English: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New Orleans District, held a press conference Sept. 15, 2023, at their headquarters in New Orleans, Louisiana, to discuss plans to further augment the existing underwater barrier sill in the Mississippi River to help slow the progression of the saltwater sill upriver from the Gulf of Mexico. Col. Cullen Jones, USACE New Orleans District commander, briefed media on current steps the Corps plans to take to augment the sill while working with the U.S. Coast Guard and navigation industry to maintain navigation along the Mississippi River. In addition, Plaquemines Parish President Keith Hinkley and Governor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness) director, Casey Tingle, spoke to media at the conference about steps to ensure safe and sufficient water supplies for parish residents. The current National Weather Service forecast projects river levels falling to approximately 130,000 cubic feet per second in the New Orleans area. These levels represent the lowest river volume in this area since the recorded low of 120,000 cubic feet per second in 1988. USACE continues to closely monitor, survey and model the impacts these conditions may have on the river with regards to both navigation and saltwater intrusion from the Gulf of Mexico. This low-water event marks the first time underwater sills were required in back-to-back years as a result of saltwater intrusion from the Gulf of Mexico, however the New Orleans District is ready to meet this challenge with the best science, engineering data, and technology available.