{"id":2078713,"date":"2023-10-25T07:05:02","date_gmt":"2023-10-25T11:05:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/louisiana-residents-weathering-impact-of-saltwater-in-low-flowing-mississippi-river\/"},"modified":"2023-10-25T07:09:06","modified_gmt":"2023-10-25T11:09:06","slug":"louisiana-residents-weathering-impact-of-saltwater-in-low-flowing-mississippi-river","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/louisiana-residents-weathering-impact-of-saltwater-in-low-flowing-mississippi-river\/","title":{"rendered":"Louisiana residents endure saltwater impact from low-flowing Mississippi River."},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Flouisiana-residents-weathering-impact-of-saltwater-in-low-flowing-mississippi-river%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2078713&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><div data-post-content=\"true\" class=\"post_content\" id=\"post_content\">\n<p>BELLE CHASSE, La.\u2014Overlooking the winding banks of the lower Mississippi River, there&#8217;s a man-made levee that protects Ricky Becnel&#8217;s citrus plant nursery from catastrophic flooding under most circumstances.<\/p>\n<p>Saxon\u200b Becnel &#038; Sons in Belle Chasse, Louisiana,\u2064 has been in his family for \u2064more than a century, just as the river has sustained the fruits of their labor with\u200c fresh river water for six generations.<\/p>\n<p>The \u200dlevee abides like a constant sentinel \u2062over the glimmering river, rolling \u2064vast and silent in the morning sunlight. Who knows what news the deep water will bring today?<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<h2>Related Stories<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<h3>Cutting Back Water Rights Could Lead to Higher Milk Prices, Farmers Warn<\/h3>\n<p>10\/23\/2023<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<h3>IRS Grants\u2063 Tax\u200d Relief to People Impacted by Saltwater Intrusion in Louisiana<\/h3>\n<p>9\/30\/2023<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Mr. Becnel admits he&#8217;s\u2064 had his share of hard knocks as a citrus grower living and working so close \u2062to the river on his 20-acre nursery.<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-figure\" style=\"margin-left:0;margin-right:0;max-width:1200px\">\n<figure style=\"width:640px;margin-left:auto;margin-right:auto\" class=\"alignnone\"><figcaption>Ricky Becnel, a fifth-generation citrus grower in Belle Chasse, Louisiana, stands among one \u2064of his crops on \u2063Oct. 13, 2023. (Allan Stein\/The Epoch Times)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>He&#8217;s been \u200bthrough devastating hurricanes\u2014Katrina in 2005 breaching the levee and flooding his home\u2014tropical storms, droughts, and now, saltwater river intrusion from the Gulf of\u200d Mexico.<\/p>\n<p>Mr. Becnel, 61, accepts them all as the price of being in a business he loves.<\/p>\n<div class=\"shortcode post-related-videos\">\n<div class=\"lazyload-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"lazyload-placeholder\"><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>&#8220;You know, I guess it&#8217;s what you were raised doing. It&#8217;s in your blood,&#8221; Mr. Becnel said of citrus growing, standing earlier by \u2062the water&#8217;s bouldered edge, a salinity meter in his hand.<\/p>\n<p>Carefully, he dipped the device&#8217;s electronic sensor attached to a long wire into\u2064 the sloshing river, stepping back\u2062 and studying the results on a tiny LED screen.<\/p>\n<div class=\"my-5\">\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/img.theepochtimes.com\/assets\/uploads\/2023\/10\/24\/id5516145-Document.jpeg.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><\/a>\n  <\/div>\n<div class=\"my-5\">\n<p>    \u200c Today&#8217;s first reading was .36 parts per million.<\/p>\n<h2>Good News, Considering<\/h2>\n<p>    \u2063   &#8220;That&#8217;s the highest salinity \u200bI&#8217;ve seen yet,&#8221; Mr. Becnel said. &#8220;We&#8217;d\u200b still have to be almost\u2063 three times that to be considered toxic.&#8221;\n  <\/p><\/div>\n<p>Mr. Becnel believes it&#8217;s prudent for a citrus grower\u2063 to be concerned about\u200c saltwater\u2064 moving up through the\u2063 Mississippi River delta and \u2062affecting his 500,000\u2064 plants\u2014even worried at times.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I&#8217;ve come to realize\u2014and recognize\u2014that worrying\u200d as an owner is a good thing,&#8221; \u200bhe said. &#8220;As long as you sleep at night.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;But when you worry as a business owner,\u2064 you&#8217;re unhappy. You know you have a problem. \u2062You recognize you have to fix that problem.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>From a regional perspective, that &#8220;fix&#8221; came from U.S. Army\u200d Corps of Engineers (USACOE) barges introducing millions of gallons of fresh water\u200d at treatment facilities to help \u200breduce salinity \u200cto \u2064safe levels.