Delta Dispatches: State of the Coast with CRCL
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This week on Delta Dispatches, Jacques brings back our friends from the Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana James Karst, director of communications and marketing, and Emily Vuxton, policy director. James talks about the upcoming State of the Coast conference (registration open now!) and Emily talks about things to keep an eye on in this year’s Louisiana state legislative session including the 2021 Coastal Annual Plan. Listen Now:
What Are Supporters Saying About Sediment Diversions?
From local community members to regional leaders: The future of our coast is tied to the Mighty Mississippi River! After decades of work, a major milestone for the Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion is underway with the release of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). Learn more about the project here | Show YOUR support for these critical projects to restore our coast Skip to a section Quotes from Coastal Leaders Scientists for Diversions Hunters & Anglers for Diversions Louisiana is Pro-Sediment …
Delta Dispatches: The Guardian of the Wetlands
This week on Delta Dispatches we’re talking about the inspirational new exhibit at the Ogden Museum of Southern Art which features works from John Taylor, storyteller, environmentalist, self-taught artist and life-long resident of New Orleans’ Lower 9th Ward. Here to talk about the exhibit is Mikhayla Harrell, the Museum Educator and Teen Intern Coordinator at the Ogden Museum and Amanda Moore Deputy Director, Gulf Program for the National Wildlife Federation. This exhibition features a variety of works by Taylor, including …
The World Still Very Much Needs More Louisiana
Back in 2015 as we commemorated 10 years since Hurricanes Katrina and Rita dealt our state two devastating blows, our organization partnered with cool, local retailer Dirty Coast to develop a design and message that articulated why Louisiana’s coast is so important and worth preserving. We put a call out to you – the public – asking for ideas, and you delivered by bringing “The World Needs More Louisiana” to life. Since then, this powerful rallying cry has appeared on …
Delta Dispatches: The Place with No Edge — A Conversation with Author Adam Mandelman on the Mississippi River Delta Past, Present and Future
On today’s episode, Jacques and Simone welcome author Adam Mandelman to discuss his book, The Place with No Edge: An Intimate History of People, Technology, and the Mississippi River Delta, “a book about people’s dreams of mastering nature through technology in one of the wettest, most unruly landscapes of North America. Published with Louisiana State University Press in April of 2020, it chronicles three centuries of European efforts to tame the Mississippi River Delta, an environment defined by flood and …
Delta Dispatches: Discussing the Mid Barataria DEIS with the Army Corps
On today’s episode, Jacques and Simone welcome Jeff Varisco, Senior Project Manager, and Brad Laborde, Regulatory Manager, with the Army Corps of Engineers New Orleans District. Jeff and Brad walk us through the milestone that is the release of a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the Mid Barataria Sediment Diversion, discuss how the public can engage in submitting comments over the comment period and provide insight into how these comments will inform a final Environmental Impact Statement for the …
Virtual Meetings to Provide Information and Resources on Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion
On March 5, 2021, the Army Corps of Engineers released a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion for public review, triggering a 60-day comment period. The Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group (LATIG) also released a draft Restoration Plan identifying how the project will help restore the ecosystem in the aftermath of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. But where does my voice fit in? Coming in at over 5000 pages, consisting of 10 …
“Unless We Act Now, We Risk Losing It All”: Groups Underscore Importance of Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion
Using the Mississippi River to Restore Rapidly Vanishing Wetlands Vital to Future of Southeast Louisiana NEW ORLEANS (March 5, 2021) —The single largest ecosystem restoration project in U.S. history reached a significant milestone today when the Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) released the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion. This Louisiana Coastal Master Plan project will reconnect the Mississippi River to adjacent wetlands to build and maintain tens of thousands of acres of land in the …
Delta Dispatches: A Monumental Moment for Louisiana’s Coast
On this week’s episode of Delta Dispatches, Simone and Jacques bring back their first-ever guests, Dr. Alisha Renfro with the National Wildlife Federation and Steve Cochran campaign director with Restore the Mississippi River Delta and Environmental Defense Fund, to mark a big milestone for Louisiana’s coast — the release of the draft Environmental Impact Statement and Restoration Plan for the Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion. The Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion would be the single largest ecosystem restoration project in U.S. history and will …
Delta Dispatches: Looking Ahead to 2021
This week on Delta Dispatches, we sit down with one of our favorite guests, Bren Haase, Executive Director for the Coastal Restoration and Protection Authority. The CPRA is releasing their draft Annual Plan, which outlines the coastal projects moving forward in the next 12 months and Bren walks us through many of the big projects that will make 2021 a great year for coastal Louisiana. Listen Now:
Soaring Above Louisiana’s Coast Shows How We Can Restore It
Ben Depp is a New Orleans-based landscape photographer and National Geographic Society Explorer. He has photographed many parts of Louisiana’s coast, capturing with amazing detail the beautiful and haunting details of our disappearing swamps, marshes and barrier islands. Last year, Ben was featured in the nationally-distributed documentary series “Last Call for the Bayou” in the episode, “On a Wing and a Prayer,” which detailed the urgency of the state’s land loss crisis and his unique process for documenting it. I …
Delta Dispatches: Cook-off for the Coast & Friends of Bayou Lafourche
On today’s episode, Simone and Jacques welcome back National Wildlife Federation Outreach Manager Samantha Carter to discuss the fourth annual Cook-off for the Coast. Although this year’s cook-off will be virtual, Sam highlights how it will still feature great content, including music from the Michot’s Melody Makers with special guest Leyla McCalla, a virtual coastal flyover, cooking demonstrations with celebrity chefs, as well as a recipe and artwork contest. On the second half of the show, Friends of Bayou Lafourche Executive Director Ryan …
Without the Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion, the Future for Louisiana’s Barataria Basin is Bleak
Louisiana’s land loss crisis is dire and will significantly worsen without investments in large-scale coastal restoration and protection projects. Since the 1930s, Louisiana has lost 2,000 square miles of coastal wetlands. Without action, the state could lose double that amount — an additional 4,000 square miles of land – in the next 50 years. This future scenario, commonly referred to as Future Without Action (FWOA), underscores why Louisiana has literally no time to lose in constructing coastal projects that can …
Delta Deispatches: What is an Environmental Impact Statement?
This episode of Delta Dispatches features environmental law experts providing an overview of the legal and regulatory backdrop upon which Louisiana is executing its coastal restoration and protection efforts. Amy Reed, Staff Attorney, and Jarryd Page, Public Interest Law Fellow, both from the Environmental Law Institute, join Simone and Jacques to discuss the forthcoming draft Environmental Impact Statement for the Mid Barataria Sediment Diversion. They also discuss the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and other important laws guiding the implementation …
Sweeping Water Bill Advances Coastal Louisiana Restoration
The Water Resources Development Act: critically important legislation for Louisiana’s coast that you’ve probably never heard of By Charlotte Runzel, Policy Analyst, National Audubon Society Coastal Louisiana is facing a land loss crisis. Over thousands of years, the Mississippi River brought fresh water and sediment and built the Mississippi River Delta. Due to human alterations, stopping the transfer of these two important resources, Louisiana has lost over 1,900 square miles of land in 90 years. Far from Louisiana, lawmakers in …