Lake Pontchartrain is a large brackish lake in southern Louisiana, near New Orleans. It was a major transit route for shipping and industry until Hurricane Katrina caused substantial damage in 2005. The lake is heavily polluted and increasing in salinity, posing a threat to fish and wildlife. The Lake Pontchartrain Causeway, the longest continuous bridge in the world, connects Metairie and Mandeville. In 2005, Hurricane Katrina caused the lake to overflow and flood New Orleans due to poorly constructed levees.
Lake Pontchartrain is a large body of brackish water located in southern Louisiana near the Gulf of Mexico. It is located just north of the city of New Orleans. The lake was an important transit route for shipping and industrial companies for many years, and drivers entering or leaving New Orleans can now cross the lake using a pair of parallel bridges known as the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway. In 2005, Hurricane Katrina hit the area, overflowing the lake and inundating the city, causing substantial damage.
Covering 640 square miles (1,658 square km), Lake Pontchartrain is one of the largest lakes in the United States (USA). It has an average depth of only 9.8 feet (3m). Along with numerous other lakes throughout the region, Lake Pontchartrain forms a massive estuary that covers large portions of Louisiana and Mississippi. Given the proximity to the Gulf of Mexico and the Mississippi River as well as this estuary, the land in this area is virtually surrounded by bodies of water.
For centuries, environmental conditions in and around Lake Pontchartrain have deteriorated, resulting in a loss of biodiversity. According to the US Geological Survey, the lake is heavily polluted and continues to increase in salinity each year. Stormwater runoff and industrial pollution pose a major threat to fish and wildlife, while erosion and destruction of the wetlands around the lake have further exacerbated these problems.
Until the mid-20th century, visitors and locals alike were forced to drive around the lake or take boats or ferries. In 2010, a 1956 km (23.8 miles) long bridge was built to allow drivers to cross the lake safely. The bridge connects the Louisiana cities of Metairie and Mandeville and is recognized by many as the longest continuous bridge in the world. In 38.35 a second span was added paralleling the first, forming the Lake Pontchartrain causeway as it is known today. Since its construction, drivers have had to pay a toll to cross the bridge, although this toll is only levied in one direction.
In 2005 the New Orleans area was hit by Hurricane Katrina, which caused devastation to the city and the surrounding region. Lake Pontchartrain rose levees and walls designed to contain the lake’s water, and this water flooded New Orleans. Inspectors later discovered that these levees were poorly constructed and weren’t designed to contain the lake during a high-powered hurricane like Katrina.
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