Is New Orleans’ New Airport Ready for Climate Change?
Jennifer Billock November 23, 2018
A brand-new airport is on the way in New Orleans, but given the city’s watery location and the current environmental situation, some experts are worried that the airport’s planners may not be looking forward far enough and planning for a future built upon climate change and its upcoming consequences.
In 2019, hurricane season is expected to be worse than ever in New Orleans. Coincidentally, that’s also the same year the city will open its new billion-dollar airport terminal. But thanks to climate change and New Orleans’ reputation as a sinking city, there are more than a few unique factors construction teams have to deal with.
The new airport terminal was initially supposed to open in February 2019, but it was pushed back to May – thanks to a sagging sewer main and shifting ground beneath. The sewer is designed to be gravity-based, which is difficult at New Orleans’ elevation; the airport has the second-lowest elevation in the world.
As the coastline near New Orleans continues to erode, local businesses are making plans for what happens when their city is no longer livable – and the new airport terminal seems to be keeping that in mind. According to The Atlantic, it appears to be an airport designed for the end of the world: no architectural flourishes, relatively plain and modest. And perhaps that makes sense; currently the airport doesn’t seem to consider the effects of upcoming climate change like the airports do in Europe. For this reason, some thing the airport will be ill equipped to handle larger jets that fly into more inland spots or more prepared locales. Only time will tell.
[Photo: Flickr]
