SELA 7b Harahan Pump to the River, South Discharge Tubes

To reduce damages from rainfall flooding in New Orleans and the surrounding parishes, the Southeast Louisiana (SELA) Drainage Program constructed new pumping stations and better drainage canals and culverts throughout the area.

Originally authorized in 1996, Congress appropriated federal funds to develop solutions to the flooding problems in Orleans, Jefferson and St. Tammany parishes in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in 2005. The United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) started working on these flood protection projects to protect against a ten-year rainfall event and reduce damages for larger events.

Conti constructed SELA-07b consisting of three 84-inch cement lined steel pipes connecting the discharge pipes from a pump station to a levee crossing and outlet structure for discharge into the Mississippi River. Work included construction and modification of existing utilities, construction of two pump stations including concrete foundations and fiberglass wet wells, pile driving, installation of waterline, mass excavation and hauling, asphalt and concrete paving, dewatering, construction of temporary retaining structures, stone and bedding construction, structural excavation, backfill and demolition.

Conti laid as much as 600 linear feet of pipe per month and coordinated with USACE, the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development, the local utility company and Jefferson Parish to redesign the traffic configuration, temporary retaining structure (TRS) and dewatering system to improve efficiency.

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The pump stations, drainage canals and culverts will divert storm water to mitigate future flooding in areas devastated by Hurricane Katrina.