chapter to ¥ Paul Will, Community Service Chair well attended. rent a truck to haul their concrete canoe to the ¥ Mary Lou Schwaller, Conference Chair The Structures Committee achieved another Deep South Conference competition because ¥ Brittney Rojas, Conference Vice Chair and milestone this year. Effective October 1, 2006 they lost their trailer during Hurricane Katrina. ¥ Rachel Hicks, Conference Vice Chair the Structures Committee became a local chapter One of the Executive Committee members For more information or if you’d like to meet of ASCE Structural Engineering Institute (SEI). and a prominent ASCE member, Herbert J. our student chapter please email Nathan Linhardt at [email protected].
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Editor’s Journal By James C. Porter, PE Getting from here to there
The aftermath al behavior that is not unique to the Corps but parameters and details for hurricane protection The national dialog regarding the technolog- extends profession-wide among civil engineers facilities that can provide resilience and mitigate ical integrity of the hurricane protection system in the United States. It is the tendency to par- damage under extreme flood conditions that in the New Orleans region after its partial but tially engineer systems and facilities — typically exceed their design capacity no matter how critical failure appears to follow a narrow and and indiscriminately depending on the desires improbable yet still possible. probably inappropriate criticism. By its very and instructions of the client. It is what may be A philosophical shortcoming in the culture nature, the legacy hurricane protection system in considered a narrow design/build focus with the and practice of civil engineering would appear to the New Orleans region was constructed, goal to facilitate only the expressed desires of the have led to some of the problems experienced enhanced, maintained and operated over genera- client. The resulting deficiencies of partial with the hurricane protection systems. It is the tions of technology applications with apparently design considerations from a facility’s comple- same shortcoming that led to the problems with little interim consideration for maintaining its tion on are typically ignored relative to profes- — and reassessment of — highway bridge engi- integrity assessment based on current technology sional assessment of operations and maintenance neering on the public road system in the United and conditions. However, much of the criticism until it either becomes obsolete, deficient or fails. States. It is the narrow design/build focus lead- — though definitely not all — appears to be The typical conditions of the facilities reported in ing to partially engineered facilities. This inade- based on a critique considering only current tech- the ASCE infrastructure report card and the com- quacy was clearly exposed by the 1967 collapse nology to explain the shortcomings and find fault plaints typically lodged by structural and geo- of the Silver Bridge across the Ohio River near with the original design. technical engineers related to the poor conditions Point Pleasant, West Virginia resulting in 46 The state of the technological integrity in their practice would appear to confirm this fatalities. assessment of the hurricane protection system in observation. The solution was a major philosophical the New Orleans region appears to have been Doctors increasingly don’t typically sit change in the practice of highway bridge engi- consistent — nonexistent — with what I believe around and wait for their patients to get ill to treat neering. It will hopefully be rediscovered and is a perceptual disconnect in the civil engineering their ailments. They are taking the initiative, rec- implemented for flood control systems and their community. This disconnect has long existed, ommending regular check-ups and advising their facilities. It is the application of current engi- still exists and can continue to lead to inadequate patients about diet and life-style choices that can neering technology not only to the initial design and failed engineered facilities of unknown cur- affect their health. Unprofessional design engi- and construction of facilities but to the ongoing rent character. It would appear to be a cultural neers with no initiative don’t advise their clients custodial functions — the routine engineering problem that is founded in the way civil engi- about design, construction, operations and main- assessment of the operations and maintenance neering is generally perceived, practiced and tenance issues that can result in costly premature practices over the life-cycle of the individual taught in the United States. deterioration and failure of their partially engi- facilities and in perpetuity for the entire system. neered facilities, and cause public health and/or When the Romans built public facilities with Professional behavior safety problems. As with the medicine model, the apparent intention that they would last indef- It would appear that the U.S. Army Corps of engineering services for design and construction initely they invested substantial resources and Engineers did a reasonably credible job of should include an assessment of anticipated materials to build facilities that survive in service explaining a significant shortcoming of its own. operations and maintenance as part of the routine today and sometimes seem to have thrived on In the past, it tended to salute and follow services provided. They should not be separate neglect. Some of their roads and bridges have Congressional dictates regarding the authoriza- on-demand services particularly relegated to a been in service for over 2000 years. By compar- tion of its projects without question no matter time after what are otherwise avoidable problems ison, the temporary nature of the American fron- what inherent engineering shortcomings may that manifest themselves. tier culture appears to have filtered into the con- have existed in those dictates. While this may be temporary philosophy for the engineering of its considered respectful professional military History infrastructure. Bridges and roads such as the behavior, it is neither appropriate nor responsible The history of the highway bridges on the original pavement on the Interstate system have behavior for a professional engineer or a profes- public road system of the United States provides been typically designed with the expectation of a sional engineering organization. what may be an insight into a parallel history of 20-year service life. This is an inexplicable lack The Corps appears to recognize it has a pro- — and future for — the New Orleans hurricane of forethought. Inappropriately, some relatively fessional engineering obligation that was always protection system. As such, it may provide an frail “engineered” facilities designed for a short there to provide responsible feedback concerning insight into the future opportunities for engi- service life continue in service well beyond it the engineering shortcomings in Congressionally neered operations and maintenance of the hurri- while there is typically no routine engineering authorized projects and thereby encourage