LOW RIVER BRINGS GOOD, BAD NEWS

With so little rain for the past few months, the Mississippi River is as low as anyone can remember it being for several years.

That's not to say the river is running dry. It's still deep enough for barges to be pushed upstream and down. There's still a nasty current in the main channel.

But water quality has actually improved, say the experts at the water-treatment plant. Out in the middle of the river, where crews are still working on the foundation for the new highway bridge, the low water is generating its own set of problems. The midriver caisson that it being used to fill cracks in the bedrock under what will be a key pier is filled with sand. Without the pressure of river water on the outside of the caisson, there is tremendous internal pressure that must be constantly monitored. For the bridge crews, the river always seems to be two high or too low. The bridge builders would like for everything to be just right.

Wouldn't we all?