Levee weakness, rising seas could put Washington under water if major storm hits

(Photo of Jefferson Memorial from Flickr and photographer ktylerconk/Kathleen Conklin)

News Update 2: I recently read a futuristic novel about global warming, in which a rising Potomac River caused a Katrina-like flood to inundate Washington, D.C. So I was struck when I saw this story on The Daily Green this week: Officials are saying a 70-year-old levee system in the capital is at risk of failing in a major storm. If the levee system fails, downtown Washington could be under 10 feet of water, officials said. Built on reclaimed swamp, national monuments, museums and office buildings are at increasing risk as global warming increases sea levels, development causes more storm run-off and heavier rains threaten. Three of the levees, inconspicuous because they’re covered by grassy berms, are deficient, according to the Army Corps of Engineers, and the District of Columbia has committed $2.5 million to repair them. On several occasions sandbags have been put out on the National Mall to protect monuments and in 2006 heavy rain damaged several downtown buildings and closed the Justice Department. (Sources: The Daily Green, Associated Press)