Why do people still live in New Orleans?

[Beltway]

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/may/04/new-orleans-sea-levels-relocation-climate-crisis
I wonder how long this will continue to be ignored. The evidence is piling up, it's nearly a mathematical certainty New Orleans will be uninhabitable by 2100, and that's without considering any Katrina-like events.

Year 2100 predications are worthless. I have done a lot of pleasure boating in the past, mainly tidal intracoastal Florida east coast, and Chesapeake Bay (all tidal).

The USGS has never revised any of the bridge vertical navigational clearances on their official nautical charts. Even 1 foot (or 0.51 rounded up to 1) is important for mariners to know.  You don't want your 20 foot high mast to get torn off if that 20 foot clearance is now 19 feet (for just one example).

[kphoger]

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/may/04/new-orleans-sea-levels-relocation-climate-crisis

... if nothing is done, people will just trickle out over time and it will be an uncoordinated mess.

That hardly sounds like the dire outcome the rest of the article makes it out to be.

[Rothman]

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/may/04/new-orleans-sea-levels-relocation-climate-crisis
I wonder how long this will continue to be ignored. The evidence is piling up, it's nearly a mathematical certainty New Orleans will be uninhabitable by 2100, and that's without considering any Katrina-like events.

Year 2100 predications are worthless. I have done a lot of pleasure boating in the past, mainly tidal intracoastal Florida east coast, and Chesapeake Bay (all tidal).

The USGS has never revised any of the bridge vertical navigational clearances on their official nautical charts. Even 1 foot (or 0.51 rounded up to 1) is important for mariners to know.  You don't want your 20 foot high mast to get torn off if that 20 foot clearance is now 19 feet (for just one example).

Given that oceans are rising at "only" a fifth of an inch per year, that's not very surprising.  It's more of a "raise temperature slowly to cook a frog" kind of deal.

At least from the perspectiveI was coming from, it wasn't about denying climate change and its effects, but more about human ingenuity at coming up with ways to inhabit the uninhabitable, no matter how unpleasant (e.g., see the very recent discussions of people living where water is limited...).

[vdeane]

Given that oceans are rising at "only" a fifth of an inch per year, that's not very surprising.  It's more of a "raise temperature slowly to cook a frog" kind of deal.

Yeah, what are people expecting - a tsunami that makes the whole coastline go from the old normal to underwater with fish swimming above?

[Beltway]

Given that oceans are rising at "only" a fifth of an inch per year, that's not very surprising.  It's more of a "raise temperature slowly to cook a frog" kind of deal.

Yeah, what are people expecting - a tsunami that makes the whole coastline go from the old normal to underwater with fish swimming above?

Tsunamis quickly recede back to normal -- see the many videos of the 2011 Japan tsunamis.

[Beltway]

At least from the perspectiveI was coming from, it wasn't about denying climate change and its effects, but more about human ingenuity at coming up with ways to inhabit the uninhabitable, no matter how unpleasant (e.g., see the very recent discussions of people living where water is limited...).

That does matter, as I have been thinking of moving back to the beachfront community where I grew up in Florida. Housing foundation elevations are 8 to 16 feet ASL. Beach of course is zero. Space Coast where hurricanes rarely go.

[thspfc]

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/may/04/new-orleans-sea-levels-relocation-climate-crisis

I wonder how long this will continue to be ignored. The evidence is piling up, it's nearly a mathematical certainty New Orleans will be uninhabitable by 2100, and that's without considering any Katrina-like events.

Whenever New Orleans has been deemed wiped out, it has just rebuilt at considerable expense.  Sort of laughs at the idea of "uninhabitable."

Then again, after Katrina, businesses did move to the north shore...

For some reason I seriously doubt they'll laugh at "uninhabitable" as they attempt to maintain a city under constant and increasing siege from the fringes of the Gulf of Mexico, irrespective of any individual storm event.

