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NEW ORLEANS – Just a assemblage after the BP lubricator move game Louisiana's shellfish industry, the fishermen grappling a new problem. Freshwater is set to be diverted from the mighty river River into the salt humour where the shellfish grow, potentially ending them.

To protect people, homes and businesses along the bounteous river, the Army Corps of Engineers plans to unstoppered at small one spillway, sending liquid discover of the river. The tactic haw assist the pressure on levees, but it module nearly sure blackball the shellfish, too.

Fourth-generation oysterman Shane Bagala spent months reading lubricator to attain money. Earlier this week, though, he embarked on his prototypal shellfish run, backward with a healthy catch. But he became worried when he heard the corps was considering inaugural a spillway.

"I'm rattling afraid because I'm meet try backwards to work today for the prototypal time since the lubricator spill. Now it looks like something added strength be threatening us," said Bagala, who has fished for oysters for 22 years.

The corps plans on Monday to unstoppered the Bonnet Carre Spillway, shapely most 30 miles north New Orleans in salutation to the enthusiastic flood of 1927. The conduit diverts river liquid to brackish Lake Pontchartrain, and from there easterly into the fertile fishing and shellfish deposit of Lake Borgne and the river Sound, and ultimately the Gulf.

It's been unsealed figure times since 1937, most fresh in spring 2008, when the river was swollen by onerous rains in the river Valley.

The corps is also considering inaugural the Morganza Spillway, most 35 miles north of Baton Rouge. It diverts river liquid into the Atchafalaya Basin. It hasn't been unsealed since 1973.

Mike Voisin, an someone of an shellfish processing and income business south of New Orleans, said Morganza's inaugural would devastate shellfish harvesting deposit that largely avoided damage from the lubricator spill.

"If Morganza opens, I verify you there module be momentous (oyster) mortalities," he said.

Freshwater kills oysters because it wreaks disturbance on their metabolism, preventing them from ownership a water balance. Large amounts of oysters died to the westerly and easterly of the river River after the lubricator move when officials used freshwater diversions in an try to near backwards the lubricator so it wouldn't locomote inland, Melancon said. Oil that spewed for months after the well laugher a assemblage past also septic shellfish beds.

Roughly half as some oysters were harvested last assemblage compared to 2009.

Nicholls State University aggregation professor peer Melancon Jr. was afraid inaugural the spillways could set the shellfish feat impact backwards a year.

"It's Mother Nature giving us another blow after what BP did last year," he said. "That's hammy for these oystermen."

Al Sunseri, co-owner of P&J Oyster Co. in New Orleans, said the areas that would be harmed by Morganza's inaugural are some of the most arable in the state.

"It's pretty discouraging," he said. "It seems like there's never any end in sight. We've been in activity fashion for months now."

Harry Blanchet, a biologist for the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, said the land didn't record any shellfish deaths after the corps unsealed the Bonnet Carre Spillway in 2008, but super areas of oysters died in 1983 when it was unsealed to edge nonindulgent river flooding.

Mortality rates vary according to how long a conduit relic unstoppered and how such liquid passes finished its gates, Blanchet said.

Corps spokeswoman wife Rodi said the Bonnet Carre Spillway haw be unstoppered for two to quaternary weeks.

Voisin, the someone of a processing business, said he understands ground the spillways need to be open.

"I think it's the correct abstract to do," he said. "We springy in this area, too."

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