Lake Pontchartrain

Brackish lake

The Lake Pontchartrain (English: Lake Pontchartrain [ leɪkpɑ ntʃətɹeɪn ː ] ) in southeastern Louisiana is a brackish lake and after the Great Salt Lake is the second largest saltwater lake in the United States.

The lake is largely oval ( partly artificially deepened to shipping routes ) with an east-west extent of about 64 km, a north- Südausdehnung of 38 km, an area of 1839 km ² and an average depth of 3.65 m to 4.26 m. It is approximately three times the size of Lake Constance. To the south, New Orleans, Mandeville and Madisonville in the north, northeast Slidell. To the west of Lake Pontchartrain via a channel to the Lake Maurepas is connected; in the east of the Rigolets and Lake Borgne, a lagoon of the Gulf of Mexico. The salinity of the lake varies - depending on location - " negligible " of up to half of the normal oceanic salinity.

In some languages ​​of the Native Americans of the Lake Pontchartrain Okwata was called ( " Wide Water "). Its current name was given to the lake in 1699 by the French explorer Pierre Le Moyne d' Iberville in honor of Louis de Pontchartrain Phelypeaux, at that time French naval minister and chancellor.

The Lake Pontchartrain is not actually a lake and not a reservoir but a lagoon. The city deeper New Orleans is protected by up to six meters high dikes from flooding by the lake.

The Lake Pontchartrain and other lakes form the mouth of the Mississippi River. This drains the Pontchartrain Basin, was a 12,000 km ² area on the eastern ( left) side of the river. A third of the population of Louisiana lives in this basin. The lake serves as a versatile recreation area. Across the lake take the 40 kilometer -long double bridge that connects with Covington since 1956, New Orleans. The newer of the two bridges, the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway II, was opened in 1969. The bridge is the tenth longest bridge in the world.

On February 25, 1964 Traffic Machine type Douglas DC-8 crashed into the lagoon. In this case, all 58 passengers were killed, including the singer and actor Kenneth Spencer.

The Lake Pontchartrain gained worldwide notoriety when on 30 August 2005 broke several levees during Hurricane Katrina and New Orleans put under water. One of the levee breaches occurred on the lake shore, others on multiple channels (Industrial, 17th Street and London Street Canal ) connecting the lake with the city inside. The length of the dike breach was later given only 50-60 m by 91 m. It was not until about a week later could the leaks from the United States Army Corps of Engineers, the pioneer corps of the Army are closed.

Environment and Nature

The lake is home to over 125 species of marine and aquatic life - including anchovies, sharks and alligators. The surrounding wetland is inhabited by otters, wild pigs, ducks and eagles.

By 1991, raw materials were dredged for cement and asphalt of the lake floor.

The Lake Pontchartrain has long suffered from pollution, while pumping out the city of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, large amounts of contaminated water have fallen into the lake.