USACE Vicksburg District celebrates Ouachita River levee resurfacing project completion as part of Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, Tensas Basin Levee District partnership

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Vicksburg District celebrated the completion of the Ouachita River Levee Crown Gravel Resurfacing Project Nov. 20 in Columbia, Louisiana, near the Riverton Recreation Area.

The effort included updating 45 miles of Ouachita River levees as part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) of 2022, previously the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), and a partnership with the Tensas Basin Levee District. USACE Vicksburg District Commander Col. Christopher Klein, Tensas Basin Levee District Executive Director Brandon Waggoner, project managers Milton Beverly and Craig Prestwood and additional representatives marked the occasion with a ceremonial ribbon cutting on top of a levee near the banks of the Ouachita River.

The project involved depositing approximately 46,000 tons of limestone gravel along the crowns of the levees, or enough to fill a football field with 15 feet of rock, which reinforces the structures so they can protect nearby communities. The finalized contract award was nearly $3.5 million. The district’s Project Resources Management Branch oversaw the project, and the Vidalia Area Office assisted with construction oversight.

USACE Vicksburg District Commander Col. Christopher Klein said that partnership was key to the project’s success.

“We go into a flood fight as partners and patrol the levees so communities stay safe,” he said. “By protecting our infrastructure, we protect what’s most important: our people.”

The USACE Vicksburg District is engineering solutions to the nation’s toughest challenges. The Vicksburg District encompasses a 68,000-square-mile area across portions of Mississippi, Arkansas and Louisiana that holds nine major river basins and incorporates approximately 460 miles of mainline Mississippi River levees. The Vicksburg District is engaged in hundreds of projects and employs approximately 1,100 personnel.