A more in depth article: https://www.nola.com/news/environment/new-orleans-relocate-sea-level-rise-study/article_45566f0e-2390-4d15-b7b6-14f1e0f8983f.html#tncms-source=featured-2

[Max Rockatansky]

People were pretty much slowly leaving New Orleans even before Hurricane Katrina. 

[vdeane]

Given that oceans are rising at "only" a fifth of an inch per year, that's not very surprising.  It's more of a "raise temperature slowly to cook a frog" kind of deal.

Yeah, what are people expecting - a tsunami that makes the whole coastline go from the old normal to underwater with fish swimming above?

Tsunamis quickly recede back to normal -- see the many videos of the 2011 Japan tsunamis.

Way to completely miss the point

[Plutonic Panda]

New Orleans is gonna be fine. The doom gloom shit is comical. New Orleans is truly a unique city, unlike any other in my opinion. I just wish they would do more to clean up the crime. The United States certainly seems like they are going to continue to invest in it with I-49 being extended there as well as more ideas to come up with better levees.

[Max Rockatansky]

New Orleans is gonna be fine. The doom gloom shit is comical.

People used to say things like that about Detroit when I was a kid.

[Plutonic Panda]

New Orleans is gonna be fine. The doom gloom shit is comical.

People used to say things like that about Detroit when I was a kid.

And I mean, look at that Detroit is coming back, isn't it? I'm sure the suburbs of South LA were pretty nice at one point. Then they got bad. Now you have cities like Inglewood where houses are triple what they were worth just a decade ago.

[Max Rockatansky]

New Orleans is gonna be fine. The doom gloom shit is comical.

People used to say things like that about Detroit when I was a kid.

And I mean, look at that Detroit is coming back, isn't it?

Cities don't come back from losing 1,200,000 residents.

[Plutonic Panda]

New Orleans is gonna be fine. The doom gloom shit is comical.

People used to say things like that about Detroit when I was a kid.

And I mean, look at that Detroit is coming back, isn't it?

Cities don't come back from losing 1,200,000 residents.

Oh, we'll see. That is a lot of people no doubt. But there's a lot of innovative things that can be done. I mean we've gone to the fucking moon. I'm sure someone can come up with an idea that can balance out the loss of Detroit and its population. The downtown scene seems to be coming back in some areas. I've seen some before and after photos of neighborhoods in Detroit in 2010 that looked like a war zone in the Middle East that are now completely developed. I'm gonna be visiting there pretty soon. I take it that you're from there? Anywhere you would recommend I go?

[Max Rockatansky]

New Orleans is gonna be fine. The doom gloom shit is comical.

People used to say things like that about Detroit when I was a kid.

And I mean, look at that Detroit is coming back, isn't it?

Cities don't come back from losing 1,200,000 residents.

Oh, we'll see. That is a lot of people no doubt. But there's a lot of innovative things that can be done. I mean we've gone to the fucking moon. I'm sure someone can come up with an idea that can balance out the loss of Detroit and its population. The downtown scene seems to be coming back in some areas. I've seen some before and after photos of neighborhoods in Detroit in 2010 that looked like a war zone in the Middle East that are now completely developed. I'm gonna be visiting there pretty soon. I take it that you're from there? Anywhere you would recommend I go?

Yes, I am from Detroit.  Woodward and downtown are pretty neat.  There are still a lot of notable ruined buildings if you're into that kind of thing.

[Molandfreak]

Sometimes I wonder what would happen if the Army Corps of Engineers gave up on its effort to keep the Mississippi on its current path, allowing it to divert more into the Atchafalaya. How much of New Orleans' economy is dependent on the ports?

[thspfc]

 

New Orleans is gonna be fine. The doom gloom shit is comical.

You're living in the movie Don't Look Up. Though being in denial over one city is not a big deal all things considered.

[Plutonic Panda]

New Orleans is gonna be fine. The doom gloom shit is comical.

You're living in the movie Don't Look Up. Though being in denial over one city is not a big deal all things considered.

New Orleans is gonna be fine. The doom gloom shit is comical.

People used to say things like that about Detroit when I was a kid.