<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-figure\" style=\"margin-left:0;margin-right:0;max-width:1200px\">\n<figure style=\"width:640px;margin-left:auto;margin-right:auto\" class=\"alignnone\"><figcaption>Fifth-generation citrus grower Ricky Becnel examines her crops at Saxon Becnel &#038;\u200b Sons in Belle Chasse, La., on Oct. 13, 2023. (Allan Stein\/The Epoch Times)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>The USACOE also installed reverse osmosis machines at five treatment facilities throughout Plaquemines Parish, of which Belle Chasse\u2063 is a part. There are 64 parishes in the state of \u200dLouisiana, each \u200done the political equivalent of a county.<\/p>\n<p>Plaquemines Parish \u2062President Keith \u2063Hinkley said he&#8217;s had daily conversations with parish, state,\u2063 and federal officials about saltwater intrusion since the problem started last summer.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Everything is in place. We do feel we have a\u2064 handle on the\u2063 situation. But it&#8217;s because we&#8217;ve been dealing with this since June 19,&#8221; he told The Epoch Times.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;It&#8217;s been a daily conversation of ours. It&#8217;s Monday, the day starts, and we are talking about \u2064it \u200chere.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The \u2063problem\u2064 concerns Mother Nature\u2014a two-year regional \u200cdrought causing\u200c the Mississippi River&#8217;s water level to drop due to lack of rain.<\/p>\n<p>Usually, the\u2064 water pressure forcing the river into the Gulf keeps the saltwater at bay. With lower flows, \u2062the ocean water begins to seep into the channel and move upriver like a wedge.<\/p>\n<p>More than 80 percent of the state is currently under extreme drought conditions and 60 percent under exceptional drought conditions, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor website.<\/p>\n<div class=\"my-5\">\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/img.theepochtimes.com\/assets\/uploads\/2023\/10\/24\/id5516149-Document.jpeg-1.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><\/a>\n  <\/div>\n<div class=\"my-5\">\n<p>    Many communities in southeastern Louisiana receive their drinking\u2063 water from the Mississippi River after it&#8217;s treated.<\/p>\n<h2>&#8216;Houston, We&#8217;ve Got A Problem&#8217;<\/h2>\n<p>    However, salinity\u200d poses a health problem at unsafe levels as the water becomes difficult \u200bto \u200btreat with conventional purification \u2063methods.\n  <\/p><\/div>\n<p>Mr. Hinkley said the saltwater intrusion has been moving steadily upriver and as far north as mile marker 69, forcing communities\u200b to react and prepare with drinking water advisories.<\/p>\n<p>At 1,200 ppm, &#8220;Houston,\u200b we&#8217;ve got\u200b a problem,&#8221; he said.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;We&#8217;re\u2064 not in a holding pattern. We&#8217;re also talking with state delegates. We&#8217;ve been talking \u200cwith our federal delegates. We&#8217;re not slowing \u200cdown\u2014we&#8217;re moving forward.&#8221;<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-figure\" style=\"margin-left:0;margin-right:0;max-width:1200px\">\n<figure style=\"width:640px;margin-left:auto;margin-right:auto\" class=\"alignnone\"><figcaption>Plaquemines Parish President Keith Hinkley on Oct. 16, 2023. (Allan \u2062Stein\/The Epoch Times)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>On Sept. 22, New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell \u2064and the Sewerage\u200d and Water Board of New Orleans began discussions with federal emergency management agencies on minimizing saltwater intrusion&#8217;s health\u200c and environmental impacts.<\/p>\n<p>The mayor also signed \u200ban emergency declaration \u200callowing the city to &#8220;thoroughly prepare for and respond to any impending impacts.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;It also allows for a more streamlined \u2064response and for\u2063 state and federal agencies\u200c to \u2063deploy resources, if necessary,&#8221; Ms. Cantrell said in a press release.<\/p>\n<p>Currently, tap water in Orleans Parish remains &#8220;safe to drink and use for all purposes.&#8221;<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-figure\" style=\"margin-left:0;margin-right:0;max-width:1200px\">\n<figure style=\"width:640px;margin-left:auto;margin-right:auto\" class=\"alignnone\"><figcaption>Ace Eroset, a bartender in New Orleans&#8217; French Quarter, tends bar on Oct.\u200d 14, 2023. (Allan Stein\/The Epoch Times)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>&#8220;This goes beyond \u200dNew Orleans\u2014it is a\u2063 regional\u2063 problem,\u2063 and we will continue working to \u2064support our neighboring parishes of Plaquemines, who have already been impacted, and St. Bernard, who may soon be affected,&#8221; \u200cthe \u200bmayor wrote.