Latest Mississippi River Delta News: May 04, 2015
Mississippi River diversion proponents use full-page ad to state their case
*features MRD statement, Natalie Peyronnin, EDF,
By Amy Wold, The Advocate. May 04, 2015
“A full-page advertisement that ran Sunday in a number of publications in Louisiana, including The Advocate, highlights the need for large, land-building diversions to be built along the Mississippi River as part of the state’s coastal restoration plan. Andy Nyman, a wetland scientist at LSU, said scientists discussed the need to counter misinformation being spread about future sediment diversions.” (Read More)
Judge: Corps’ MR-GO ‘took’ value of properties in St. Bernard, Lower 9th Ward
By Mark Schleifstein, The Times-Picayune. May 01, 2015
“A federal judge Friday ruled that the Army Corps of Engineers’ construction and absent maintenance of the Mississippi River-Gulf Outlet channel created a “ticking time bomb” that magnified the effects of storm surge flooding in St. Bernard Parish and the Lower 9th Ward of New Orleans.” (Read More)
U.S. Liable in New Orleans-Area Flooding
By John Schwartz, The New York Times. May 01, 2015
“Judge Susan G. Braden of the United States Court of Federal Claims in Washington focused her decision on a navigation project built by the Army Corps of Engineers, a canal known as the Mississippi River-Gulf Outlet and nicknamed MR-GO. The canal has been linked to devastating flood damage in the Lower Ninth Ward neighborhood of New Orleans and damage to nearby St. Bernard Parish after the hurricane struck on Aug. 29, 2005. The canal has since been closed.” (Read More)
Five years after BP spill, Gulf of Mexico is rekindling responsibility for the Gulf’s future
By Mark Tercek & Robert Bendick, Huffington Post. May 01, 2015
“The majority of the state and federal agency projects emphasize restoration of the Gulf’s estuaries and their tributaries, reflecting the science that the health of the Gulf as a whole depends on the health of the places where freshwater and saltwater mix. This estuary approach also breaks Gulf restoration into smaller pieces where individuals and local groups can have long-term influence on the direction of restoration activities in their home waters.” (Read More)
South Mississippian touts value of conservancy group’s Gulf study proposal
By James Skrmetta, Sun Herald. May 01, 2015
“Gulf waters were laced with about 210 million gallons of oil five years ago after the Deepwater Horizon oil disaster. Now, a conservancy group is making a plea to study the waters before another disaster occurs. The Oceans Conservancy Group is asking for money from a proposed $22 million in the federal RESTORE Act Trust Fund to map the Gulf of Mexico for the purpose of getting a scientific baseline of what is there.” (Read More)