Latest Mississippi River Delta News: Jan. 6, 2014

Column: How to spend oil spill fines wisely
By Daniel Rothschild, The Tampa Bay Times. Jan. 3, 2014.
“A federal judge in New Orleans will soon decide how much oil company BP has to pay in Clean Water Act fines for its role in the 2010 Deepwater Horizon spill…” (read more)

Researchers still on the case of Louisiana’s mysterious ‘brown marsh’
By Amy Wold, The Advocate. Jan. 5, 2014.
“It was the mystery of 2000 for coastal researchers. Why were large swaths of coastal marsh turning brown and dying?…” (read more)

Report: Great Lakes Only Region to Gain Wetlands
By John Flasher, Associated Press. Jan. 5, 2014.
“Honking geese soar overhead in a V formation, buffeted by bitter gusts off nearby Lake Erie, while flocks of mallards bob along the shore…” (read more)

10 whooping cranes released into wild in south Louisiana
By Associated Press. Jan. 3, 2014.
“Ten young whooping cranes have been released into the wild after spending nearly a month at the White Lake Wetlands Conservation Area in south Louisiana…” (read more)

Louisiana asks 5th Circuit to transfer its BP claims to another judge
By Mark Schleifstein, The Times-Picayune. Jan. 3, 2014.
“Louisiana Attorney General Buddy Caldwell on Tuesday asked the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to transfer the state’s Deepwater Horizon oil spill damages lawsuit against BP and its drilling partners to another judge…” (read more)

Few Katrina legal battles linger as federal judge wraps up litigation over broken levees
By Michael Kunzelman, Associated Press. Jan. 4, 2014.
“A team of plaintiffs’ attorneys has spent roughly $16 million to sue the Army Corps of Engineers over levee breaches that flooded most of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. Joseph Bruno, one of those lawyers, estimates that they ultimately will recoup a mere $3.5 million of their investment…” (read more)