BATON ROUGE - There's a lot of work happening in East Baton Rouge Parish's waterways. They haven't been cleaned out in decades, which means there's plenty to do.

There's an impressive sight to see along Bayou Fountain near Burbank Drive. Piles and piles of debris are stacked high, waiting to be hauled away. The first phase of the joint $255 million flood mitigation project between East Baton Rouge Parish and the Army Corps of Engineers is complete. Jones Creek from the Amite River to O'Neal Lane has been cleared and snagged, and work is underway on Bayou Fountain.

The project took some time to get going after it was fully funded in August 2019. Real estate had to be acquired, utilities relocated and studies completed. So far, 3.3 miles of the near 50-mile task are finished, and work on the next 4.6 miles in Bayou Fountain from Bayou Manchac to Burbank Drive is happening now.

"It was our number two priority because of the number of people that are actually impacted by this stream," said Fred Raiford, director of Transportation and Drainage in East Baton Rouge Parish.

The Army Corps reports that the clearing and snagging work along Bayou Fountain is 30% complete, and approximately 11,000 CY of debris have been removed from the channel. The project should wrap up in October. Work to clear and snag Ward Creek is next, and the equipment is on the way. The project works on the lower parts of the channels first.

"So we don't create an impact on anyone in the community or surrounding parishes," Raiford said.

Other improvements are coming to upper Jones Creek, Blackwater Bayou and Beaver Bayou, but that part of the flood mitigation project is more complex.

Last summer, about $3 million were made available to clear and snag the Comite River from the Amite River to Highway 64. The City of Central contributed $500,000. The parish says the property needed has been secured, and the equipment is ready to go.

"Within two weeks, we should have a permit," Raiford said.

There are also American Rescue Plan dollars at work. Plans include clearing and snagging the Comite River, Amite River, Ward Creek, Claycut Bayou and Bayou Manchac. The parish says it's honoring a commitment made to citizens years ago.

"We're trying to get our major channels cleared where we can at least help facilitate moving water on heavy rain events—on any rain event—to get it from out of the streets, into the roadside ditch, into the big ditch and into the outfalls," Raiford said.

The city says these waterways were last cleaned out at least 40–50 years ago.