<\/p>\n<p>The mayor&#8217;s office added that the USACOE&#8217;s anticipated timeline is for potential saltwater impacts at\u200c the Algiers and \u2064Carrollton water treatment plant locations along the Mississippi River \u200din late October.<\/p>\n<p>On Sept. 25, Louisiana&#8217;s Democrat Gov. John Bel Edwards requested an\u2064 emergency\u2064 declaration from President Joe Biden,\u2063 and two days later, the administration granted his request with promises of federal assistance.<\/p>\n<p>Since June, three water treatment facilities that serve Plaquemines Parish were &#8220;inundated&#8221; with saltwater, Mr. Hinkley\u200b said.<\/p>\n<p>Still, the temporary \u200dreverse osmosis machines appear to\u2063 be working.<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-figure\" style=\"margin-left:0;margin-right:0;max-width:1200px\">\n<figure style=\"width:640px;margin-left:auto;margin-right:auto\" class=\"alignnone\"><figcaption>New Orleans hotel guest Green Stevenson, a Vietnam veteran, on Oct. 16, 2023. (Allan\u200d Stein\/The Epoch \u200dTimes)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Reverse osmosis water purification uses micro-filters to remove\u2064 contaminants from the water to make it potable.<\/p>\n<p>At the parish&#8217;s \u200cBoothville water treatment facility, the salinity levels in\u2062 raw\u200b intake from the river\u200b measured 1,020 ppm on Oct. 18, reduced to a safe-to-drink 70 \u200cppm following reverse osmosis filtration, according to the Plaquemines Parish website.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;We were the first hit [by saltwater intrusion]. It was pretty strong for a while,&#8221;\u2063 Mr. Hinkley said.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;The chloride\u2014we&#8217;ve been\u2063 able to keep it down\u2014and that&#8217;s at all five facilities. \u200cAt every one of our plants,\u2064 we&#8217;re producing good water.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>He said the\u200d parish plans to install permanent reverse osmosis machines \u2062at three water treatment facilities for roughly $150 million.<\/p>\n<p>The Environmental Protection Agency said it&#8217;s safe \u200cto consume saline water below 250\u200d milligrams \u2063per liter.<\/p>\n<p>Anna Timmerman, \u200bassociate extension agent for horticulture at \u200cLouisiana State University&#8217;s\u200c AgCenter, told\u2062 The Epoch Times that in recent days the saltwater wedge\u200d retreated\u2062 more than five miles\u2062 to mile marker \u206363.9.<\/p>\n<p>Ms. Timmerman said Orleans and Jefferson parish growers and farmers should experience &#8220;minimal to no impact&#8221; if salt water levels remain stable at around 250 ppm, though most crops can tolerate &#8220;well over&#8221; 400 to 1,000 ppm.<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-figure\" style=\"margin-left:0;margin-right:0;max-width:1200px\">\n<figure style=\"width:640px;margin-left:auto;margin-right:auto\" class=\"alignnone\"><figcaption>Louisiana\u200c citrus grower Ricky Becnel ponders the \u200bfuture of his farm in Belle Chasse on Oct. 13, 2023. (Allan Stein\/The Epoch Tim3es)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>&#8220;Impacts\u2064 to most of lower Plaquemines Parish are ongoing and\u2062 unchanged for growers,&#8221; Ms. \u2063Timmerman added.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Upper Plaquemines\u200c and St. Bernard \u2064parish growers may still anticipate elevated salt levels in municipal water; \u200chowever, these levels are not forecasted to reach levels that \u200ckill or injure most crops.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Sensitive horticultural crops such as some greenhouse and nursery species may be impacted \u2064but may \u2064be flushed periodically with fresh water to prevent damage.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>She said mature trees should suffer minimal to no impact from higher salt levels, while most \u2064livestock species can tolerate up to 2,000 ppm.<\/p>\n<p>ACOE Public Affairs Specialist Matt Rowe said that under most conditions the river flowing\u2064 at 300,000 cubic feet per\u200b second is enough to keep the saltwater out of\u200b the delta.<\/p>\n<p>Below that amount, &#8220;we start to \u2063see saltwater intrusion north,&#8221; he said.<\/p>\n<p>He said the water flowing around 150,000 cubic \u200cfeet per\u2064 second or less has allowed the wedge of\u200d saline water to move as far north\u200b as mile marker 69.<\/p>\n<p>A similar condition occurred\u2064 in\u200b 1988 when saltwater intrusion reached the 104-mile marker. The historic high \u200bfor saltwater intrusion is mile marker 119, Mr. Rowe said.<\/p>\n<p>Low \u200cwater flows\u200d also enabled saltwater movement\u2063 upriver in 1999, 2012, and 2022.