The Gateway
The Gateway
St. Louis Public Radio
Tuesday, May 19 - A useful setback
11 minutes Posted May 19, 2026 at 10:33 am.
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The Mississippi River is lined with decades-old levees that sit right on the river bank. But some researchers say those levees are doing a poor job of preventing floods — especially as climate change makes historic flooding events more common and more severe. As St. Louis Public Radio’s Katie Grawitch reports, a new setback levee system near Spanish Lake is one of many getting a makeover that will help it guard against flooding.