cane protection systems and all other engineered assessment of their acceptability relative to the responsible modifications or at least a conscious systems and their facilities that have a similar ongoing operations and maintenance practices. public understanding and acceptance of the per- historical legacy. ceived shortcomings. Maintaining a current technological assess- Life-cycle management Conclusions drawn by early investigators ment of a facility including an estimate of its The balance sought in completely engineered assigning culpability in criticizing the engineer- resilience in failure if or when an unlikely failure facilities is found in what may be referred to as ing appeared to be unfounded. They appeared to event may occur are important concepts. They life-cycle management. This is where facilities be inappropriately extrapolated from the field are known and the failure of the hurricane pro- are designed and constructed for a realistic serv- investigations of the physical problems that tection system in the New Orleans region is a ice life that is supported with responsible engi- explained the failures, and evidence of possible direct result of a failure to systematically main- neering operations and maintenance practices errors in engineering and possible but not proven tain and respond to a current technological over the actual service life. Responsibly man- poor judgment. This served only to cause early assessment. Even the deficiencies in the original aged engineered facilities are operated and main- and unproductive finger pointing and defensive- design would have been discovered early on and tained consistently with how they were original- ness and reflects poorly on the otherwise high possibly corrected if a current technological ly engineered in design and construction or they integrity of the investigations. assessment had been maintained. In highway are operated and maintained consistently with an bridge structures for example, resilience is often engineering assessment of the actual operations Culture accomplished by structural redundancy and duc- and maintenance practices and the existing con- I believe that there is an inappropriate cultur- tility that will deter sudden collapse. There are ditions using current technology. In this envi- (Continued on Page 23)
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State highway system In his article titled “Louisiana still wants free program. exercise the leadership needed to resolve the ride” in The Advocate 8/6/06, columnist Will The perception that has been historically and problem of the clearly deficient highway funds. Sentell notes that frequently promoted by the local press that the The problem has transcended administrations Any bid to improve roads in Louisiana Louisiana DOTD is not competent to manage the resulting in a significant and predictably acceler- always seems to boil down to two facts: state highway system or its funds is not a reality. ating debilitation in the serviceability of the state ¥ The need is there. However, it is being used as an illogical excuse highway system. ¥ The political will to pay for it is not. not to adequately fund the state’s highways. This political gridlock leads one to wonder if Sentell did his homework noting that Louisiana DOTD Secretary Bradberry, who has the transportation public awareness campaign Louisiana’s current $12 billion backlog in high- been struggling to overcome this perception, was being organized by an alliance of “stakeholders” way needs is growing at the rate of $300 million quoted as saying, “Running a better business is can convince the seemingly intractable Louisiana a year and that by 2009 the declining purchasing not going to get it.” The bottom line and the real- voters and their timorous representatives to act in power of Louisiana’s highway trust fund dollars ity, Sentell notes, is that their own best interest. These stakeholders — supported by state gasoline taxes will result in Highways are like other expensive issues in engineers and contractors — will benefit most the state not being able to match the federal Louisiana. Lots of voters want something from the increased highway funding they will funds available that provide 80 to 90 percent of for nothing. They want better roads but think espouse because their businesses and employ- the construction cost on the federal aid highway someone else should pay for them... (They) ment rely substantially on state highway engi- system in Louisiana. In 2002, then Chair of the have never gotten over the days when energy neering and construction work. The obvious, House Transportation Committee, Juba Diez, dollars paid for many state services. self-serving conflict of interest will not go unno- recognized this deficiency and advocated an 8 Sentell supports his observation by quoting ticed by savvy voters. However, what the stake- cents per gallon increase in the state gasoline tax. previous DOTD Secretary Movassaghi who said holders do have going for them is that they are He noted that “Something has to be done soon...” “I think it has to do with our culture. In the past articulate, responsible and influential citizens Of Louisiana’s 20 cents per gallon gasoline tax, we hardly paid for anything.” who are close to the situation and appear to the Louisiana Highway Trust Fund is supported Without substantial voter support, it is clear understand its realities, and they live here too. by 16 cents and the remaining 4 cents is a tem- that there is no collective will nor willingness in porary tax dedicated to the Louisiana TIMED Louisiana’s elected and appointed leadership to
(Continued from Page 22) ronment, each new generation of engineering the House, is credited with saying “All politics system and not the individual. The system is the technology is routinely applied to facilities sys- are local.” The same premise for good engineer- combined relationships between the individuals tem-wide by systematic uniform engineering ing is suggested here. Good — if not all — civil and/or the organizational components to accom- assessments of the integrity of the system and its engineering is also local especially that which plish the work. Organizational dysfunction is facilities. deals with unique local hydrological and geolog- found mostly in the dysfunctional relationships For a hurricane protection system and its ical or earth science issues that rely on local between the individuals and the organizational component facilities — as with any other engi- engineering experience and technology. components rather than in the work of the indi- neered system — every component would be Civil engineering practice and education do viduals where the blame for dysfunction is most subject to scheduled routine engineering mainte- not typically provide for or address the applica- often placed. Keeping the individuals and the nance inspections followed by an engineering tions required to support life-cycle management. functions of an organization in a state of flux due assessment of the operations and maintenance These applications include not only the techno- to regular reorganization for its own sake would practices using current technology and reflecting logical