The Army Corps of Engineers says that they are behind schedule on three of 10 levee projects that were to have been awarded by the end of September.

WWL-TV

Work on the Lakefront levee between the Orleans and London Avenue canals is one of the projects that the Corps says is behind schedule.

The projects are 10 out of about 150 that the Corps plans to finish by June 2011 to protect the metro area against a 100-year storm.

The three projects the Corps says its behind on include: The Lakefront Levee between the Orleans and London Avenue canals, the federal levee in Grand Isle and structural repairs to the Orleans Parish pump stations.

The pump station project is 10 months behind, according to the Corps, which blames the problems on finding contractors.

“It’s been a lack of response by minority contracting businesses,” said Dan Bradley of the Corps. “It’s made it tough to award. There’s a lot of work out there and they’re picking and choosing their projects.”

The Corps contends that none of the delays will affect completion of the 100-year protection project by 2011, but at least one local watchdog group isn't so sure.

"It certainly makes me feel if we're already behind," said Sandy Rosenthal of Levees.org. "And there are four more hurricane seasons to 2011."