NEW ORLEANS – Deep underground, an unseen crisis is threatening New Orleans’ already troubled recovery.
The city’s 3,200-mile system of water and sewer lines – old, leaky and in need of improvements long before Hurricane Katrina – was damaged by the torrent of pipe-corroding salt water.
The city Sewerage &Water Board says at least 50 million gallons of water a day are now being lost to leaks, or 21/2 times pre-Katrina levels. S&WB officials also believe raw sewage is leaking out in places, though the extent of the problem is unclear.
The larger fear is that if some water pumps fail – whether because of a power outage, some other kind of mechanical trouble, or another Katrinalike storm – a drastic drop in pressure could allow raw sewage or other pollutants to back up into the water system through the leaks. And that could contaminate the drinking water in some neighborhoods for days or even weeks.
“We don’t have the confidence now to say the system won’t fail,” S&WB spokesman Robert Jackson said. “We’re basically holding it together by tape, by glue, by spit, whatever we can get a hold of.”
Two years after Katrina, major breaks are being repaired. But the water system continues to leak, and sewer lines in some areas are dripping, too.
As the city’s population continues to grow – it is estimated at 262,000, well below the 455,000 before Katrina – the stress on the system is expected to increase.
The city says the tap water is safe to drink, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says New Orleans’ drinking supply meets federal standards.
When Katrina struck on Aug. 29, 2005, 80 percent of New Orleans was inundated. The surge of water caused water, sewer and drainage lines below the streets to shift, loosening joints and causing countless breaks. The salt water also began corroding the steel pipes.
In addition, vibrations from the heavy construction equipment that has been rumbling over New Orleans’ cracked and uneven streets since the catastrophe have damaged the pipes even further.
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