Blog Archives

Delta Dispatches: Archaeology of Louisiana’s Vanishing Coast

Delta Dispatches: Archaeology of Louisiana’s Vanishing Coast

Today on Delta Dispatches, Jacques and Simone start the show talking about the hottest debate in coastal Louisiana: is dipping crawfish a crime against humanity or merely deeply unsettling. Once that’s settled, they talk to Stacy Ortego with the Louisiana Wildlife Federation to talk about the progress made on one of our favorite restoration projects: the River Reintroduction into Maurepas Swamp. Finally, they dig deep with Brian Ostahowski, Theodore Marks, and Peyton Finch about archaeological efforts across Louisiana’s coast.   …

RESTORE Council Commits Gulf Oil Spill Funds to Defend Threatened Louisiana Swamp

Project to sustain world-renowned habitat and build climate resilience of wildlife and communities (NEW ORLEANS, LA – February 12, 2020) Today, the Gulf Ecosystem Restoration Council (RESTORE Council) voted to approve funding for two important restoration priorities in the Gulf, including investing $130 million in a critical diversion project in Louisiana’s Maurepas Swamp. As ecosystems and wildlife continue to recover nearly 10 years after the Gulf oil disaster, the River Reintroduction into Maurepas Swamp project would use restoration funds from …

Delta Dispatches: Come out to Cook-Off for the Coast on February 8th!

Thanks for listening to the latest episode of Delta Dispatches. This week we’re talking to Samantha Carter, Outreach Manager for the National Wildlife Federation and she’s here to talk about the third annual Cook-off for the Coast! This free event, taking place at Docville Farm on February 8th from 11-3! Come enjoy great (free) food, music, kids events, and more! The event will benefit the Chandeleur Sound Living Shoreline program, which is a partnership Nunez Community College and Chalmette High …

Delta Dispatches: Exploring Nature: Birds and the Louisiana Children’s Museum

Welcome to Delta Dispatches with solo host Jacques Hebert. Today’s first guest is Erik Johnson, Director of Bird Conservation of Audubon Louisiana. Erik talks about the restoration of one of Louisiana’s most important pelican rookeries, Queen Bess Island. They also discuss some of the great work Audubon Louisiana is doing across the coast including an upcoming beach-nesting bird volunteer opportunity. Jacques is also joined by Julia Bland, Executive Director of the Louisiana Children’s Museum. They talk about the museum’s new …

Delta Dispatches: Sediment Diversion Could Protect 47 Sq. Miles of Louisiana’s Coast

Thanks for listening to the latest episode of Delta Dispatches. On the first episode of 2020, Simone and Jacques speak with Brad Barth, Operations Assistant Administrator for the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority (CPRA). Brad talks about one of Louisiana’s cornerstone restoration projects: the Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion. The CPRA recently completed modeling that showed this project protecting 47 square miles of land over 50 years.   Listen Now:

Delta Dispatches: A Toast to the Coast in 2019!

On this special year-in-review episode of Delta Dispatches, Jacques and Simone look back at a busy year for coastal restoration in Louisiana. They’re joined by friends and guests from the past year starting with Chip Kline, chairman of the Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority (CPRA), Lauren Averill, Jefferson Parish Coastal Zone Director, and ASPBA Central Gulf Coast Board member and Kristin Tracz, Program Officer with the Walton Family Foundation.   Listen Now:

Louisiana Children Highlight Importance of Coastal Restoration at State Capitol

Youth advocates presented ‘Restore the Coast. Protect Their Future’ books to coastal authority board BATON ROUGE (Dec. 19, 2019) — Louisiana coastal youth advocates stressed the urgency of Louisiana’s land loss crisis and the need for large-scale coastal restoration to members of Louisiana’s Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority (CPRA) board during a presentation on Wednesday, Dec.18 at the State Capitol in Baton Rouge. Students hand-delivered books highlighting the results of Restore the Mississippi River Delta’s year-long “Restore the Coast. Protect …

Delta Dispatches: Don’t Miss Lights on the Lake on Dec. 14th!

