Latest news: January 30, 2012
The Mississippi River Delta Must Be Restored
By Randy Fertel, January 27, 2012. The New York Times.
“THE Mississippi River Delta loses the equivalent of a football field of marshland every hour as it melts into the Gulf of Mexico. Over the last 75 years, we’ve lost the equivalent of the state of Delaware to erosion…”
They were right
By Keith Magill, The Houma Courier. January 29, 2012.
“Residents’ and politicians’ outrage over the state’s latest plan to limit damage from hurricanes and an eroding coast was understandable and predictable…”
State plan is a place to start
By Editorial Staff, The Houma Courier. January 27, 2012.
“A public-information session and public meeting Tuesday turned up some negative comments about the state’s recently released master coastal plan…”
Oil spill fine bill: Offsets could be obstacles but lawmakers optimistic
By George Altman, The Press-Register. January 29, 2012.
“Where can lawmakers find at least $1 billion of federal revenue to offset oil spill fine money that they want to send to the Gulf Coast? Are such offsets, through spending cuts or new revenue, really necessary to replace fines to be paid by private companies only because of a spill that hurt the Gulf? And exactly how much money should lawmakers offset? …”
Gulf shrimp harvest numbers are eagerly awaited
By Benjamin Alexander-Bloch, The Times-Picayune. January 29, 2012.
“Rarely has quantifying Louisiana’s annual shrimp harvest generated as much interest as it has this year, as scientists, shrimpers and even the general public nervously await news of how many shrimp were pulled from coastal waters battered in recent years by drought, flooding and the massive BP oil spill…”
Failure of climate talks imperils nowhere more than Louisiana coast
By Bia Assevero, The Lens (New Orleans). January 26, 2012.
“December’s climate change conference in Durban, South Africa, was, as these conferences usually are, more style than substance. Small steps were taken here and there – the Green Climate Fund, formation of new ad hoc committees, increased support to developing countries – but ultimately, delegates walked away without a legally binding agreement to reduce the emissions that cause global warming…”
Louisiana scientists working on plan to save coastline, fight global warming
By Mark Schleifstein, The Times-Picayune. January 28, 2012.
“A team of Louisiana scientists is laying the groundwork for creating a new carbon storage industry that could both reduce the effects of global warming and rebuild wetlands along the state’s coastline. Sarah Mack, founder of New Orleans-based Tierra Resources, and Louisiana State University wetlands scientists John W. Day and Robert Lane have come up with a method for measuring the molecules of carbon removed from the atmosphere by the soils and plants that are created with coastal restoration projects…”
Gulf Coast Environmental Destruction Highlighted By BP Oil Spill
Associated Press. January 29, 2012.
“TIVOLI, Texas (AP) — For decades, farmers and fishermen along the Gulf of Mexico watched as their sensitive ecosystem’s waters slowly got dirtier and islands eroded, all while the country largely ignored the destruction…”