applications that provide but also those not appear to be helpful. the current conditions. This may mean that addi- that sustain the integrity of engineered systems Systems thinking is how the employee — the tional soil investigations will be required to sup- and facilities. The engineering technology that is lowest common denominator — in the organiza- port the current engineering assessment and cur- taught and generally practiced focuses almost tion visualizes things. For instance, rather than rent surveys of the cross sections of levees may exclusively on cookbook design and construction visualizing the overall work in the organization be needed to support another part of the engi- applications. The application of engineering as a near paralyzing, chaotic series of complex neering assessment. Such uniform and routine technology to the custodial functions of opera- interconnected functions, individuals visualize engineering assessments will reveal system defi- tions and maintenance is generally not taught, only how they and their particular work fits into ciencies and vulnerabilities based on current not appreciated and not practiced. I believe that the system and connects to other individuals and standards. This information would be the basis this can leave a huge hole in public health and their work in the system. The other important for objective system upgrade priorities and plan- safety that is uniquely the responsibility of the component of systems thinking is each individ- ning, and system effectiveness reports. unassuming civil engineer. ual focuses and works toward the same now The National Levee Safety Program Act pro- banal goal — serving the customer. Experience posed by HR 4650 would require the Corps of Systems thinking demonstrates that enabled and facilitated systems Engineers to inspect and assess all levees for the After having been employed continuously by thinking by individual employees spontaneously purpose of protecting human life and property. It the same government organization for over 40 leads to increased profits and efficiency, and both is hoped that if this bill passes the implementing years, I have been through several reorganiza- employee and customer satisfaction. Experience rules will allow the Corps to delegate its inspec- tions under as many different guises and notions. also demonstrates that partial implementation of tion and assessment responsibilities to the local The one thing that never seems to change is the systems thinking is effective. As the familiar government organizations that manage the flood basic work and work relationships of the individ- lyrics goes, “Who can ask for anything more...” control systems while it would retain the respon- uals in — and basic components of — the organ- Dubbing the opposite of systems thinking as sibility for establishing policy and technological ization other than in response to usually external, chaotic thinking (my term) is done here to distin- standards such as reliability-based flood analysis basic conditions imposed. In the meantime indi- guish the dynamics and results of the two forms standards and process enforcement. This would viduals and organizational components have of thinking and acting. If individuals, or more allow the talent for responsible engineering been moved logically, illogically; helter-skelter particularly the leadership of an organization, are maintenance and operation to exist in the organ- all over creation with little consequence other prone to chaotic thinking, they perceive the over- izations nearest to the problems and in the great- than causing initial confusion, frustration and all work as a chaotic series of complex intercon- est need of the sophistication to be a viable par- anger. nected functions. The only possible solution ticipant in the hurricane protection process. One consequential observation is that most Thomas P. “Tip” O’Neill, Jr., former Speaker of of the problems in an organization come from the (Continued on Page 24)
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(Continued from Page 9) discussing the key structural aspects of the tremendous feat to accomplish. Most of the sub- ¥ Robert W. Jacobsen, PE, President-Elect recently completed Upper West Tiger Stadium surface foundation work was completed during ¥ William H. Wall, PE, Vice President project, and the challenges encountered during the 2004 football season and the required demo- ¥ Jeffrey L. Duplantis, PE, Secretary- its design and construction and with the time lition began at its conclusion. Then the race was Treasurer constraints. Calvin, the lead structural engineer on to have the new upper deck operational for the ¥ Thomas T. Roberts, PE, Past President and engineer of record of this high profile project 2005 football season. No thanks to Hurricane ¥ Clinton S. Willson, PE, Director for the Tiger Athletic Foundation, also led a Katrina, this project was completed and opera- ¥ Adam M. Smith, EI, Director walking tour of the project for the 40 branch and tional for the first home game of the 2005 foot- ¥ Rudolph A. Simoneaux, III, EI, Associate student chapter members present. ball season. Director One of the main challenges, Calvin The members of the Branch Board of In closing, I am very excited about serving as explained, was to have the project completed Directors for the 2006-2007 administrative year your Branch President and look forward to the between football seasons. This had never been are challenges as well as being your representative. done in the United States and definitely a ¥ Brant B. Richard, PE, President
(Continued from Page 23) would appear to be for the most enlightened and the process, the local levee boards should devel- of 2006 offers some important new opportunities intelligent — the leadership with a perception of op some technological sophistication and pro- though the final version did descend into a rather the big picture — to carefully study the complex vide services to the process to become part of the byzantine organization typical of Louisiana poli- work of the organization and solve the efficiency process and a real partner. It would appear that tics. Four regions are established including 2 and productivity problems from the top-down. only then can the opportunity for systems think- new authorities and 2 districts that include 4 This is typically done by making a quick-fix from ing exist and then be enabled between the partic- existing levee boards in each. The 2 new author- an educated guess or a wild stab in the dark. It is ipating organizations to promote and act on the ities — the Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection a decision to maybe downsize this or to reorgan- effectiveness of their relationship leading to the Authority-East and - West Bank — will be head- ize that... continuous improvement of the hurricane protec- ed by a board of commissioners. Immediately following World War II corpo- tion systems. The authorities provide a real opportunity to rate America was so inefficient that nearly any effectively guide the competent development, reasonably rational quick-fix worked at least Mixing politics and technology operations and maintenance of the hurricane