<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-figure\" style=\"margin-left:0;margin-right:0;max-width:1200px\">\n<figure style=\"width:640px;margin-left:auto;margin-right:auto\" class=\"alignnone\"><figcaption>Veteran citrus grower Ricky Becnel walks among the red pineapple and avocado plants in his Belle Chasse, La., nursery \u2064on\u2062 Oct. 13, 2023. (Allan Stein\/The Epoch Times)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Mr. Rowe said the\u200b Mississippi \u200dRiver\u200d is necessary for shipping and agriculture, draining about 41 percent of moisture from the contiguous United States.<\/p>\n<p>The\u200b current saltwater intrusion problem has noticeably\u2062 improved since September\u2062 through ACOE \u2064mitigation\u200d efforts, he said.<\/p>\n<p>In late\u200c June, the ACOE\u2062 constructed an underwater sill, or levee, near mile marker 63, augmenting an existing sill by 25 feet to slow the advance of the \u200bsaline\u2064 wedge and allow shipping to continue.<\/p>\n<p>That worked \u2062for a while, Mr. Rowe said, but when the\u200c saline levels began to increase, the agency decided to move \u2063the sill further north to the 69-mile marker.<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-figure\" style=\"margin-left:0;margin-right:0;max-width:1200px\">\n<figure style=\"width:640px;margin-left:auto;margin-right:auto\" class=\"alignnone\"><figcaption>A young street drummer performs in the French \u200dQuarter of New Orleans, La., on Oct. 14, 2023. (Allan Stein\/The Epoch Times)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>&#8220;It is truly\u200d wedge-shaped, from the toe to where you see \u200bhigher concentrations of salinity,&#8221;\u200d Mr. Rowe told \u200cThe Epoch Times. &#8220;With augmentation, it&#8217;s been performing\u200d better than we anticipated.\u200d The wedge has retreated downriver.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Installing reverse osmosis machines allowed purification facilities to treat up to 1 million gallons of water daily.<\/p>\n<p>Each day, the ACOE barges transport up to 12 million gallons of fresh potable water for use by these facilities.<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-figure\" style=\"margin-left:0;margin-right:0;max-width:1200px\">\n<figure style=\"width:640px;margin-left:auto;margin-right:auto\" class=\"alignnone\"><figcaption>A street performer named Roscoe\u2063 prepares to make\u200d his \u200bfirst chess move in the French Quarter of New Orleans, La., on Oct. 14, 2023. (Allan Stein\/The Epoch Times)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>In neighboring Tammany \u200dParish, Slidell resident Andy Frisard said the parish is fortunate to use\u2064 wells for drinking water instead of relying on the Mississippi River.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;We&#8217;re mostly well-driven,&#8221; said\u200d Mr. Frisard, who views the saltwater intrusion problem \u2064as &#8220;a force of nature.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;There&#8217;s not a whole \u200blot \u200cwe can do. Everything is low on \u2064the Mississippi \u2062now. We&#8217;re still preparing for the worst.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Right now, if\u200c this were Katrina, we&#8217;d be swimming underwater.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Further north, in\u2062 the &#8220;Big\u200c Easy&#8221;\u2014New Orleans (population 376,971)\u2014the French Quarter is a popular\u200d tourist\u2062 destination known for its vibrant night scene and eclectic mix \u2062of French and Creole cultures, world-class \u200bfood, festive Mardi Gras, and characteristic charm\u200d and openness.<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-figure\" style=\"margin-left:0;margin-right:0;max-width:1200px\">\n<figure style=\"width:640px;margin-left:auto;margin-right:auto\" class=\"alignnone\"><figcaption>Tourists snap a picture of a street performer on their cell\u200c phones in the French Quarter of New\u2062 Orleans, La., on Oct. 14, 2023. (Allan Stein\/The Epoch Times)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>So having access to fresh drinking\u200c water is essential to running a hospitality \u200dbusiness, said Ace Eroset, a bartender at Mango Daiquiris near Bourbon and St. Ann streets.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;It&#8217;s essential\u2014a No. 1 priority. It&#8217;s a fluid situation,&#8221; Mr. Eroset said, laughing \u2062at the pun.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Let&#8217;s hope we get some rain up north. It&#8217;s\u200b been a long, hot summer. That heat dome got \u200dto us.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Gary Martin, bar manager at The Corner Pocket, \u200csaid the saltwater intrusion should let up with much-needed rainfall.<\/p>\n<p>But for now, the drought \u200cis hurting everyone.