BATON ROUGE- A $7 million project to protect Southern University from eroding into the mighty Mississippi River is underway.

Congressman Troy Carter helped to get the school a $7.6 million grant from the United States Department of Agriculture’s emergency watershed protection program.

“If something doesn't happen… where we stand. We’ll drift into the ravine and into the river,” Carter said.

At this moment there is not any obvious work being done to stop the erosion. The project is in the environmental phase, which should be complete by the end of the year. It's expected to cost between $25- $35 million in total.

DOTD says engineers are working behind the scenes on plans to stop the problems. 

The actual construction work is expected to begin in late 2024 and it is estimated to take about two years to complete.