The Mississippi River Delta is losing a football field of wetlands every hour. This is partly because of all the levees being built along the Mississippi River to stop the river from flooding communities. The levees may seem like a good idea to the people living alongside the Mississippi, but the river needs to naturally flood and change course to maintain the ecosystems that it supports. The wetlands on the coast of the Gulf of Mexico rely on the sediment that the Mississippi River deposits. If the levees stop the sediment from reaching the wetlands, then the wetlands will stop growing and eventually will be lost to the sea.
In our lab, we saw how the flow of water over our miniature delta changed coarse many times and began to form new channels. This is a natural process that needs to also occur on large scale deltas and rivers. New methods of flood control need to be implemented so that sediment can continue to be deposited at the delta. Communities have learned that levees can fail so some are now flood-proofing businesses and elevating homes. Also, through the use of sediment diversions, the river can be connected back to its delta so that the river can continue to build up the wetlands. There is also a lot of dredged sediment from making shipping canals that is typically dumped offshore. This sediment could instead be placed where sediment is needed in the wetlands. It is also important to research how best to solve this issue and what the consequences of these solutions are.
After discussing the importance of sediment deposition and how it creates important ecosystems, like wetlands, it is obvious that this issue needs the attention of geologists and engineers. The Mississippi River Delta provides 25% of our fishing and seafood industry, major commercial channels for shipping, millions of jobs, and the habitats for hundreds of wildlife species. As a Geoscience major, I know that I want to have a career where I put my knowledge to use and make positive impacts on our environment. This is definitely an issue that would be worthwhile to work on to help make a difference.
http://www.mississippiriverdelta.org/discover-the-delta/what-went-wrong/