At last, there’s some good news about coastal restoration efforts in Louisiana. We’re not just studying, planning, re-planning and re-studying it. We’re getting ready to do it. Construction, that is.
At least that’s the word from Gov. Bobby Jindal who has announced that work will be undertaken on more than $1 billion in restoration and hurricane protection projects during the next four years, most of it next year. This partly resulted from the fact that the state has a healthy surplus and apparently will continue to have one in the years ahead. Also helping is an agreement with the federal government that Louisiana can take up to 30 years to repay its portion of federal state hurricane protection projects just like other states, not the 3 years that previously was provided.
Jindal said:
“This announcement of a more than billion dollar investment by the state is the largest investment in coastal restoration and protection projects in our state’s history. I have said all along that the time for studies and research has long passed. It is time to start breaking ground and digging dirt on these projects, and with this announcement today we are ready to do just that. These projects, along with nearly $15 billion in ongoing coastal restoration and hurricane protection projects in New Orleans and other areas of the state, represent one of the largest public works efforts in the world.
The projects include restoration efforts that will provide a buffer along the coast to slow down storms coming from the Gulf of Mexico. This will allow other hurricane protection projects more inland to do their jobs. The billion dollars used in the projects will come from the $300 million in funding the governor called for in his second special session of the legislature earlier in the year, $200 million in surplus funding from the 2007 legislative session, $510 million from the Coastal Impact Assistance Program, $83 million from the state trust fund/capital outlay and $68 million from the Coastal Wetlands Planning Protection and Restoration Act.
Among the projects is a $70 million Caminada Headlands/Barataria Basin Shoreline Restoration which includes a commitment from the state to acquire and restore Elmer’s Island along the coast of Lafourche Parish and make it available to the public for fishing and other recreational uses.
Other projects to be paid for out of the billion dollars are:
–$45 million – Cameron Parish Shoreline. This project will protect miles of coast and Highway 82 in Cameron Parish.
–$37million – Sediment pipeline for restoration of Plaquemines, Jefferson and Lafourche Parishes. This dedicated pipeline will deliver land-building materials to three parishes in coastal Louisiana.It will create a dedicated, long-distance pipeline from the west bank of Plaquemines Parish to Jefferson and Lafourche Parishes. These funds will allow for the completion of construction and for operation of the pipeline. Once this project in completed, the state will move forward on similar projects on the Calcasieu River, Atchafalaya River into Terrebonne Parish and other areas in Plaquemines Parish on the Mississippi River.
–$24 million – Bayou Lafourche Freshwater Diversion. This investment will complete the first phase of this project and allow for a diversion of 300 feet per second on the bayou. The WRDA bill authorized $150 million for this project.
–$26 million – Beneficial Use of Dredge Material. Each year, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers spends nearly $200 million to dredge navigation channels in Louisiana. Nearly all of this sediment, that actually built Louisiana, is usually dumped into the deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico. In the last eight months, the state has nearly doubled the available sites to place this dredge material and create wetlands. This investment will jumpstart the beneficial use of dredge material, which is one of the fastest and most effective investments that can be made to restore coastal areas.
Virtually all of the 2008 surplus spending included in the governor’s announcement is designed to advance federally-authorized projects, including funds to expedite hurricane protection in the Greater New Orleans area. Additionally, the governor said the state will also make a robust investment in science and technology to provide solutions to coastal restoration and protection challenges. He said Louisiana is on the forefront of integrated coastal management innovations and the state is also home to some of the best coastal scientists in the nation.
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