Impact of Bonnet Carre' Spillway
Understanding how the Mississippi River responds to the operation of the Bonnet Carre' Spillway, can help us learn about potential effects of large diversions of the river. Panel A shows the bathymetry before the spillway is opened during May of 2011. Panel B shows deposition of over 21 feet in the channel immediately after the diversion was closed 42 days later. Panel C indicates that a majority of the deposited sediment moved out of the study area within one year of the event.