[StBernard] Landrieu Announces $1 Million to Rebuild St. Bernard Parish Waste Water Treatment Plant

[Westley Annis]

Landrieu Announces $1 Million to Rebuild St. Bernard Parish Waste Water
Treatment Plant 
New infrastructure will allow for hospital construction.

 

WASHINGTON - United States Senator Mary Landrieu, D-La., this week announced
that the federal Economic Development Administration is investing $1 million
dollars in the reconstruction of the St. Bernard Parish waste water
treatment plant, which was destroyed by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita and the
floods that followed. 

"The storm's destruction disrupted our ability to access the most basic of
services," Sen. Landrieu said. "This funding was a key step toward restoring
the key infrastructure so necessary for the parish's economy."

The 2005 hurricanes and subsequent levee breaks devastated about 19,000, or
approximately 78 percent, of the homes in St. Bernard Parish. The plant's
reconstruction is estimated to create about 115 new jobs and leverage
approximately $80.9 million in private investment, and sewage will no longer
need to be transported by truck for offsite treatment. In last year's
Omnibus Appropriations Bill, Sen. Landrieu was able to secure more than $2
million for similar wastewater treatment improvement projects across
Louisiana. 

St. Bernard Parish president Craig P. Taffaro Jr. was pleased to learn of
the grant being awarded that will pay for an improved sewage pump station
and a new force main to allow for expansion of the Chalmette area. 

"We're grateful to Sen. Landrieu for her assistance and continued support of
our recovery needs in St. Bernard Parish," he said. "This sewerage
construction and hospital project are two important areas that need
continued support."

Once the sewage infrastructure built with these funds is in place, the
parish will also be able to sustain a new hospital. Hurricanes Katrina and
Rita destroyed the only hospital in the parish, depriving the community of
much-needed medical services. 

"One of the most pressing challenges in St. Bernard Parish has been the lack
of adequate medical care since the storms," Sen. Landrieu said. "With this
infusion of money for infrastructure, we will be able to rebuild a hospital
to provide much needed care for our community. 

"From my seat on the Appropriations Committee, I will continue working to
fund necessary services in St. Bernard, which will bolster the area's
economic recovery."

            Sen. Landrieu's efforts toward the full recovery of St. Bernard
Parish have been extensive. In July 2007, she invited former Parish
President Henry J. Rodriguez to testify alongside FEMA officials at
Subcommittee on Disaster Recovery hearing about the parishes' difficulties
with waste water management. Furthermore, in a letter she wrote to Admiral
Johnson, Sen. Landrieu asked FEMA to allow local governments to aggregate
public assistance projects in order to simplify administration and expedite
reconstruction. At her urging, FEMA recently agreed to allow St. Bernard
Parish to consolidate its five waste water treatment plants into a single
facility. 

- 30 -