New Orleans Reopens Landfill for Hurricane Debris

The Old Gentilly Landfill in New Orleans, which closed nearly 25 years ago, has been reopened as a disposal site for debris left behind in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, according to a report in the Washington Post.

State officials are allowing dumping at the unlined Old Gentilly Landfill even though more modern sites are nearby—an example of relaxing environmental rules in Louisiana to accommodate the massive amounts of debris the storm left behind, according to the report.

The landfill was closed after federal regulators identified it as a potentially hazardous site. According to the Washington Post, New Orleans has been trying to reopen the site for two years.