Thanks for listening to the latest episode of Delta Dispatches! Today we talk to one of our favorite guests, Dr. Alisha Renfro! Alisha talks to Simone about how a crevasse at Fort St. Phillip is one of the few areas of Louisiana that’s growing new land. Alisha also talks about the important River Reintroduction into Maurepas Swamp project, which is up for public comment now. On the second half the show, we’re joined by Mary Elise Schlesinger from the Lake …

Lessons from Davis Pond – A Case Study in Adaptive Management

Even with extensive planning and design efforts, when restoration projects are implemented unanticipated impacts may arise. Through adaptive management, an ongoing process of monitoring and adjusting plans based on observed results, agencies can minimize negative effects and maximize the positive ones by making necessary modifications as issues emerge. Adaptive management is particularly useful in contexts where there is uncertainty—regarding how technology will perform, how the environment will react, or how communities will be impacted—that cannot be fully accounted for in …

Delta Dispatches: Cameron Parish Port, Coastal Funding and In the Blind Documentary

Thanks for listening to this week’s Delta Dispatches! Simone and Jacques open the show talking to Clair Hebert Marceaux, Port Director for the Cameron Parish Port. Clair talks about her career and how went from an English teacher to one of Louisiana’s coastal leaders. In the final segment of the show, they’re joined by Emma Reid, director of the new documentary, In the Blind, which follows the history of duck hunters’ role in coastal restoration in Louisiana.   Listen Now:

Using the Mississippi River to Build Land at Fort St. Phillip

The Fort St. Phillip Crevasse in Plaquemines Parish resulted from the Mississippi River Flood of 1973, one of the largest floods ever recorded. Levee failures upriver in St. Louis, Missouri led to three out of four of the lower Mississippi’s floodways being operated to reduce flood pressure against levees, maintain navigation along the river and protect nearby communities. About 20 miles upriver from where the toes of the Mississippi’s Birdsfoot Delta meet the Gulf of Mexico, the river breached the …

Delta Dispatches: The Positive Effects of Closing MRGO

Welcome to the latest episode of Delta Dispatches. Today hosts Jacques Hebert and Simone Maloz are joined by frequent guests Dr. John Lopez of the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation and Dr. Alisha Renfro of the National Wildlife Federation. In this episode, we talk about the science of coastal restoration including 2019’s high river, the impacts of the Mississippi River Gulf Outlet (MRGO), the upcoming State of the Coast conference, and volunteer opportunities to help our coast!   Listen Now:

Delta Dispatches: Future Leaders in Coastal Restoration

Welcome to Delta Dispatches, with your hosts Jacques Hebert, and Simone Maloz. Today we’re talking to future leaders in coastal restoration! Today’s first guest is Milan Mardia, senior at Jesuit High School. Milan has presented to the CPRA Board about educating younger generations of coastal advocates and is learning how A.I. (artificial intelligence) could enhance how we approach coastal projects. Check out Milan’s website dedicated to Louisiana’s coastal restoration. Next up is Martin Mantz, Coastal Restoration Program Manager at Nunez …

Delta Dispatches: Talking Coastal Science with Don Boesch

Thanks for listening to the latest episode of Delta Dispatches, with your hosts Jacques Hebert and Simone Maloz. Today talks with one of the most celebrated coastal scientists in the country, Don Boesch, Professor and President Emeritus at the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science. They talk about his distinguished career including his time as the first director of LUMCON, and his experience on the National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling in 2010. …

MRGO Closure Has a Greater Impact on Coastal Restoration and Recovery Than Ever Imagined

*Update April 30, 2020. The MRGO Must Go Coalition sent this letter to Governor Edwards regarding the St. Bernard Parish Government proposal to open the MRGO rock dam closure. The closure has shown a multitude of benefits to the vast ecosystem impacted by the MRGO. Science must lead in order to avoid grave mistakes. Read the full statement here. After decades of decline, the Pontchartrain Basin is ready for restoration as a result of the closure of the Mississippi River …