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;We have to understand it&#8217;s going to affect \u200cPlaquemines Parish, Orleans Parish, and Jefferson Parish,&#8221; Mr. Martin said. \u2063&#8221;A lot of \u200cpeople are freaking out about it.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Even so, &#8220;I don&#8217;t think it&#8217;s like during COVID when the whole world shut down. It&#8217;s just a small section along the river.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Donya Craig, manager of the Trident Inn and Suites in New Orleans, said that while\u2063 the city has yet to feel the direct\u2063 impact of saltwater \u2062intrusion: &#8220;We have to keep \u2063working&#8221; \u2062to ensure it doesn&#8217;t\u2062 happen\u2014especially within the hospitality industry.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;In the hospitality industry, it becomes a huge factor for our guests,&#8221; he said. &#8220;We&#8217;re talking showers. We do operate a breakfast in the morning. We would have to shut the\u2063 water off for breakfast, coffee, and juice.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;It&#8217;s not happening right now\u2014thankfully. Hopefully, it doesn&#8217;t happen. It \u2062would be a \u2064huge detriment to the hotel industry.<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-figure\" style=\"margin-left:0;margin-right:0;max-width:1200px\">\n<figure style=\"width:640px;margin-left:auto;margin-right:auto\" class=\"alignnone\"><figcaption>Tourists enjoy a meal at a busy restaurant in the French Quarter of New Orleans on Oct. 14, 2023.\u200c (Allan Stein\/The Epoch Times)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>&#8220;This has \u200cnever happened before, to my knowledge. It&#8217;s\u2064 never happened, even as a kid growing up in the area.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Hotel guest Green Stevenson Jr., 74, a former Merchant Marine and Vietnam veteran, \u2063said he\u2064 believes the \u2062ongoing drought is, &#8220;in my humble opinion, \u2062a result of global warming.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;This is a serious thing.\u2064 I don&#8217;t think the salt will get here. I think the rain will come right at the\u2064 last minute,&#8221; Mr. Stevenson told The Epoch Times.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I think God is trying to tell us something\u2014and we&#8217;re not listening.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>As far as citrus grower Ricky\u200d Becnel is concerned, it&#8217;s a\u2063 matter of watching, waiting, and monitoring\u2064 the river daily.<\/p>\n<p>The plan is for the\u200b nursery to continue as \u2062the family has done for nearly 150 years.<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-figure\" style=\"margin-left:0;margin-right:0;max-width:1200px\">\n<figure style=\"width:640px;margin-left:auto;margin-right:auto\" class=\"alignnone\"><figcaption>Tourists crowd the streets of the \u2063popular French Quarter in\u2062 New\u2064 Orleans on Oct. 14, 2023. (Allan Stein\/The Epoch Times)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>&#8220;I&#8217;ve always thought that you&#8217;ve got negatives in life,&#8221; Mr. Becnel said. &#8220;Katrina\u200d was \u200ca tremendous hit. You take that negative \u200cand turn it\u2062 into a positive.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>So the family opened another nursery in Orange, Texas, \u200dwhich &#8220;makes this\u200b one look like a postage stamp\u2014five \u200ctimes the size\u2063 of this one. Everything is bigger in Texas,&#8221;\u200b he said.<\/p>\n<p>The rest he&#8217;ll leave\u200d to the parish authorities and Mother Nature.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Do I think we&#8217;ll be OK? I do.\u200c We have\u2062 a\u200d game\u200c plan,&#8221; Mr. Becnel\u2063 said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Belle Chasse, La. &#8211; Ricky Becnel&#8217;s citrus plant nursery, Saxon Becnel &amp; Sons, is safeguarded by a man-made levee against severe flooding. For over a century, this family-owned business has thrived alongside the lower Mississippi River, benefiting from its fertile lands.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":294,"featured_media":2078714,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[543],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2078713","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-epoch-times"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2078713","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/294"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2078713"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2078713\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2078714"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2078713"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2078713"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2078713"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}