Scientists have been studying the sinking coast of Louisiana for long. But, recently they have come up with a surprising, rather astonishing new finding that revealed that the land here is ‘not just’ sinking! It’s sliding ever very slowly into the Gulf of Mexico!
To protect this historic city and Cajun bayou culture, various plans are being drawn up to build levees that are bigger and much better. But, these new and different findings may add a kink to these plans!
Though, the researchers have, for years, known that the swampy land under south Louisiana is sinking — with potholed streets and wobbly porches and floors being the visible evidence of that — but the land are also experiencing a lateral movement into the Gulf, entering a large terrain that was not studied till date.
According to the study, deep underground faults slipping under the enormous weight of sediment dumped by the Mississippi River is triggering the southward movement of the land.
The report says that the slippage is confined to a large egg-shaped area — approximately 250 miles long and 180 miles wide — encompassing the Mississippi delta, built up by river deposits over the past 8,000 years.