VIDEO: 3 Years Later, Make BP Pay
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On April 20, 2010, 11 people lost their lives and the biggest environmental disaster in our nation’s history began. Three years later, BP’s oil is still here, and it continues to impact the people, places and wildlife of the Gulf. On April 20, 2013, to mark three years of BP’s ongoing disaster, local groups and citizens gathered to memorialize all that has been lost, call out BP for the ongoing effects of the spill, and take a stand to fight …
Using the Mississippi River to rebuild Louisiana's coast: David Muth
This story was originally published on NOLA.com and in The Times-Picayune. By David Muth, Contributing Op-Ed Columnist, The Times-Picayune May 05, 2013 Coastal experts have been telling us since Katrina that our marshes are getting perilously close to a tipping point. If we don’t act very quickly, we may be too late. We lacked a plan, and we lacked money. Now we have both. As sources of funding from the BP oil disaster become available, the likelihood that big river sediment diversions …
Latest Mississippi River Delta News: April 18, 2013
BP oil spill trial continues as demonstrators note upcoming 3-year anniversary of disaster By Richard Thompson, The Times-Picayune (New Orleans). April 16, 2013. “A former Transocean executive testified Tuesday (April 16) that a key piece of equipment intended to shut down BP’s Macondo oil well in an emergency would have succeeded if its automatic mode function had worked…” (Read more) First phase of BP spill trial comes to an end Reuters. April 17, 2013. “(Reuters) – The first phase of …
Latest Mississippi River Delta News: April 11, 2013
Neil Shaw, BP Executive, Takes The Witness Stand In Gulf Spill Trial By Michael Kunzelman, The Associated Press. April 9, 2013. “NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A BP executive who oversaw the company’s Gulf of Mexico operations testified Tuesday that he he led a push to improve safety when he started the job more than two years before an April 2010 rig explosion killed 11 workers and led to the nation’s worst offshore oil spill…” (Read more) New science shows Mississippi …
Latest Mississippi River Delta News: April 1, 2013
Natural river diversion at ‘Mardi Gras Pass’ gains support from political, commercial interests By Bob Marshall, The Lens (New Orleans). March 27, 2013. “Mardi Gras Pass, which seemed destined for closure a week ago, may have caught a chance at new life…” (Read more) Plaquemines after Hurricane Isaac: Elevation heights, escalating insurance, leave nowhere to run By Benjamin Alexander-Bloch, The Times-Picayune (New Orleans). March 29, 2013. “Many Plaquemines residents have no choice but to stay in flood prone areas with …
Study demonstrates importance of sediment diversions for building land in the Mississippi River Delta
By Alisha A. Renfro, Ph.D., Staff Scientist, National Wildlife Federation Last week, an independent scientific panel comprised of prominent scientists from throughout the U.S. released a report, “Mississippi River Freshwater Diversions in Southern Louisiana: Effects of Wetland Vegetation, Soils, and Elevation,” which examines some of the ecological effects of freshwater river diversions. The panel concluded that there is little evidence suggesting that the existing freshwater diversions in Louisiana have appreciably reversed the rate of land loss in the region, and …
Secretary Salazar: Putting Restoration on Steroids
By Amanda Moore, Greater New Orleans Program Manager, National Wildlife Federation On Wednesday, U.S. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar visited Big Branch Marsh National Wildlife Refuge in Lacombe, La. for what possibly could be his last public meeting outside of Washington, D.C. Salazar said he was proud to hold the meeting in the Mississippi River Delta, adding that it is “a world-class conservation area for hunting and fishing.” State and local government officials, fishermen and women, and non-profit leaders turned out …
Latest Mississippi River Delta News: March 12, 2013
River Diversions for Louisiana Restoration to Require Sediments Dredging Today. March 12, 2013. “An independent technical panel reported March 11, 2013, in a newly concluded study, that existing Mississippi River freshwater diversions have not slowed the ongoing loss of Louisiana’s wetlands…” (Read more) The Not-So-Mysterious Loss of Salt Marshes and Ecosystem Services By Paige Brown, Scientific American. March 12, 2013. “Mosquitos by the droves. Polluted coastal waters. Increased storm surge vulnerability. Loss of habitat for crabs, shellfish and vast numbers …