pro- modestly well or temporarily validating its prac- System decisions must be engineering-based tection systems via commissioners who are tice. Now that corporate America is more trim, and intelligently developed. The Bureau of required to be mostly knowledgeable profession- quick-fixes generally do not work and they usu- Public Roads, later the Federal Highway als including experienced engineers who should ally make things worse. Administration, recognized the value of the long- understand the need for a professional staff. The Systems thinking is founded mostly in the term, corporate memory of the technologically ringer in the deal may be that the authorities and long-established principles developed by W. sophisticated state highway agency and its value districts are all under the purely political Coastal Edwards Deming that were implemented by the to the technological assessment of bridges. Protection and Restoration Authority that could Japanese automobile industry following World Otherwise, an unsophisticated owner/operator easily eviscerate these subordinate authorities by War II. Their application and ongoing success to levee board — one having no depth of techno- undermining their best efforts. The end results this day cannot be denied. In fact, it is no acci- logical understanding and no comprehensive could easily be no different than that produced dent that systems thinking is referred to as the assessment of its system and its individual facil- by the parochial levee boards of the past. Toyota model. Deming espoused that no one ities — cannot competently participate in the Another thing that can continue to plague the knows an individual’s job better than the individ- operation and maintenance of a hurricane protec- process of providing effective hurricane protec- ual that does it. Given systems thinking and edu- tion system. Historically, the custodian organi- tion systems is the ineffective and often cation and empowerment of the individual to zation like the south Louisiana levee board has estranged relationships between local, state and institute and measure local improvements in col- been an unsophisticated, counterproductive par- federal politicians, engineers and entities. If his- laboration with the other employees whose work ticipant believing that politics and not engineer- tory is any indication, it is reasonable to expect is connected, Deming’s idea becomes a powerful ing drive effective decisions. This validates the that in Louisiana the political appointments will organization-wide engine for continuous conclusion of the aphorism, “If the only tool you not necessarily be made as an investment in the improvement. With the implementation of sys- have is a hammer, all problems look like nails.” interest of the public or in the intelligent man- tems thinking, continuous improvement — Ongoing systems development does not agement of safe hurricane protection systems. another Deming idea — spontaneously breaks appear to be an appropriate function for tempo- The new mix of politicians and engineers out organization-wide without the need of new rary contract engineering services because the overseeing the authorities does open the opportu- staff or expensive consultants. Intelligent down- collaborative support of system decisions nity to build a responsible, technologically sizing, redefining and redirecting the work focus- requires historical knowledge and relationships sophisticated, custodial organization that can set ing on — and being consistent with — customer that are not appropriate to the nature and scope of the course for competent hurricane protection service; and simultaneous employee satisfaction short-term contracts. Competent system deci- systems in south Louisiana. Technological are the expected outcomes. sions are the natural product of the long-term sophistication can provide the organization with A corollary to systems thinking applied to corporate memory of a sophisticated, responsible the credentials and the respect to become a com- individual employees is that it can be applied to custodian or owner/operator supported by a com- petent stakeholder in the development, operation the organizational component and its relationship prehensive assessment of the system and its facil- and maintenance of safe hurricane protection with other components and to the organization ities. As a sophisticated client, the owner/opera- systems. This changed dynamic should also pro- and its relationship with other organizations. In tor can competently participate in the administra- vide the opportunity to implement systems think- each case, promoting and acting on the effective- tion of the design and construction contract ser- ing enabling effective relationships between the ness of the relationship by systems thinking is a vices defining scope, satisfying system authorities and the Corps that heretofore were key to continuous improvement. In this sense, needs/budget and providing consistency in per- dysfunctional. With any success, systems think- the local levee boards or their successor organi- formance from one contract to the next. ing can become contagious among the most zations have to become participants in an effec- The reorganization of the levee board sys- skeptical stakeholders as has been experienced tive relationship with the Corps in providing tems by the Louisiana Legislature through the previously and thereby serve Louisiana’s citizens effective hurricane protection systems. Rather initiative of Senator Boasso’s Senate Bill 8 well. than providing their historical political content to became Act 1 of the First Extraordinary Session
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Figure 4a (above). Sand boil at foot of London Avenue east side levee.
Figure 4b (left). Damaged I-Wall on east side of London Avenue north.
(Continued from Page 7) basically confined to flooding the undeveloped failures in the west wall of the IHNC. New pressure in the sand stratum which was woefully marsh north of the 40-Arpent Canal, and Orleans East flooded primarily from collapse of underestimated in the design. Chalmette and Meraux would have been spared the MRGO/ICWW levees on its Lake Borgne Immediately across the canal from the their ordeal. side. St. Bernard Parish flooded from the col- breach, small sand boils as shown in Figure 4a, Overall, breaching changed the flooding sit- lapse of the MRGO levee along its north border, and some heave of small buildings was observed uation from what would have been a nuisance and Plaquemines Parish flooded from overtop- at the toe of that levee. The I-wall on the levee with minor damage to a national disaster. It is ping of its Hurricane Back Levee. had moved several inches. From these observa- therefore imperative that the civil engineering tions, it is commonly agreed that had the west profession understand why these failures London Avenue Canal side not failed and relieved the surgewater pres- occurred. Several teams were formed to investi- It runs south about 2 miles from Lake sure, the damaged east wall at this location and gate the HPS failure. The largest and best-fund- Pontchartrain to the pump station. There was no shown in part in Figure 4b would have failed. ed ($19 million) was the USACE Interagency floodgate or other protection at the Lake end, due The South Breach occurred in the west wall Performance Evaluation Team (IPET). The to S&WB concerns and environmentalists’ law- just north of the Mirabeau Boulevard bridge. ASCE had 2 teams — the reconnaissance team suits. As the storm surge from the Lake shown in This failure was due to a sand boil that under- under Dr. Peter Nicholson from the University of Figure 3 reached about Elevation +11 feet, two mined the wall. The hydrostatic pressure under Hawaii and the External Review Panel (ERP) floodwalls at Elevation +14 feet collapsed. The the approximately 8 feet of soft organic clay lift- which reviewed the IPET findings. Governor North Breach — west side at Robert E. Lee ed it, allowing the sand to be carried from under Blanco commissioned the only local group, Boulevard — and the South Breach — east side the wall. The wall collapsed and tore into sever- Team Louisiana. The final major player was the at Mirabeau Avenue. Gus Cantrell, an ASCE al segments. One of the segments — monoliths National Science Foundation (NSF) Team, led by member, lived adjacent to the North Breach and — flipped over so that when the remedial work the Civil Engineering department of the saw it develop. Homes adjacent to the breaches began the sheetpile tips were pointed up and the University of California at Berkeley. Together, were damaged, but the whole area was flooded concrete wall was at the bottom. the authors served on 3 of the 4 independent and covered with sand eroded from the underly- It is very simple to calculate the factor of investigative groups. ing old beach ridge and carried by the torrent of safety against this type of failure. Figure 5 pres- water rushing through the breaches. This canal ents the geometry of the problem. Using statics Levees that Failed had been constructed into the Pine Island Ridge — the summation of vertical forces — the factor While failures of civil engineering works and, in fact, the borings made in the canal indi- of safety can be calculated by this simplified may be highly embarrassing to the design/con- cate it had been excavated into this buried beach analysis. There are some head losses between struction team, they also provide the profession deposit. The sand is covered by varying thick- the exposure of the sand in the channel and the with case histories. Proper analyses of these fail- ness of clay and marsh/peat deposits. sand in the land side toe of the levee. However, ures can lead to improved design methods and The North Breach failure occurred when the unless the result is very near the required value this is certainly the case with the Hurricane surge was rising and the water level at Elevation for stability, neglecting these head losses should Katrina event. A discussion of technically the +8 to +9 feet was below the design elevation of be adequate. If the stability is questionable with most important failures follows. They are pre- +14 feet. The cause of failure is attributed to lat- such a simple approach, a more rigorous analysis sented together with the direct reasons for them. eral movement of the levee and wall that allowed can be made. The failures that flooded the majority of the water to reach the ground surface with suffi- Had a calculation of this type been made dur- Metro New Orleans were those of the London cient velocity to carry the sand with it. Based on ing the design, the sheet piles would have been Canal that drains the Gentilly area and the 17th the lateral movement and the volume of sand designed as the original draft of the Design Street Canal that drains the Lakeview area. The observed at the site, the failure mechanism Memorandum had proposed and the failures Lower Ninth Ward and part of St. Bernard Parish described appears appropriate. The lateral move- experienced probably would not have occurred. were flooded by breaches in the IHNC and small ment occurred because of excess hydrostatic (Continued on Page 26)
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— Calendar of Events — December 6-8, 2006 ASCE Seminar * Dam Breach Analysis Using HEC-RAS, Atlanta Georgia. December 14-15, 2006 ASCE Seminar * Wind Loads for Buildings and other Structures, Dallas, Texas. December 14-15, 2006 ASCE Seminar * NPDES Stormwater Permit Compliance, Atlanta, Georgia. December 28-29, 2006 ASCE Seminar * Pumping Systems Design for Civil Engineers, Atlanta, Georgia. January 11-12, 2007 ASCE Seminar * Introduction to Detention Pond Design: Parking Lots and Urban Drainage, San Antonio, Texas. January 11-12, 2007 ASCE Seminar * Financial Management for the Professional Engineer, San Antonio, Texas. January 25-26, 2007 ASCE Seminar * Geotextile Tube Designs, Applications and Case Histories, New Orleans. January 25-26, 2007 ASCE Seminar * Bridge Rehabilitation, Dallas, Texas. January 25-26, 2007 ASCE Seminar * Design of Buildings in Coastal Regions, Austin, Texas. January 25-26, 2007 ASCE Seminar * Design for Cold Formed Steel Structures, Atlanta Georgia. February 1-2, 2007 ASCE Seminar * Earth Retaining Structures Selection, Design, Construction and Inspection, Orlando, Florida. February 8-9, 2007 ASCE Seminar * Designing Durable Concrete Structures, Atlanta, Georgia. February 13, 2007 Louisiana Tech University ASCE Student Chapter Annual Winter Awards Banquet, Ruston. February 15-16, 2007 ASCE Seminar * Testifying and Forensic Report Writing Skills for Civil Engineers, Orlando, Florida. March 14-16, 2007 ASCE Seminar * Structural Design of Buildings and Industrial Facilities for Bomb Blast Loads and Accidental Explosions, Houston, Texas. March 15-16, 2007 ASCE Seminar * Low Impact Development, New Orleans. March 15-16, 2007 ASCE Seminar * Design of Metal Buildings: Avoid Pitfalls in Specifying and Procuring, Atlanta, Georgia. March 21-23, 2007 ASCE Seminar * Structural Vibration Analysis, Design and Troubleshooting, Houston, Texas. March 21-23, 2007 ASCE Seminar * Streambank Stabilization for Restoration and Flood Control Projects, Atlanta, Georgia. March 22-23, 2007 ASCE Seminar * Structural Design of Residential Buildings Using the 2003 International Residential Code, Memphis, Tennessee. March 22-23, 2007 Louisiana Section Annual Spring Meeting and Conference, Shreveport. March 23-24, 2007 Deep South Conference of ASCE student chapters meeting hosted by Louisiana Tech University, Ruston, Louisiana. March 29-30, 2007 ASCE Seminar * Progressive Collapse Mitigation: Practical Analysis Methods and Proven Solutions, Atlanta, Georgia. March 29-30, 2007 ASCE Seminar * Low Impact Development Applications for Water Resource Management, New Orleans. March 29-30, 2007 ASCE Seminar * Preparation of Contract Documents and Specifications for Engineers and Technical Staff Members, Texas. March 29-30, 2007 ASCE Seminar * Probabilistic Design, Orlando, Florida. May 13-17, 2007 ASCE Conference * Coastal Sediments, New Orleans. *For more information, call ASCE toll free at (800)548-2723 or visit the ASCE website: www.asce.org. For the schedule and registration for the ASCE webinar continuing education regularly offered: Visit the ASCE website / con- tinuing education / distance learning / live interactive web seminars.
