RISEE Act Would Provide Much Needed Long-term Funding for Louisiana’s Coast
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Media Statement of Restore the Mississippi River Delta Leaders (New Orleans, LA.- July 21, 2022) Today the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources advanced the Reinvesting in Shoreline Economies and Ecosystems (RISEE) Act. This act would direct funding to the National Oceans and Coastal Security Fund from revenue generated by offshore wind production, and would expand restoration funding for the Mississippi River Delta and the Gulf Coast by eliminating the revenue sharing cap under the 2006 Gulf of …
Louisiana Legislature Approves Historic Investment in Louisiana’s Coast
Rep. Bourriaque and Restore the Mississippi River Delta respond to milestone achievement (BATON ROUGE, La. – May 24, 2022) Today, the Louisiana Senate approved the state’s Fiscal Year 2023 Coastal Annual Plan, finalizing its full passage by the Louisiana Legislature. The annual plan outlines nearly $1.3 billion in funding over a one-year period and $3.5 billion over the next three years for protection and restoration projects. It also describes the short-term and long-term restoration work that communities can expect to …
R. King Milling Recognized for Impact on Louisiana Coast and Communities
Statement of Restore the Mississippi River Delta on CRCL Lifetime Achievement Award Winner (New Orleans, LA — May 10, 2022) Restore the Mississippi River Delta commends R. King Milling on his Lifetime Achievement Award from the Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana. This honor is one of the most prestigious in coastal restoration. Milling, the retired president of Whitney National Bank in New Orleans, will be recognized May 12 at the Coastal Stewardship Awards reception in Baton Rouge. “Louisiana is remarkably …
Coastal Stakeholders Urge Decisionmakers to Advance Critical Restoration Projects
Over 160 signatories including state and federal legislators, business and community leaders, environmental NGOs voice support for restoration projects following hurricanes and oil spill New Orleans, Louisiana – Earlier this month the Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group of the Deepwater Horizon Natural Resource Damage Assessment Trustees released its Draft Restoration Plan and Environmental Assessment #8: Wetlands, Coastal, and Nearshore Habitats. In response to the draft restoration plan, over 160 representatives of business, government, environmental, community and other groups in Louisiana have …
New Sea Level Rise Report Provides “Urgent Call for Action to Protect Louisiana’s Coast and Communities”
Media Statement of Restore the Mississippi River Delta Leaders (New Orleans, LA.- February 15, 2022) Today, NOAA’s National Ocean Service and interagency partners released an updated Sea Level Rise Technical Report that delivers sea level rise projections by decade for the next 100 years and beyond. The report indicates that seas will rise by up to a foot nationally by 2050, and potentially by up to two feet by 2100 depending on rates of emissions. In response, Restore the Mississippi …
Louisiana’s Coast and Communities Will Benefit from SHORRE Act Provisions
Media Statement of Simone Maloz, Campaign Director, Restore the Mississippi River Delta Today, Sens. Tom Carper (D-DE) and Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA), and Reps. Garret Graves (R-LA) and Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE) introduced the Shoreline Health Oversight, Restoration, Resilience, and Enhancement (SHORRE Act), a bipartisan bill to address coastal and riverine impacts of climate change in the United States. In response, Restore the Mississippi River Delta Campaign Director Simone Maloz issued the following statement: “Our nation desperately needs to fortify …
Louisiana commits nearly $1.3 billion to critical coastal restoration and protection projects
Following devastating hurricanes, the 2023 Coastal Annual Plan delivers historic investments toward strengthening community resilience Today, the Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority released its Draft Fiscal Year 2023 Coastal Annual Plan, the annual spending plan for the state’s coastal program. The Annual Plan guides funding to implement the 2017 Coastal Master Plan, the 50-year vision for priority coastal restoration and risk-reduction projects to restore and protect Louisiana’s coast. In response to the draft release, Restore the Mississippi River Delta …
Infrastructure Package Delivers Significant Wins for Louisiana’s Coast and Communities
Restore the Mississippi River Delta applauds investments while calling for swift action to implement coastal restoration projects and solutions NEW ORLEANS (November 15, 2021) – In a historic step toward strengthening our nation’s resilience to climate change, President Biden today signed into law the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. This $1.2 trillion spending package, whose implementation will be coordinated by Mitch Landrieu, the former New Orleans mayor and former Louisiana lieutenant governor, includes $47 billion earmarked specifically for climate resilience, …
New Poll Shows Over 80% of Coastal Louisianans Support Sediment Diversions
Support for key restoration projects is broad in every region and among every demographic, including 74% of respondents in St. Bernard and Plaquemines Parishes NEW ORLEANS (Aug. 12, 2021) — There is widespread, bipartisan support for action to address Louisiana’s urgent land loss crisis through sediment diversions and other science-based restoration efforts, according to a new poll of coastal Louisiana voters released today by Global Strategy Group (GSG) and Environmental Defense Fund. These results are consistent with prior polls in …
2021 Legislative Session Delivers Significant Gains for Louisiana’s Coast
Leading conservation groups praise policymakers’ efforts to prioritize funding for vital restoration projects BATON ROUGE, La. (June 11, 2021) — Yesterday, the 2021 Louisiana Regular Legislative Session adjourned with a strong effort to protect funding for coastal restoration and prioritize community resilience, including unanimous passage of the Fiscal Year 2022 Coastal Annual Plan. The plan is the funding vehicle that supports the implementation of the 2017 Coastal Master Plan, the 50-year vision for priority coastal restoration and risk-reduction projects to …
55 Leading Scientists Express Overwhelming Support for Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion
Co-authored letter stresses urgent need for vital restoration project to sustain Louisiana’s coast NEW ORLEANS (June 1, 2021) — A group of more than 55 natural and physical scientists, engineers and social scientists with a combined 1,300 years of research and technical experience related to Louisiana’s coast have co-authored and signed a letter voicing support based on their scientific knowledge and expertise for the Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion, the single largest ecosystem restoration project in U.S. history. The group’s collective interdisciplinary …
“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 …
Coalition Unveils Findings on MRGO Ecosystem Recovery 15 Years After Hurricane Katrina
Report assesses impacts of channel’s closure, vital restoration needs and ongoing community recovery NEW ORLEANS (Oct. 1, 2020) — 15 years after Hurricane Katrina, the MRGO Must Go Coalition released a white paper today detailing new information about the environmental benefits of closing the Mississippi River Gulf Outlet (MRGO) and the ongoing, urgent need for large-scale restoration of the ecosystem in order to protect communities from hurricanes and climate change. The white paper, titled “MRGO: The Road to Recovery,” was …
Louisiana’s Future Depends on Reducing Carbon Emissions and Building Climate Resilience
Governor’s executive orders establish task force to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 and to develop resilience strategies across all sectors of state government (NEW ORLEANS – August 19, 2020) Earlier today, Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards signed two executive orders that will have significant impacts in addressing the state’s climate and land loss crises. The first executive order establishes a Climate Initiatives Task Force charged with developing recommendations for how Louisiana can reduce its greenhouse gas emissions to help …
Coastal groups call progress on Mid-Breton Sediment Diversion vital to Louisiana’s future
Project will create a sustainable coast for future generations and buffer from storms and sea level rise (NEW ORLEANS – August 3, 2020) Earlier today, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers updated the status and shared the implementation timeline of the Mid-Breton Sediment Diversion on the Federal Permitting Dashboard. The update indicates that the expected release of the draft environmental impact statement for this project will be November 2022, and a record of decision is expected by February 2024. Restore …