The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) recently published the 2017 Report Card for America’s Infrastructure, giving American infrastructure as a whole a D+. The Louisiana Section of the ASCE formed committees that evaluated 11 infrastructure areas in the state. One of those areas was Levees/Flood Control Systems, and Chairman of Eustis Engineering’s Board of Directors William Gwyn, P.E., served as the committee chair for this report.
Bill and the seven other professional engineers on the Levees/Flood Control Systems Committee gave Levees/Flood Control Systems a grade of C. Overall, Louisiana’s infrastructure also earned a grade of D+.
“The levee grade was affected by the federal government’s substantial funding of projects after Hurricane Katrina,” Mr. Gwyn said. “Also, as part of recovery efforts after Hurricane Katrina, the levee boards have focused more on levee inspection and maintenance.”
“Our major recommendations are to generally raise levee heights and fund maintenance for recent projects constructed after Hurricane Katrina,” said Mr. Gwyn, who has 46 years of experience with Louisiana’s levees.
The committees spent 18 months on the assessment. “The report card represents a significant effort on the part of the levee committee with excellent direction and support from the Louisiana Section’s Executive Board for the ASCE Report Card,” Mr. Gwyn said.