EDGARD — The drainage of the Dugas Canal and other canals on the West Bank of St. John the Baptist Parish came under fire during this week’s Parish Council meeting in Edgard.

Parish resident Willie Robert said he was confused about the permitting to drain the canals, specifically Dugas Canal. He said the money had been allocated but no work had been done.

The area in question is a portion of the canal south of the pipeline, according to director of public works Brian Nunes. In response to Robert at Tuesday night’s Council meeting, Nunes said the permitting was funded through the parish’s 2009 bond issue and that in 2012 a permit for Dugas Canal and other canals was submitted to the Department of Natural Resources.

DNR, after a field visit with Parish staff and a contractor, issued a two-year permit that year with a revised end point for Dugas Canal, ruling a portion of the canal was no longer discernible and therefore not permitted for cleaning.

Nunes said over time silt built up on that section south of the pipeline, thus DNR’s ruling.

It was revealed the permits were for cleaning and snagging only, not dredging, and if the parish wanted to dredge, the process would be lengthy and costly.

Adding to the cost would be mitigation expenses since that portion of the canal is now considered wetlands, Parish officials said.

Also to be determined is what impact the reopening of the canal might have, officials said.

During the course of the exchange with Robert, it was pointed out, at the time the original permits were granted for the Dugas Canal project, the Parish did not have the proper equipment to complete the work, although the parish has since purchased equipment. The Parish contracted with a local company but, as it turned out, they did not have a proper equipment operator.

Council Chairman Marvin Perrilloux recommended Parish officials meet with area representatives and other state officials in Baton Rouge. He noted the approach worked on other projects.

Parish President Natalie Robottom told L’OBSERVATEUR Thursday the Parish purchased its own machine in the summer of 2015.

“Even though we did not have a permit, a decision was made to attempt to clear some of the trees from the Dugas Canal because it was felt there was a public drainage hazard and action was required immediately,” she said.

Robottom said Parish engineer Chuck Savoie is seeking permits for more than 35 canals to be cleaned and snagged. A cost and timeline for that effort has not been determined.

“Once we have the permit, we will complete the process, but we’re going to do it in accordance with the permit, which probably means we will not be able to dig; we’re only going to be able to pull tree branches and limbs that have fallen over the canal and things that you can reach,” Robottom said.

According to Robottom, the Parish utilized its 2012 permits to clean numerous West Bank canals, but the effort with Dugas ran into snags.

“We needed additional equipment, which we tried to rent, lease or contract with somebody to do the service and our insurance carrier and legal counsel would not allow us to enter into that lease,” she said. “We eventually purchased our own machine so that we could do these kinds of things, but by then the permit expired. We’re working on getting the permit reviewed.”

— Richard Meek and Stephen Hemelt contributed to this report.