Special to CNN: Make BP pay to restore Gulf
This story was originally posted on CNN. By David Yarnold, President, National Audubon Society Special to CNN Updated 8:01 AM EST, Tue March 5, 2013 (CNN) — BP showed up in court last week, finally, nearly three years after the Deepwater Horizon disaster and the hell it unleashed on the Gulf Coast. It’s a huge, high-stakes trial, and BP is taking the beating it’s earned. Here’s what’s at stake for America if there is a judgment: potentially tens of billions of dollars that …
Mardi Gras Pass: Compromise will be key
By Emily Guidry Schatzel, Communications Manager, National Wildlife Federation Recent news reports suggest that the potential for compromise exists in the case of Mardi Gras Pass, the newest known distributary of the Mississippi River. The pass was discovered in 2012 when the river cut a channel through its bank in the Bohemia Spillway, a stretch without levees, giving an exciting and rare view at how a natural delta system operates. While the pass promises ecological prosperity for the delta, the …
Path Forward plan must focus on ecosystem restoration
By Whit Remer, Policy Analyst, Environmental Defense Fund The Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council recently released “The Path Forward to Restoring the Gulf Coast: A Proposed Comprehensive Plan.” The RESTORE Act, signed into law in July, required the newly created Restoration Council to publish a Proposed Plan within six months of the legislation becoming law. Only six pages in length, the Path Forward provides a general framework for the Restoration Council to follow while developing their more robust Initial Comprehensive …
Tagged Economics, ReportsLatest Mississippi River Delta News: January 23, 2012
Research scientists hear that some remain skeptical of seafood safety in aftermath of BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill By Mark Schleifstein, The Times-Picayune (New Orleans). January 22, 2013. “Members of the public renewed questions about the safety of seafood in the aftermath of the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill Tuesday night during a public hearing at a gathering of scientists to discuss ongoing research about the effects of the spill…” (Read more) BP Deepwater Horizon spill: Scientists say seafood safe, …
Latest Mississippi River Delta News: January 18, 2013
Greater New Orleans Foundation, Ford Foundation fund study on coastal residents’ challenges By Benjamin Alexander-Bloch, The Times-Picayune (New Orleans). January 17, 2013. “While projects already exist to restore Gulf of Mexico wetlands and build levees, the Greater New Orleans Foundation and the Ford Foundation are funding a new project to focus on the needs of people who live in vanishing coastal communities…” (Read more) New Mardi Gras Pass could be restricted if oil facility gets OK to rebuild road By …
Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council Convenes for First Time, Discusses Restoration Plan
By Whit Remer, Policy Analyst, Environmental Defense Fund Last week, the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council held its first public meeting in Mobile, Ala. to update residents on the progress of implementing the RESTORE Act. The law, which Congress passed in June 2012, dedicates 80 percent of Clean Water Act fines from the BP oil spill back to the Gulf Coast for restoration. Those fines, expected to reach billions of dollars, will help stabilize and revive troubled ecosystems across the …
SMART Solutions for Restoration: The Second Summit on Coastal Restoration in Lafourche and Terrebonne Parishes
By Maura Wood, National Wildlife Federation On Oct. 31, 2012, Garret Graves, director of Louisiana’s Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority (CPRA), spoke at the Second Summit on Coastal Restoration in Lafourche and Terrebonne Parishes held at Nicholls State University in Thibodaux, La. At the time, summit attendees were unaware of the proposed settlement on criminal penalties against BP for oil spill damages that would designate a sizable portion of these funds over the next five years to river diversions and …