Hello, again. I took an unscheduled break from my blog because everything felt like too much. Everything still feels like too much, but I want to continue offering information, perspectives, and ways to take action on behalf of people and planet. Because the WordPress community is spread around the world, these Monday climate posts dedicated to specific issues and communities could be viewed as unrelated to your own life and experience, but because I firmly believe we are ALL connected–everyone and everything–I also believe there’s no such thing as an unrelated issue (climate or otherwise). Anything that negatively affects the climate halfway around the world from where you live will eventually have negative consequences for your community. Okay, so let’s get to today’s issue. 🙂

In September of 2022, I highlighted the flooding in Jackson, Mississippi, that happened when the Pearl River overflowed its banks due to heavy rains. As a result of that flooding, the water treatment plant failed in Jackson which is 82% Black, leaving 150,000 people without clean drinking water. Nearly two years later, Jackson residents are still dealing with low pressure and brown water.

There are plans to address the flooding issues, but the solution being pushed–One Lake–is environmentally devastating. From Healthy Gulf:

Instead of levee improvements, the Rankin-Hinds Pearl River Flood and Drainage Control District, in charge of levees, is sponsoring an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to study dredging and widening 9 miles of the river to create a lake, primarily to please developers and mayors who see an urban waterfront as a money maker for Hinds and Rankin Counties. The cities of Jackson and Flowood will “share” the lake and the Drainage District has taxing power to create bonds to finance it. The plan is to dredge the river wider, remove 1860 acres of riverside wetlands and swamps, set back some levees and construct a new low-head dam below the I-20 Pearl River Bridge. The resulting 1900 acre lake is promised to tame the river’s backwater flooding during large releases. 

The problem is that the wetland and wildlife habitat destruction resulting from this much dredging of banks and riverbed make the “One Lake” project the most environmentally damaging of the three alternatives (lake, levees, and floodplain buyouts) for solving the flooding, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

TAKING ACTION

So what can we do to help support the environment and people of Jackson? Submit comments to the Army Corps of Engineers TODAY! (tomorrow is the deadline for public comments and I apologize for the last-minute notice). As always, personalized letters have the most impact. But you don’t have to put tons of effort into your letter: just make your points and sign off! Here’s the letter template in which I’ve highlighted points to hit:

As someone who cares deeply about our country’s birds, wildlife, and habitats, I ask that you reject all flood relief plans for Jackson, Mississippi, that would dam or dredge the Pearl River. Instead, prioritize and expand on a proposal that can provide effective non-structural and nature-based flood solutions to benefit Pearl River communities and wildlife. Specifically, I urge you to pursue and bolster the Corps’ Draft Environmental Impact Study (DEIS) Alternative A1 and deny Alternatives C, D, and E.

The Pearl River runs from Choctaw Tribal lands in Neshoba County, Mississippi, to Lake Borgne and the Rigolets in coastal Louisiana. It connects nearly 500 miles of ecology, communities, and economies across Mississippi and Louisiana. I urge you to oppose any flood relief plan that would dam or dredge this natural treasure.

The One Lake project and related proposals are all ecologically devastating plans. They would dredge river banks and wetlands, depositing the spoil behind levees to create broad terraces for commercial development. This would destroy thousands of acres of wildlife habitat and worsen Jackson’s flooding and drinking water crisis. It would also expose local and downstream communities to toxic contamination and reduce freshwater flows critical to the region’s seafood and tourism economies.

The DEIS is incomplete and missing sections required by law for adequate public and scientific review. It lacks a full analysis of wildlife habitat impacts, toxic sites, and downstream flows. However, it makes clear that One Lake and all related dam/dredge plans should be rejected. Federally mandated habitat protection areas for two endemic turtle species and the Gulf sturgeon are within the project area and LeFleur’s Bluff State Park would lose 63 acres of hardwood forest, changed to lake bottom. These are just two examples of the damage that the One Lake Project would cause.

Instead, I urge you to pursue effective, environmentally sustainable flood relief proposed in Alternative A1. This includes home elevations and flood-proofing buildings. Expand on this plan to consider restoring floodplains, raising roads, and incorporating levee setbacks and protections for vulnerable Jackson neighborhoods.

Please protect the Pearl River for this and future generations. Reject One Lake and all similar plans. Employ nature-based and non-structural flood solutions that benefit all Pearl River communities and species.

Again, here’s the link for writing a letter. Thank you in advance for reading this far and taking action on behalf of the people and environment in Jackson, Mississippi. Solidarity! ✊🏽