Latest Mississippi River Delta News: August 19, 2015

All Louisiana governor candidates support multibillion-dollar diversion plans to slow coastal land loss
By Cain Burdeau, The Advocate. August 19, 2015
“The candidates largely voiced similar approaches on what they see as the steps necessary to take. Each one backed a $50 billion, 50-year master plan devised by Gov. Bobby Jindal’s administration to slow land loss by diverting the Mississippi River’s mud and water into injured estuaries. The idea is to restore the river’s delta-building capacity. The river has been constrained by levees.” (Read More)

Gubernatorial candidates debate how to restore Louisiana’s endangered coastline (video)
*features CRCL
By Kevin Frey, WAFB. August 18, 2015
“The Louisiana gubernatorial candidates unanimously agreed Tuesday that restoring the state’s coast and wetlands is an essential project for the years ahead. All four candidates met for a forum focused on coastal issues at Nicholls State University Tuesday afternoon. The event was put on by the Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana.” (Read More)

Rebuilt confidence in New Orleans flood controls fuels rebuilding
*features John Lopez, LPBF
By Kathy Finn, Reuters. August 18, 2015
“The most important lesson we learned from Katrina was that hurricane protection and coastal restoration must be at the forefront of federal and state government for years to come.” (Read More)
 
New Orleans area’s upgraded levees not enough for next ‘Katrina,’ engineers say
*features David Muth, NWF
By Mark Schleifstein, The Times-Picayune. August 18, 2015
“Representatives of environmental groups have urged the inclusion of coastal restoration projects as another method of reducing storm surge, part of a “multiple lines of defense” strategy originally proposed by the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation.” (Read More)

Louisiana Check-up: Douglas Meffert (audio)
*features Doug Meffert, NAS
By Alex Wise, Sea Change Radio. August 18, 2015
“As the tenth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina approaches, we thought it would be an appropriate time to head back down to the bayou. This week on Sea Change Radio, we hear from the Executive Director of Audubon Louisiana, Dr. Douglas Meffert. We get an update on the coastal restoration efforts in the region, get a sense of how the cleanup from the BP Oil Spill is progressing and talk about the ongoing struggles and challenges of the Army Corps of Engineers in New Orleans.” (Read More)

The Michelangelo Signorile Show on SiriusXM (audio)
*features Doug Meffert, NAS
The Gist, Michelangelo Signorile, SiriusXM. August 14, 2015
“Joining me today to discuss the importance of ongoing coastal restoration projects in the region and the improvements in protection made since the storms is Douglas Meffert the Executive Director of the Audubon Louisiana and Vice President of the National Audubon Society’s Restore the Mississippi River Delta campaign which is a is a joint effort of non-profit organizations made up of science, public policy, economics and outreach experts raising awareness and building support for science-based solutions to restore Louisiana’s coast and is comprised of the Environmental Defense Fund, National Audubon Society, National Wildlife Federation, Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana, and Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation.” (Read More)

Will the ‘Great Wall’ of New Orleans Save It From the Next Killer Hurricane?
By Todd Woody, Takepart. August 19, 2015
“The first line of defense is your barrier islands, your wetlands, your marshes, your good solid bottomland hardwoods,” says Boyett. “You’re starting to see marsh creation programs, and we’re using sediment from the Mississippi River to reinforce barrier islands. But we’re never going to reclaim everything that has been lost—it simply can’t be done.” (Read More)