Consideration Given To Rebuilding Further Away From Coastline

Between the scenes of horror from the South Asian tsunami last year and the hurricanes that struck the Gulf Coast this year, many communities are looking at creating buffers between their communities and the adjacent bodies of water. Around the Indian Ocean, countries are debating whether to permit reconstruction within a set distance of the high water line, while in the US, the debate is whether some communities want to completely relocate further inland.

Now Louisiana planners are proposing an idea that would have been unimaginable here a few months ago: moving an entire string of seaside towns and villages - and the 4,000 longtime residents who live in them - 15 or 20 miles inland to higher and presumably safer ground.

"If we could get 100 percent participation, which admittedly is extraordinarily difficult, if possible at all, we could conceivably take the entire population of Cameron Parish largely out of harm's way for future events," said Drew Sachs, a consultant to the Louisiana Recovery Authority. He has been asked to develop bold suggestions for rebuilding the state's coastal region in the wake of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

There's quite a few people who are resistent to the idea of relocating their communities. This is a situation that has periodically arisen after catastrophic flooding incidents. One Mississippi River town that had been flooded repeatedly over the years relocated several miles away to higher ground. This is a situation that bears close watch.