Senate Backs New Controls for Projects by Engineers

The Senate voted Wednesday to put new controls on water projects of the Army Corps of Engineers, with proponents of the legislation repeatedly citing the experience of New Orleans, where corps-designed levees and waterways failed to protect the city from Hurricane Katrina. The legislation, an amendment to a measure authorizing new corps projects, calls for the creation of independent panels of scientific and economic experts with authority to weigh in on projects under consideration by the corps. A decision to ignore the panel’s advice could be used against the corps in legal proceedings.

from the NY Times