(Continued from Page 25) It should be noted that the T-walls being con- age cut-off piles extending through the 50+ feet 17th Street Canal structed to repair these breaches have the seep- of sand into the underlying clay. This canal also runs south about 2 miles from Lake Pontchartrain to its inland pump sta- tion and it had no surge protection at its Lake end for the same reasons previously explained in the London Avenue discussion. A storm surge to about Elevation +11 feet came down this canal from the Lake. The surge had reached only Elevation +8 to +9 when about 500 feet of Elevation +14 feet floodwall on the east side of the canal collapsed, sending a wall of water into the Lakeview and Lakewood Subdivisions. Residential structures up to 3 blocks away were pushed off their foundations. The floodwall on the west side bowed several inches and tilted. It was at incipient failure and avoided collapse only because the east side collapse caused the water level in the canal to recede. The failure at this Canal was made famous by its constant press coverage as the disaster unfolded. The I-wall structure was constructed in 1994 though it had been under design as a Figure 5. Geometry and potentiometrics at London Avenue south. S&WB project since 1981 when the original borings were made. In that project, the canal
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Figure 6. Design and actual soil strengths at Figure 7. INHC floodwall failure by landside scour. 17th Street Canal. was dredged to a thalweg Elevation of -18 MSL. void on the water side between the sheet pile and length of the wall and it did not take long for the To maintain a satisfactory factor of safety with levee fill, through which full hydrostatic water wall to fail. the increased slope height the levee had to be pressure is applied to the wall. Including this As shown in Figure 7, the load on the can- degraded and additional wall height needed was effect yielded IPET a factor of safety well below tilever wall increases as a function of the square attained by building concrete monoliths on the 1.0, which they classified as “marginally stable.” of its unsupported length and the moment in the sheet piles that were driven to a tip Elevation of Using the Modified Bishop Circular Arc wall increases as a function of the cube of its -17.5 MSL. The top of the wall was designed to analyses, the factor of safety was calculated as unsupported length. From this, the authors cal- Elevation +14 feet with the landside levee crest 1.05. Using the same geometry and the Janbu culate that a 4 to 5-foot erosion trench would at +5.5 feet and the waterside at +1.5 feet. The method of Generalized Slices the factor was cal- change the factor of safety from greater than 2 to natural ground at the landside levee toe was at culated as 0.98. Both of these methods of analy- less than 1.0. Scour trench depths of near 4 to 5 approximately -5 feet MSL. There has been ses were developed in the 1950s and have been feet were observed by the authors in areas where some debate about the time of failure since some in use since. Finite element and centrifuge mod- this floodwall did not fail. After failure, the wall leakage was reported prior to the collapse. Local eling were not necessary to demonstrate the wall was tilted and had moved so much that an active residents complained of seepage in the area even should have failed. The IPET failure mechanism wedge had dropped down along the water side of during the low water levels 10 months before and storm surge level in the canal were also the sheets over one foot. At some locations it Katrina. applied, and the factor of safety was calculated appeared that water had entered the waterside The soil profile consists of soft clay and peat as 0.75 using the 200 psf soil strength in the crit- vertical crack and had piped under the sheetpile to approximately 35 feet below the levee crest ical depth zone. This confirms that the failure tips, thus accelerating the erosion on the passive where the Pine Island sand stratum is encoun- should have occurred with the water level in the side. tered. The levee fill consists of the original canal several feet below that assumed in the The north failure has been reported to have dredge spoil from the 1850s covered with addi- design. been similar to the North Breach failure of the tional material added over the next 100 years. London Avenue Canal. This failure occurred There was a peat layer containing large amounts Inner Harbor Navigation Canal before overtopping occurred. Instead of failure of undecomposed roots and other organic matter This north-south waterway had two major in the soft clay Seed et. al. (2006) stated that the between approximately Elevations -10 and -15 floodwall collapses on its east side, totalling peat layer below the sheetpile tips caused piping feet. This layer was underlain by a stratum of about 1500 feet in length. These failures pro- erosion of the clay at the landside toe of the levee very soft clay. Early statements attributed the duced walls of water that literally destroyed leading to a lateral movement of the wall and failure to the peat layer. every structure within 4 to 6 blocks of the flood- eventual collapse. Based on the limited length of The failure was predictable using the soils wall, and caused flooding throughout the Lower the failure — approximately 200 feet — and the data developed in the 1981 soils investigation. Ninth Ward. This water also contributed to depth of the post-failure scour hole, the failure The design strength profile presented in Figure 6 flooding in St. Bernard Parish. On the west side, mechanism described appears appropriate. shows that in the zone of Elevation -15 to -20 water gushing from the floodwall collapse These failures were avoidable. Adequate feet, approximately 75% of the data points fall destroyed several industrial facilities and con- analysis/design tools and the experienced engi- well below the assigned design strength. This tributed to the flooding of Metro New Orleans. neers necessary for this project were available design strength profile covers 8200 lineal feet of The storm surge here came westward from Lake before the Lake Pontchartrain HPS was author- levee, and indicates the average shear strength in Borgne down the GIWW/MRGO and it peaked ized. What happened? this zone critical for stability was 200 psf. It is at about Elevation +14.2 to +14.4 feet. The interesting to note that the deeper shear strengths floodwall tops were designed to be at Elevation Mississippi River-Gulf Outlet have the same range of values whether the sam- +15 feet. This 14-mile-long levee runs northwest- ple was from the toe of the levee or under its cen- The south failure was due to overtopping. southeast from the GIWW/MRGO intersection, terline. The IPET team initially attributed the The top of the wall was nearly 2.5 feet below its along the north side of St. Bernard Parish. It was failure to the lower shear strength at the toe and design flood elevation. Some of this was due to primarily a hydraulic fill with large amounts of not the over optimistic values on their strength subsidence, since the wall was built in 1965, and sand and silt without any erosion protection. plot. The IPET team, after reading a USACE some was due to the benchmark elevations used Some parts used a sheetpile floodwall to bring report from 1988 — 6 years before construction for construction that had not been corrected for the top to design grade. However, the sheetpiles — made a significant discovery. The sheet piles subsidence in years. As the water cascaded over were only 15 feet long with only 1/3 to 1/2 of are so stiff compared to the weak soils that they the wall and impacted the levee surface at 20 to this length embedded in the soil — far too little do not bend in the normal manner. Rather they 25 feet per second, an erosion trench quickly rotate rigidly about the tip creating a vertical developed. This trench increased the cantilever (Continued on Page 28)
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(Continued from Page 27)
Figure 8. MRGO levee obliterated by erosion. Figure 9. ICWW levee which survived the storm surge.