And I mean, look at that Detroit is coming back, isn't it?

Cities don't come back from losing 1,200,000 residents.

Oh, we'll see. That is a lot of people no doubt. But there's a lot of innovative things that can be done. I mean we've gone to the fucking moon. I'm sure someone can come up with an idea that can balance out the loss of Detroit and its population. The downtown scene seems to be coming back in some areas. I've seen some before and after photos of neighborhoods in Detroit in 2010 that looked like a war zone in the Middle East that are now completely developed. I'm gonna be visiting there pretty soon. I take it that you're from there? Anywhere you would recommend I go?

Yes, I am from Detroit.  Woodward and downtown are pretty neat.  There are still a lot of notable ruined buildings if you're into that kind of thing.

Yeah, it would be actually kind of interesting to drive through blocks and blocks and blocks of those neighborhoods to be honest. I don't know if you've seen the movie it follows but they did a pretty good job of showcasing the hopelessness and dread that they seem to have in that situation being that it was filmed in Detroit and all.

[Max Rockatansky]

New Orleans is gonna be fine. The doom gloom shit is comical.

You're living in the movie Don't Look Up. Though being in denial over one city is not a big deal all things considered.

New Orleans is gonna be fine. The doom gloom shit is comical.

People used to say things like that about Detroit when I was a kid.

And I mean, look at that Detroit is coming back, isn't it?

Cities don't come back from losing 1,200,000 residents.

Oh, we'll see. That is a lot of people no doubt. But there's a lot of innovative things that can be done. I mean we've gone to the fucking moon. I'm sure someone can come up with an idea that can balance out the loss of Detroit and its population. The downtown scene seems to be coming back in some areas. I've seen some before and after photos of neighborhoods in Detroit in 2010 that looked like a war zone in the Middle East that are now completely developed. I'm gonna be visiting there pretty soon. I take it that you're from there? Anywhere you would recommend I go?

Yes, I am from Detroit.  Woodward and downtown are pretty neat.  There are still a lot of notable ruined buildings if you're into that kind of thing.

Yeah, it would be actually kind of interesting to drive through blocks and blocks and blocks of those neighborhoods to be honest. I don't know if you've seen the movie it follows but they did a pretty good job of showcasing the hopelessness and dread that they seem to have in that situation being that it was filmed in Detroit and all.

My wife and I went through the Delray neighborhood on a recent trip.  A chunk of that neighborhood was consumed for the Gordie Howe Bridge.  What's left is mostly abandoned houses and crumbling streets. 

[hotdogPi]

Sometimes I wonder what would happen if the Army Corps of Engineers gave up on its effort to keep the Mississippi on its current path, allowing it to divert more into the Atchafalaya. How much of New Orleans' economy is dependent on the ports?

I think we should do this, since it's unsustainable. Pick an exact date roughly 20 years in the future so there's plenty of notice and no ambiguity about what will happen.

[Plutonic Panda]

Sometimes I wonder what would happen if the Army Corps of Engineers gave up on its effort to keep the Mississippi on its current path, allowing it to divert more into the Atchafalaya. How much of New Orleans' economy is dependent on the ports?

I think we should do this, since it's unsustainable. Pick an exact date roughly 20 years in the future so there's plenty of notice and no ambiguity about what will happen.

Well Holland has done a pretty good job at sustaining this type of practice for a while. I don't see why the army corpse of engineers should just give up on a unique city like New Orleans. Of course, if they gave up on their efforts, the city would fell and flood, and become a wasteland.

[Plutonic Panda]

New Orleans is gonna be fine. The doom gloom shit is comical.

You're living in the movie Don't Look Up. Though being in denial over one city is not a big deal all things considered.

New Orleans is gonna be fine. The doom gloom shit is comical.

People used to say things like that about Detroit when I was a kid.

And I mean, look at that Detroit is coming back, isn't it?

Cities don't come back from losing 1,200,000 residents.

