The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has secured more than $40 million in federal funding to repair the Santa Maria River Levee, according to an announcement from the office of U.S. Rep. Lois Capps (D-Santa Barbara).
Officials predict the funding, made available as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, should be enough to complete repairs to the damaged levee.
“This is great news. The safety of this levee has been a big concern for all of us on the Central Coast, but especially for the people of Santa Maria and Guadalupe,” Capps said in the release. “It is the perfect use of recovery funds, too—a shovel-ready project that creates jobs quickly, meets an important immediate need, and sets the table for long-term economic growth in our area.”
In 2007, Capps and Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) secured $280,000 to conduct a preliminary assessment of the damage to the levee to determine what repairs need to be done to strengthen it. And earlier this year, Capps and Feinstein were able to secure $6.7 million in the 2009 Omnibus Appropriations Bill to begin the repairs.
The Santa Maria River Levee is essential for the protection of the city of Santa Maria, the coastal city of Guadalupe, and thousands of acres of prime agricultural land, according to Capps’ office.
The levee has sustained years of serious damage since its construction in the 1960s. The levee is currently inadequately reinforced to withstand river flows, specifically the effects of a 100-year storm. The Santa Maria River Levee was recently added to the Army Corps’ nationwide list of endangered levees.
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This article appears in Apr 30 – May 7, 2009.