IN THE END, PROTECTION FROM RIVER IS BEST

As we watch the battle against Mississippi River floodwaters to the north of us, we can both sympathize and wonder why cities like Davenport, Iowa, resist the protection of a floodwall.

We can sympathize because the memories of the floods of 1993 and 1997 are still with us. Even though Cape Girardeau's downtown stayed dry thanks to the floodwall, extensive flooding in smaller towns and vast agricultural areas was devastating.

Folks in Davenport have turned down the protection of a floodwall because they place such a high value on the view of and access to the mighty river. Both of those reasons are noble, but not very practical. As a result, the federal government is called upon to pay for flood damage time after time.

Cape Girardeau, in the meantime, has also taken advantage of a costly flood-buyout program. In the long run spending million of dollars once to either protect property or remove it from harm's way is significantly better.