The reality of the Mississippi River delta region as portrayed in this Time Magazine synopsis suggests that rebuilding 'as is' may not make sense. Now is the time to restore as much of the natural delta as possible because the people and many of the structures are, sadly, gone.
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The shriveled Louisiana coastline is dying a slow death at human hands
1 Over the centuries, the Mississippi flooded periodically, bringing downstream fresh silt that replenished wetlands and water that nourished the plants growing there
2 This flow created a large delta of swamps and barrier islands that absorbed storm surges and protected inland areas
3 When the river is constrained to a channel by levees, the silt is funneled out to sea
4 Without water flow and natural silt replenishment, the land outside the levees dries and sinks under its own weight, allowing salt water to intrude and killing plants that fed off the fresh water
5 Drawing drinking water from the land outside the levees only makes matters worse, hastening the sinking"
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