for stability. The storm surge coming across the trench adjacent to the sheetpiles. As in the case area near the Lakefront Airport breached due to MRGO from Lake Borgne reached elevations of of the IHNC floodwalls, this trench removed the differing levee heights provided by the different +18 to +20 feet. A portion of the levee was at its soil which was providing passive pressure to jurisdictions responsible and a damaged flood- design elevation of +17.5 feet, but the elevations support the sheetpiles. Eventually, the driving gate that had not been repaired. of some portions were as low as +15 feet. Most force due to the high water overcame the resist- The levees on the north and south sides of of this levee was totally obliterated. The result- ing stresses in the soil, and failure resulted. the ICWW/MRGO west of Paris Road were over- ing flooding crossed 3 miles of marsh, to the sec- Concerning this levee, Sills, et al (2007) topped by as much as 3 feet, but fared well. ondary (40-Arpent) levee, overtopped that levee, state These successful levees were composed of com- and flooded the populated area in and around The levee along the Mississippi River Gulf pacted clay. Figure 9 is a post-Katrina photo- Chalmette and Meraux with water to Elevation Outlet that fronts Lake Borgne was con- graph in this area that illustrates how these lev- +12 feet. Seed, et al (2006) uses the MRGO structed with hydraulic fill that contained ees performed. levee photograph shown in Figure 8 to illustrate significant amounts of sand and silt; it expe- A special case is the Orleans Avenue Canal, the breached condition. rienced numerous breaches and total loss of that is parallel to and located between the 17th Visual reconnaissance of the failures by the the levee section. Street Canal and London Avenue Canal. This authors is reported in Seed, et al (2006) and Van Sills was a member of the IPET. canal had no breaches or other significant dis- Heerden, et al (2006). The visual evidence clear- tress. The primary reason for this was a dis- ly demonstrated that the earthen portions of this New Orleans East Levee agreement between the Orleans Levee Board and levee failed by erosion and scour caused by the The easternmost portion of the levee along the S&WB. It left about 200 feet of this levee storm surge and associated waves as they the north side of the GIWW was built in a man- near the pump station some 4 feet below the tops attacked the erosion-susceptible levee material. ner similar to that of the MRGO levee. It was hit of the adjacent floodwalls. This low section Boutwell (2006) reports results from erosion cal- with a similar storm surge coming from Lake formed a spillway. While water coming over this culations using the overtopping wave/surge Borgne. Large portions of this levee collapsed, spillway contributed to the flooding of Metro velocities from IPET (2006) and the erosivity flooding New Orleans East. It failed by the same New Orleans, it also lowered the surge water tests on materials from the few undamaged por- mechanisms as did the MRGO levee. level in Orleans Canal enough so that its defi- tions of the MRGO levee by Briaud, reported in cient floodwalls were not overstressed and Seed, et al (2006). The IPET data shows the Plaquemines Parish Back Levee breached. overtopping water here had velocities of at least This earthen levee had a design top elevation The Duncan Canal levee located on the 10 to 15 fps. Using Briaud’s data, the erosion near +17 feet. It was struck by a storm surge Jefferson Parish/St. Charles Parish line is an rates are 6 to 8 feet of soil lost per hour without exceeding Elevation +20 feet that crossed the interesting case. It is the most recently con- accounting for the increase in water depth as ero- marshes from Breton Sound. The levee had a structed of the walls. It did not breach, but it is sion occurs. Including this phenomenon, the few breaches, but it was overtopped so severely difficult to determine why it did not. The major- analyses showed that breaches 10 feet deep that floodwater rushed westwards to the ity of this project was proposed to be T-wall con- would develop within 30 to 60 minutes after Mississippi River levee at Elevation +15 feet and struction with only about 200 feet of I-wall con- waves began reaching the top of the levee. The flowed out over that levee 4 feet deep! Virtually struction. The USACE Design Memorandum for actual failure time corresponds to a surge eleva- all structures between the Back and River levees this project cites the I-wall construction as yield- tion of around +15 feet, or 2.5 feet below the were demolished. Some were stranded on the ing 2 percent in savings over the construction of design top elevation. River levee while others were carried into the a T-wall at this location. The affected length of The designers made a conscious decision not River and floated away. wall is estimated at 750 feet or more. Neither to provide armoring against erosion for this ero- construction nor as-built drawings were avail- sion-prone material. The MRGO levee also had Levees that survived able for this project. This wall was designed for some sections where the upper 8 to 10 feet of the Conversely, some levees performed success- an +11.5 foot storm surge according to the levee was actually a cantilever sheetpile wall. fully. The 19 miles of main levees along Lake Design Memorandum. During Katrina, the actu- These sections failed as overtopping water Pontchartrain with top Elevations of +14 to +18 al surge experienced at this location was on the plunged onto the landside soil producing at least feet never breached though they were exposed to order of +7.5 feet. 8 feet of erosion per hour and eroded a deep a storm surge Elevation +10 to +13 and were The wall on the Duncan Canal levee has a occasionally overtopped by wave action. One
28 THE LOUISIANA CIVIL ENGINEER / NOVEMBER 2006 13760 Nov06civil 11/3/06 5:12 PM Page 29
paved slope and an apron on the canal side as segment under the interstate route I-10 bridge 80 percent of the flooding, damage, and loss of shown in Figure 10a. Since construction, this some 200 feet long had a gap with a top elevation life occurred because the levees breached. wall has subsided approximately one foot and some 6 feet lower than the adjacent floodwalls. Contrary to the media reports, there was no sin- these concrete monoliths have tilted. The wall Because of a jurisdictional dispute over who gle technical cause for the breaches of the levees has settled enough relative to the levee to tilt the would pay for the fill in this gap, it remained 6 in New Orleans. Rather, the technical causes adjacent apron slab toward the wall and the slope feet lower and at Elevation 4+ feet below the were 40 percent erosion-related, 15 percent fail- paving is cracked. At one location the joint storm surge for the Canal District when Katrina ure to properly account for groundwater pres- opening between the monoliths is approximately hit. Filling this gap probably amounted to less sures, and 15 percent due to incorrect slope sta- 2 inches. Figure 10b shows the land side condi- than 3000 cubic yards