Louisiana Wetlands: Recognizing a National Treasure During American Wetlands Month

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Louisiana Wetlands: Recognizing a National Treasure During American Wetlands Month

05.26.2016 | Posted by

May is American Wetlands Month, and Louisiana’s coastal wetlands are some of the most productive ecosystems in North America. Not only do they provide habitat for numerous fish, wildlife and birds, but they also help improve water quality, provide recreational opportunities and protection for people and infrastructure from damaging storm surges. Wildlife habitat and nurseries Wetlands serve as a nursery environment for juvenile fish. The countless ponds, bays and bayous found in the Mississippi River Delta provide essential habitat for …

Louisiana Legislature Passes Resolution Funding State’s 2016-2017 Coastal Activities

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Jacques Hebert, National Audubon Society, 504.264.6849, jhebert@audubon.org Elizabeth Van Cleve, Environmental Defense Fund, 202.553.2543, evancleve@edf.org Emily Guidry Schatzel, National Wildlife Federation, 225.253.9781, schatzele@nwf.org Jimmy Frederick, Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana, 225.317.2046, jimmy.frederick@crcl.org John Lopez, Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation, 504.421.7348, jlopez@saveourlake.org Louisiana Legislature Passes Resolution Funding State’s 2016-2017 Coastal Activities Resolution Directs Investment of $736 Million to Key Restoration and Protection Projects (Baton Rouge, LA– May 20, 2016) Yesterday, in a unanimous vote, the Louisiana Senate approved House …

Earth Day 2016: Planting Trees to Restore Louisiana’s Coast

05.17.2016 | Posted by

On Friday, April 22nd, 2016, Restore the Mississippi River Delta Coalition staff participated in an Earth Day tree planting event. Outreach team staff joined their partners at the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation and several volunteers to plant 250 cypress trees graciously donated by the St. Bernard Wetlands Foundation. Our staff and volunteers were thrilled to spend a day working in the wetlands, the sunshine and gentle breeze being a pleasant change from the normal office environment. Volunteers haul supplies to …

What does 200 million tons of sediment look like?

In the past two years, nearly 200 million tons of sediment have flowed past our vanishing wetlands and off the continental shelf. This sediment is the key to rebuilding our coast – providing wildlife and fisheries habitat and protecting our communities for generations to come. View the sediment counter to learn more!

Caring for Creation—an Earth Day Sunday Field Trip

05.09.2016 | By Reverend Doctor Cory Sparks, Director of the Institute of Nonprofit ExcellenceLouisiana Association of Nonprofit Organizations

When John Taylor was a boy growing up in the Lower 9th Ward of New Orleans, cypress trees were so thick in nearby Bayou Bienvenue that he didn’t need a paddle for his pirogue. He could pull himself along by grabbing the cypress knees. Aaron Viles, Rayne Caring For Creation Committee member and Gulf Restoration Network board member discusses the state of advocacy efforts to restore the Bayou and Louisiana’s coastal wetlands with John Taylor, Lower Ninth Ward Center for …

The Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana Plants Their 10,000th Tree in Braithwaite, LA

04.26.2016 | By Brittany Boyke, Habitat Restoration Program CoordinatorCoalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana

Saturday, April 2nd was the culmination of a two-year effort to rebuild one of Louisiana’s once mighty coastal forests. The Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana’s Habitat Restoration Program in partnership with the Restore the Earth Foundation (REF), Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation (LPBF), the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority (CPRA) and 46 volunteers planted the final 1,165 trees in the Caernarvon Diversion Outfall in St. Bernard Parish, reaching the goal of planting 10,000 trees in the area. The 10,000 trees initiative …

Barrier Island Restoration: An Investment in Coastal LA’s Future and for Nesting Seabirds, Part 3

04.21.2016 | Posted by Erik Johnson, Director of Bird Conservation, National Audubon Society

Our partners at Audubon Louisiana published a series of blog posts that we are cross-posting here. View the original blog post here. As we mark the sixth anniversary of the BP oil spill this week – an event that significantly and negatively impacted Louisiana’s already disappearing barrier islands and the species that depend on them – we will examine the status of barrier island restoration. Over the coming days, we’ll publish a series of blog posts that detail what work has …

6 years after the oil disaster: Coastal restoration in action

04.19.2016 | Posted by

Today marks the 6th anniversary of the BP oil disaster, an event that changed not only the landscape and economies of the Gulf Coast but also the relationship that many residents have with their surrounding environment. In Louisiana, of course, this devastating event only exacerbated our ongoing land loss crisis by killing wetland plants and speeding up erosion, as well as damaging communities that had only just begun recovering from the destruction wrought by Hurricane Katrina five years earlier. We can …

