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LAPLACE — The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New Orleans District, recently awarded a $20,520,000 firm-fixed-price contract to Greenup Industries of Gonzales for stockpile work associated with the West Shore Lake Pontchartrain Levee Project.

Greenup Industries will be responsible for excavating, processing and stockpiling clay material at the Bonnet Carrė Spillway. This material will support the construction of approximately 17.5 miles of levee system to provide 100-year storm risk reduction from the Bonnet Carrė spillway to Garyville.

The contract consists of a base contract of $9,075,000, and optional work items totaling $11,445,000, according to the Corps of Engineers. Work will be performed in St. Charles Parish with an estimated completion date of Jan. 22, 2021.

Chris Gilmore, senior project manager said, “One of the most critical components of a properly constructed levee system is having sufficient material to construct the levee.  This project gives us a good jump-start on obtaining the levee construction material required to construct the West Shore Lake Pontchartrain levee system.”

During Hurricane Isaac, storm surge inundated approximately 7,000 homes. The Interstate was submerged for several days, slowing emergency response across the region.

The complete $760 million West Shore Lake Pontchartrain project will provide hurricane risk reduction for more than 60,000 people in the area. It will span approximately 18.3 miles and include levee, T-Wall, four pumping stations, two drainage structures and approximately 35 utility relocations. The project will include mitigation to offset unavoidable environmental impacts.

The project design team will continue to work toward the completion of this project.

During a September 2019 Industry Day in St. John Parish, Gilmore outlined 14 tentative construction contracts. The majority of those construction contracts are expected to go to small businesses around fall 2020, he said. The stockpile contract is among the pre-construction contracts, which may also include sand base placement and additional access road/vegetation clearing.

For more information on the West Shore Lake Pontchartrain Levee project, please visit facebook.com/WestShoreLakePontchartrain or mvn.usace.army.mil. Questions may also be directed to the construction hotline at 877-427-0345.