Many people rely on the Mississippi River as their main source of drinking water, but salt water from the Gulf of Mexico is leaking into the river and contaminating it. In order to protect the water supply, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is constructing an underwater defense mechanism known as a sill, according to Fox 8 WVUE-TV in New Orleans. Drought issues in the South have caused many problems, including low river levels. This in turn has resulted in salt water from the Gulf streaming into the river and making the water unfit to drink for residents of the Plaquemines Parish in Louisiana.

Interstate-95, which runs along the East Coast, has been crowded with more than just everyday traffic, as drivers have likely seen excavators, cement mixers and other construction equipment in a few areas along the highway. The latest project to get underway is taking place on a 29-mile stretch of I-95 near Washington, D.C., where construction workers will be adding express lanes to the highway between Virginia's Garrisonville Road in Stafford County and Edsall Road in Fairfax County, according to Fairfax News.

Across the nation, construction companies are seeing more work, which means jobs are being created and construction equipment - such as backhoes, excavators and cranes - is being purchased. Some areas of the country are doing better than others, and Florida is one of the states experiencing a boom in the construction industry.

New legislation in the state of New Hampshire is about to go into effect, and public schools will be required to plead their case when they need construction work done on their learning facilities. Until now, the state government approved all requests for construction aid, as there have been no limits on this budget since 1955, The Associated Press reports.

Harnessing the wind to create usable energy has been a growing industry in recent years, and BP Wind Energy plans to expand its operations by building a new wind turbine farm in Wyoming County, Pa., with the help of Sempra U.S. Gas and Power. Marketwatch reported that early in July, BP was planning to invest $8 billion globally in the next 10 years to developing alternative energy resources, but will likely reach this goal by the end of the year. BP has already invested $4 billion in the U.S., and another $3 billion around the world.

By next year, Mobile County, Ala., is expecting to complete a number of construction projects that will improve and add to the region's public school system. The Mobile Press-Register reports several new schools are being built this year and other buildings are receiving major renovations. Overall, the projects will cost roughly $100 million.

Construction on the $368 million L'Auberge Casino and Hotel in Baton Rouge, La., may take a bit longer than expected. Pinnacle Entertainment Inc. recently approached the state's Gambling Control Board for a one-month extension on the project, according to local news network WBRZ.

Although unemployment in the construction industry is still high, the mortgage financing company Freddie Mac believes the number of available jobs will begin to rise by the end of the year, reports the International Business Times. Growth in the housing industry will play a major role in bringing construction crews back to work, the company projects.

Construction is set to being on the new McClaren-Flint Hospitality House in Flint Township, Mich., which will work in tandem with the soon-to-be-completed Proton Therapy Center next door.

The construction industry is seeing marked annual and month-over-month improvements, according to recent government reporting. The U.S. Commerce Department indicates new home construction across the board jumped up 6.9 percent to an annual rate of 760,000 from 711,000 in May. Bloomberg reports this is the highest number of housing starts since 2008, and is better than economists surveyed by the news source predicted (a rate of 745,000). In fact, the Commerce Department indicates the current rate of improvement could even lead to the industry contributing to national economic growth this year.