Barrier Island Restoration: An Investment in Coastal LA’s Future and for Nesting Seabirds, Part 2

04.19.2016 | Posted by Erik Johnson, Director of Bird Conservation, National Audubon Society

Our partners at Audubon Louisiana published a series of blog posts that we are cross-posting here. View the original blog post here. As we mark the sixth anniversary of the BP oil spill this week – an event that significantly and negatively impacted Louisiana’s already disappearing barrier islands and the species that depend on them – we will examine the status of barrier island restoration. Over the coming days, we’ll publish a series of blog posts that detail what work …

Barrier Island Restoration: An Investment in Coastal LA’s Future and for Nesting Seabirds, Part 1

04.18.2016 | Posted by Erik Johnson, Director of Bird Conservation, National Audubon Society

Our partners at Audubon Louisiana published a series of blog posts that we are cross-posting here. View the original blog post here. As we mark the sixth anniversary of the BP oil spill this week – an event that significantly and negatively impacted Louisiana’s already disappearing barrier islands and the species that depend on them – we will examine the status of barrier island restoration. Over the coming days, we’ll publish a series of blog posts that detail what work …

Old Christmas Tree, New Marsh Habitat

04.15.2016 | Posted by Samantha Carter, Outreach Manager, Mississippi River Delta Restoration, National Wildlife Federation

Did you drop your old Christmas tree on the curb in New Orleans on January 7th to 9th? If so, you’re helping to save the coast! The New Orleans Christmas Tree Recycling Program collects those old Christmas trees and strategically drops bundles of them into the wetlands in Bayou Sauvage National Wildlife Refuge. These trees create wave breaks and trap sediment, producing new marsh habitat that supports growth of native grasses. Over the years, the program has replenished approximately 175 …

Plaquemines Parish Voices of Restoration: Wine for the Wetlands 2016

04.07.2016 | Posted by

On Thursday, March 24th, the Restore the Mississippi River Delta Coalition hosted its second annual Wine for Wetlands happy hour. The event is an important part of our Coalition’s work in Plaquemines Parish and provides an opportunity for elected parish officials, community leaders and local coastal restoration advocates to celebrate coastal restoration successes and explore strategies for the future. Attendees gathered at Foster Creppel’s Woodland Plantation, just north of West Pointe-a-la-Hache. A recent storm had raised the Mississippi River to …

Conservation Groups Praise Governor Edwards’ Executive Order on Coastal Master Plan

04.04.2016 | By Conservation Groups Praise Governor Edwards’ Executive Order on Coastal Master Plan

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Elizabeth Van Cleve, Environmental Defense Fund, 202.553.2543, evancleve@edf.org Emily Guidry Schatzel, National Wildlife Federation, 225.253.9781, schatzele@nwf.org Jacques Hebert, National Audubon Society, 504.264.6849, jhebert@audubon.org Jimmy Frederick, Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana, 225.317.2046, jimmy.frederick@crcl.org John Lopez, Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation, 504.421.7348, jlopez@saveourlake.org Conservation Groups Praise Governor Edwards’ Executive Order on Coastal Master Plan Order Underscores State’s Prioritization of Comprehensive Coastal Restoration and Protection (NEW ORLEANS – April 4, 2016) Moments ago, Governor John Bel Edwards signed Executive Order NO. …

MRD Staff Bag 10 Tons of Oyster Shell with CRCL’s Oyster Shell Recycling Program

03.28.2016 | By Deborah Abibou, Restoration Programs DirectorCoalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana

On March 4th, 20 Restore the Mississippi River Delta Coalition staff members rolled up their sleeves and volunteered for the Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana’s Oyster Shell Recycling Program. In doing so, they accomplished three of their favorite things: taking action to restore the coast, spending time breathing in the fresh coastal air and hanging out with other folks who share a passion for Louisiana’s coast. MRD Staffers volunteer with CRCL’s Oyster Shell Recycling Program. CRCL’s Oyster Shell Recycling Program …

Hottest Jobs in South Louisiana? Saving the Coast

Looking for the industry with the fastest growth and some of the best-paying jobs in coastal Louisiana? Saving Louisiana’s vanishing coastline is now the fastest growing industry along Louisiana’s coast, driving economic expansion and eclipsing the oil and gas sector in creating new jobs. Coastal restoration and protection is not only the biggest jobs creator in coastal Louisiana – it has some of the highest-paying jobs, averaging $69,277 per year. This hot job market is expected to get even hotter …

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