An effort to build a casino in the Mississippi River floodway north of St. Louis may significantly harm local wetlands and increase the risk of damage in the river’s floodplain, especially during floods, say critics.
St. Louis County Planning Commission recommended last fall that the St. Louis County Council approve the Riverview Casino project proposed by North County Development, LLC. Local environmental groups and community organizations have strongly opposed the project for a host of reasons, but particularly out of concern that the project will affect the Columbia Bottom Conservation Area adjacent to the north boundary of the project.
Columbia Bottom is a 4318-acre conservation area located in the floodway at the confluence of Missouri and Mississippi Rivers and administered by the Missouri Department of Conservation. According to the MDC, the area preserves four distinct habitats—bottomland hardwood forest, shallow wetland, prairie, and cropland—in addition to the river bank habitat.
Edward J. Griesedieck III, attorney and agent for North County Development, responding to inquiries about the environmental and flood issues by saying “All construction will need to comply with all applicable governmental standards for building in FP. Applicable governmental agencies will control, supervise and review/approve.” Griesedieck last summer on StlToday.com estimated that the project would generate 5000 temporary construction jobs and 2500 permanent casino and related jobs.
Save the Confluence, a coalition of environmental and community groups that includes the Missouri Coalition for the Environment, the Sierra Club of Eastern Missouri, and the St. Louis Audubon Society, says that the project will diminish the quality of wetlands that are critical habitat for residential and migratory bird populations and result in run-off from the project of chemical contaminants that include fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides and parking lot residue such as motor oil.
But what will happen during the next flood? The project encompasses 377 acres in the floodway. Seventy acres, an area larger than any major shopping mall in the area, will be elevated 30 feet.
North County Development LLC has not filed an environmental impact statement or any other data that would address the effect the project, particularly the elevated portion, might have on flooding, but concerns cited by members of Save the Confluence coalition include increased flood water levels upstream, backwash and water diversion erosion in the immediately adjacent conservation area, increased erosion at and below the site due to increased water velocity, and flood related increases in pollutant levels affecting the St. Louis City Water Processing Plant located about three miles downstream.
Floodways development along the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers in the Saint Louis area has increased water fluctuations and reduced the floodwater storage capacity throughout the area, according to Robert Criss, professor of geology at Washington University and an opponent of the project. In addition to the habitat destruction, Criss states that the casino project, by narrowing the channel and restricting water flow, will increase the water levels and current speed during floods.
While neither the US Army Corps of Engineers nor the Federal Emergency Management Administration can specifically comment until a proposal is officially submitted and studied, Alan Dooley, Public Affairs Officer for the St. Louis District of the Corps of Engineers, said that there are numerous problems any project must address in a floodway. Among the hurdles, the project must develop new permanent wetlands to replace any wetlands lost due to construction, and the new wetlands, because they are not the mature habitats of existing wetlands, will have to cover a larger area. He also said that hydrological studies must indicate that the introduction of any fill material that elevates any part of the project will not increase flood levels beyond regulated tolerances—one foot for Missouri, but one-tenth of a foot for Illinois.
Paul Osman of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources said that any Missouri project that would exceed the one-tenth foot regulation could result in the state of Illinois filing a lawsuit against the project in order to protect the environment, human life, and property in affected areas of Illinois, where all levies in the area are in involved in a lengthy process to address deficiencies.
“All of the concrete they are putting in there will increase flooding, will cause higher flood levels [upstream],” and result in “runoff going directly to the…water processing plant,” according to Gloria Broderick, speaking for the Save the Confluence coalition and the local Sierra Club.
:smile
i liked this article because i got to learn about the flood and alot of facts about what happened !
In my opinion, this article is very informative. I completely agree to the fact that the concrete they put in it will most assuredly increase flooding. Including causing higher flood levels, upstream. Another reason why this article is in my favor is because it gives us readers and others who are unaware, a chance to [b]be[/b] aware. We don’t know what is going on with our oceans, rivers and other water suppliers. We don’t know what is going in them or where it is going to. Our world needs to be informed because we will never know unless we pay attention to where,when, and how it is happening.
well i enjoyed this article have i wanted to learn the many facts about the state that i live and this was enjoyable because i can be aware of the floods
:smile this article is interesting i didnt know all these facts about floods…i guess i learn something new everyday:arhh
Perhaps this article was influential in the recent casino decision away from this environmentally sensitive area. You certainly made a strong case! Bravo!
I find this article quite interesting; I actually wrote a similar article about the confluence just a few weeks ago. Unfortunately, it didn’t make it far past the drafting process (and of course wasn’t published). I appreciate how you focus more on the floodplain and the potential dangers associated with people rather than solely on the affect the casino may have on migratory birds. In my article I focused only on the affect it may have on wildlife and it seemed to lack relevance and interest. I think this is a very important issue especially for residents of the St. Louis area who WILL be affected. In my article I also worked the angle of job creation in the community, which was a major argumentitive point for pro-casion-ers.
Nice work Steve this is a really informative article and I learned a lot about how man made structures can affect flooding.
This is a really good article! I love the title, I think that’s what drew me in the most.
That’s pretty interesting. Why would they want to go ahead with building on the floodplain? That doesn’t make sense to me but okay. Nice Job. :ak
This article was very interesting; the title and lede caught my attention. I found it interesting that a casino may be built in a floodplain, it does not seem very envrironmentally friendly. There were also several direct quotes which led me to beleive the facts given. When reading this I wonder how habitat species will survive.
Great article I had no idea what some of the man made structure were doing.
I found this article very interesting because I find it shocking that a casino could be built in a floodplain area. I do not see how this is environmentally friendly. I think that it would damage many habitats and populations. The title and lede were well written, it caught my attention.
I found this article very interesting because I find it shocking that a casino could be built in a floodplain area. I do not see how this is environmentally friendly. I think that it would damage many habitats and populations. The title and lede were well written, it caught my attention.[quote][/quote]
i found this artical very nformational i learne alot about what can worsen flooding
Wow, this was very interesting and well written, all your quotes made it super interesting and believable! Your article was so informative and interesting. Great job explaining and supporting your arguement. Awesome work