of fill. However, it is like- bility analyses. At least 80 percent of the failures tions before the USACE placed several feet of ly that if this gap had not existed, the full surge were due to design errors such as setting pro- fill to buttress the wall until proper repairs can be pressure would have destroyed the walls of the gram goals — storm surge levels — or geotech- made. Estimated movements due to this added Orleans Canal Pump Station and flooded the area nical analyses. The deeper cause, however, is fill were not available. anyway. believed to be rooted in the culture fostered by the design agency. Fortunately, it is taking steps Transitions Synthesis to invigorate that culture, by upgrading technical The authors observed numerous levee The USACE observed that the levees con- procedures such as breaches at transitions between levee and flood- structed of compacted, select clay fill performed ¥ updating the Project Hurricane to provide wall structure types and the construction differ- well and even survived overtopping (IPET, more realistic storm surge levels for ences between jurisdictions. An example of a 2006). Seed, et al (2006) tabulated 20 failed design. structure type transition was the Bayou Dupre locations and listed the causes that they had ¥ designing for full-length hydrostatic water lock structure that is part of the MRGO levee. determined for each failure. They are summa- pressure on sheetpiles supporting I-walls This structure is supported on driven piles and rized in Table 2. It should be noted that the two realizing that in the soft levee materials abutted by the earthen levees on both sides. The locations along the MRGO levee that together they tilt rigidly under hydrostatic load designers were concerned apparently — and are more than 5 miles of complete obliteration forming a water-side vertical conduit for rightly — about the effects of the differential set- were combined in the tabulation so that the water to essentially reach their toe. tlement between the lock structure and the adja- “Erosion from Overtopping” category is some- ¥ using conservative procedures for evaluat- cent levee caused by the weight of the heavier what under-represented. Of the 20 failure cases, ing soil shear strength, including the levee on the adjacent pile foundations — for 16 are directly related to design. These 16 fall effects of effective overburden pressure on example, negative skin friction. Differential set- under 5 or possibly 6 different technical areas. strength. tlement between the levee supported on com- This leads one to conclude that something clear- ¥ constructing levees of compacted select pressible soils and the pile-supported structure ly was wrong in the culture that clay fill, rather than of hydraulically placed founded in deeper, less compressible soils could ¥ recommended design levels hetrogeneous materials. also open seepage pathways. To minimize these ¥ designed to these levels after authorization ¥ providing protection against erosion due to problems, the adjacent levee design in the transi- and overtopping with armoring part of the tion was a lightweight shell fill. This fill will ¥ constructed the facilities waterside face, the top, and the landside reduce differential settlement, but it is also far and then to have these facilities experience fail- face for levees and landside armoring adja- more susceptible to erosion than compacted clay. ures from so many different basic technical caus- cent to floodwalls. The storm surge eroded the shell fill, leaving the es. ¥ making a rational analyses of the ground- pile supported lock structure no longer connect- water pressure regime in pervious zones ed to the levee — in other words, a large breach. Lessons learned caused by storm surge water. A classic jurisdictional problem occurred at The breaching of the New Orleans metropol- ¥ using risk-based design, or at least a safety the south end of the Orleans Canal out by the itan area levees during Hurricane Katrina turned factor commensurate with the conse- pump station. The floodwalls have top what would have otherwise been a nuisance into quences of failure. Elevations +12 to +13 feet. However, the levee a major disaster. At least 70 and more probably (Continued on Page 30)
Causes of Breaching and Frequency
Cause Number of Cases
Erosion from Overtopping 5*
Landside Floodwall Scour 3
Classic Slope Stability Failure 3
Groundwater Pressure 3
Jurisdictional Problems 2
Transitions 2
2005 Human Error 1**
Pure Overtopping 1
* Accounts for most lineal feet of breaches ** Damaged floodgate not replaced
Figure 10a. Settlement, cracking, and distor- Figure 10b. Subsidence of I-Wall at Duncan Table 2. tion at Duncan Canal I-Wall. Canal.
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(Continued from Page 29) ¥ conducting an independent, third-party Committee on New Orleans Regional Hurricane and S. Tim, 2006, “Investigation of the peer review for life-critical structures. Projects,” NAE/NRC. Performance of the New Orleans Flood Of these upgrades in the technical proce- IPET (Interagency Performance Evaluation Protection Systems in Hurricane Katrina on dures, the last one listed is deemed the most Task Force), (2006). “Performance Evaluation August 29, 2005.” Report No. UCB/CCRM- important of all — an outside, independent, of the New Orleans and Southeast Louisiana 06/01, Final Report dated July 31, 2006. third-party peer review conducted for all life- Hurricane Protection System: Draft Final Report Sills, G.L., N.D. Vroman, R.E. Wahl, and critical structures such as the HPS. of the Interagency Performance Evaluation Task N.T. Schwanz, (2007), “Lessons Learned from Force.” U. S. Army Corps of Engineers, June 1, the Levee Failures in the New Orleans Area and Addreviations 2006. Approx. 6,000 pp Their Impact on Levee Design and Assessment (https://ipet.wes.army.mil) Across the Nation,” accepted for publication in psf — pounds per square foot Seed, R.B., R.I. Abdelmalak, A.G. GeoDenver, 2007, American Society of Civil cfs — cubic feet per second Athanasopoulos, R.G. Bea, G.P. Boutwell, J.D. Engineers. fps — feet per second Bray, J.L. Briaud, C. Cheung, B.D. Collins, D. Van Heerden, I., (2006), G.P. Kemp, H. Cobos-Roa, J. Cohen-Waeber, L. Ehrensing, D. Mashriqui, R. Sharma, B.R. Prochaska, L.J. References Farber, N. Hanenmann, L.F. Harder, M.S. Cappozoli, A. Theis, A. Binselam, K. Streva, and Boutwell, G.P., (2006), “Expert Report — Inamine, K.S. Inkabi, A.M. Kammerer, D. E. Boyd, “The Failure of the New Orleans Levee Flooding Evaluation — Meraux, LA,” Soil Karadeniz, R.E. Kayen, R.E.S. Moss, J. Nicks, S. System during Hurricane Katrina,” a Report by Testing Engineers, Inc., Baton Rouge, LA. Nimala, J.M. Pestana, J. Porter, K. Rhee, M.F. Team Louisiana prepared for the Louisiana Clough, R.W., et al., (2006), “Second Report Riemer, K. Roberts, J.D. Rogers, R. Storesund, Department of Transportation and Development, of the National Academy of A. Thompson, A.V. Govindasamy, X. Vera- Baton Rouge, LA. Engineering/National Research Council Grunauer, J. Wartman, C.M. Watkins, E. Wenk,
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