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Katrina wreaked largescale environmental damage

John Vidal

Hurricane destroyed the natural defences of the region against storm surges

LONDON: The extent of the environmental damage inflicted on the southern U.S. States of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama began to emerge on Thursday with reports of an entire group of islands disappearing, serious oil slicks and the potential ruin of the seafood industry.

Immediate concern centred on Louisiana's heavy industrial area. Katrina flooded many of the 140 large petrochemical works that line the Mississippi river between Baton Rouge and New Orleans, and little assessment has been done of the damage.

Initial aerial reconnaissance by the environmental protection agency suggests no serious chemical damage but has revealed several large oil spills.

About 85,000 barrels of crude is now known to have escaped from a Murphy Oil plant in Chalmette, Louisiana, and a further 68,000 barrels were spilled by a damaged storage tank. As an international relief effort gathered pace and the Mexican army entered the U.S. for the first time since 1846 to bring aid, scientists warned that Katrina had seriously weakened the delta's natural defences and the whole region was much more vulnerable to further hurricanes and storm surges.

``The 40-mile long Chandeleur chain of barrier islands off the Louisiana coast which used to protect the delta from storm surges have pretty well gone,'' said Laurence Rouse of the Louisiana State University.

``The delta is definitely under more threat now. Great damage has also been done to the wetlands and marshes which also act as defences. They have been ripped up.''

- Guardian Newspapers Limited 2005

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