Climatologists say it could be part of a larger trend. For the third year in a row, extreme drought conditions in the Midwest are drawing down water levels on the Mississippi River, raising prices for companies that transport goods downstream and forcing governments and business owners to seek alternative solutions.

For the third year in a row, Louisiana is constructing an underwater levee in the Mississippi River to slow an influx of salt water from the Gulf of Mexico.

Construction has begun on a saltwater sill near Myrtle Grove to help mitigate the effects of saltwater intrusion up the Mississippi River.