Oh, we'll see. That is a lot of people no doubt. But there's a lot of innovative things that can be done. I mean we've gone to the fucking moon. I'm sure someone can come up with an idea that can balance out the loss of Detroit and its population. The downtown scene seems to be coming back in some areas. I've seen some before and after photos of neighborhoods in Detroit in 2010 that looked like a war zone in the Middle East that are now completely developed. I'm gonna be visiting there pretty soon. I take it that you're from there? Anywhere you would recommend I go?

Yes, I am from Detroit.  Woodward and downtown are pretty neat.  There are still a lot of notable ruined buildings if you're into that kind of thing.

Yeah, it would be actually kind of interesting to drive through blocks and blocks and blocks of those neighborhoods to be honest. I don't know if you've seen the movie it follows but they did a pretty good job of showcasing the hopelessness and dread that they seem to have in that situation being that it was filmed in Detroit and all.

My wife and I went through the Delray neighborhood on a recent trip.  A chunk of that neighborhood was consumed for the Gordie Howe Bridge.  What's left is mostly abandoned houses and crumbling streets. 

I can't remember the YouTube channel, but a guy films himself driving through some pretty rough areas and one of them is in Baltimore and I mean it looks horrific.

[Max Rockatansky]

New Orleans is gonna be fine. The doom gloom shit is comical.

You're living in the movie Don't Look Up. Though being in denial over one city is not a big deal all things considered.

New Orleans is gonna be fine. The doom gloom shit is comical.

People used to say things like that about Detroit when I was a kid.

And I mean, look at that Detroit is coming back, isn't it?

Cities don't come back from losing 1,200,000 residents.

Oh, we'll see. That is a lot of people no doubt. But there's a lot of innovative things that can be done. I mean we've gone to the fucking moon. I'm sure someone can come up with an idea that can balance out the loss of Detroit and its population. The downtown scene seems to be coming back in some areas. I've seen some before and after photos of neighborhoods in Detroit in 2010 that looked like a war zone in the Middle East that are now completely developed. I'm gonna be visiting there pretty soon. I take it that you're from there? Anywhere you would recommend I go?

Yes, I am from Detroit.  Woodward and downtown are pretty neat.  There are still a lot of notable ruined buildings if you're into that kind of thing.

Yeah, it would be actually kind of interesting to drive through blocks and blocks and blocks of those neighborhoods to be honest. I don't know if you've seen the movie it follows but they did a pretty good job of showcasing the hopelessness and dread that they seem to have in that situation being that it was filmed in Detroit and all.

My wife and I went through the Delray neighborhood on a recent trip.  A chunk of that neighborhood was consumed for the Gordie Howe Bridge.  What's left is mostly abandoned houses and crumbling streets. 

I can't remember the YouTube channel, but a guy films himself driving through some pretty rough areas and one of them is in Baltimore and I mean it looks horrific.

Check on the Roadwaywiz webinar on Detroit.  Specifically the segment featuring M-85. 

[kphoger]

I mean we've gone to the fucking moon. I'm sure someone can come up with an idea that can balance out the loss of Detroit and its population.

Adjusted for inflation, the Apollo program cost about $300 billion.  And the money chiefly came from the U.S. federal government, because they saw it as being in the national interest during the Cold War to assert American dominance over the Soviet Union.  It also had the admiration, admiration, and awe of the American populace, with kids looking up to astronauts as national heroes.

I'm struggling to see how any of that could compare to the task of revitalizing Detroit.

[Rothman]

I mean we've gone to the fucking moon. I'm sure someone can come up with an idea that can balance out the loss of Detroit and its population.

Adjusted for inflation, the Apollo program cost about $300 billion.  And the money chiefly came from the U.S. federal government, because they saw it as being in the national interest during the Cold War to assert American dominance over the Soviet Union.  It also had the admiration, admiration, and awe of the American populace, with kids looking up to astronauts as national heroes.

I'm struggling to see how any of that could compare to the task of revitalizing Detroit.

A lot of consumer goods came out of NASA's development (e.g., velcro...).