ST. LOUIS – The St. Louis District U.S. Army Corps of Engineers completed reconstruction work on the Wood River levee system Sept. 15. The project focused on updating and repairing all of the above ground features of the Wood River levee to reduce flood risk and protect the public using the best engineering solutions.
Completing this stage of the Wood River reconstruction marks an important part of the Corps’ continuous mission to reduce risk to those living and working behind levees. The Corps performed the reconstruction in partnership with the non-federal sponsors, the Wood River Drainage and Levee District and Southwestern Illinois Flood Prevention District Council. Over $16.6 million in federal funding was matched with local contributions of nearly $9 million from the non-federal sponsors.
“The updating of this infrastructure was necessary to move on to address underseepage along the Wood River levee system, and continue to improve the protection of the residents and businesses behind this levee,” said Tim Kerr, St. Louis District Corps project manager on the Wood River levee construction. “The completion of this portion of the project is a result of the leadership and continued partnership among the Corps of Engineers, Wood River Levee and Drainage District, and the Southwestern Illinois Flood Prevention District Council.”
In its service to the nation, the Corps works to satisfy public interests by making best use of tax dollars with high quality products that meet requirements of safety, navigation, and environmental issues while addressing partner concerns.
“Flood risk is a shared responsibility, and we are proud of what we’ve accomplished with our partners in the Wood River Levee District. I look forward the continued collaboration with our local partners to meet our mutual goals in reducing risk, improving safety and energizing the economy in the Metro East,” said Col. Anthony Mitchell, commander of the St. Louis District. “The safety of the residents living and working behind the Metro East Levee System is the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ top priority.”
The Wood River levee is in the Mississippi River flood plain in Madison County, Illinois, protecting approximately 20,000 people in the communities of Wood River, East Alton, Hartford and Roxana, as well as a high concentration of industry and nearly 13,000 acres of bottomland. It is part of the Metro East levee system which runs more than 75 miles, protecting more than 250,000 residents and workers, as well as property and critical infrastructure valued in excess of $7.2 billion.
The next activity on the Wood River levee system includes the three partners working to install pump stations, cutoff walls, seepage berms and relief wells to address the underseepage and bring the levee to its fully authorized level of protection. During the flood of 1993 and subsequent floods, sand boils developed along a large portion of the levee, indicating underseepage problems.
To date, more than $321.3 million federal dollars have been invested in the Metro East levee system, addressing pump stations, relief wells, closure structures, seepage berms and floodwalls.
Release no. 15-056