Latest news: January 27, 2012
January 27, 2012 | Posted by Kevin Chandler in Latest NewsThat's Louisiana being thrown away
John Snell, WVUE-TV. January 26, 2012.
"New Orleans– NASA has released what it calls one of "the most amazing, highest resolution images of Earth ever."
The image, actually a composite of a number of satellite photos stitched together, captures the earth's surface on January 4, 2012…"
Ad Buy Highlights Gulf Restoration Bill Support Before Florida Debate, Primary
The Washington Current. January 26, 2012.
"An environmental organization launched a two-day, $30,000 radio ad blitz in Florida Thursday to highlight congressional, editorial and voter support across the political spectrum for a multi-billion dollar Gulf Coast restoration bill funded by BP oil spill fines…"
Voice your opinion on restoration plan
By Nikki Buskey, Houma Courier. January 26, 2012.
"Locals will have their chance to comment on a $1 billion plan to begin early restoration projects along the Gulf Coast after the BP oil spill at a meeting next week…"
RESTORE Act critical to helping Gulf Coast in aftermath of Gulf oil disaster
By Craig Guillot, National Wildlife Federation. January 26, 2012.
"According to some estimates, BP could face as much as $20 billion in fines from the Clean Water Act for its responsibility in the Gulf oil disaster of 2010. Environmental advocates and organizations say the proposed RESTORE Act is essential to put fine money directly to work in restoring the Gulf Coast…"
BP Can’t Collect Part of Gulf Spill Costs From Transocean
By Margaret Cronin Fisk and Allen Johnson Jr., Bloomberg News. January 27, 2012.
"BP Plc (BP) can’t collect from Transocean Ltd. (RIGN) part of the $40 billion in cleanup costs and economic losses caused by the 2010 oil well blowout and Gulf of Mexico spill, a judge ruled. Transocean shares rose on the news…"
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Show your love (for the Gulf): NRDA public comment period ends Feb. 14
January 26, 2012 | Posted by Delta Dispatches in BP Oil Disaster, Clean Water Act, Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA), Restoration ProjectsBy Whit Remer, Environmental Defense Fund
Valentine’s Day is an opportunity to tell loved ones how much they are cherished. For residents of the Gulf Coast, Feb. 14 is the last day to tell the Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) trustees how much meaningful restoration in the Gulf means to you.
On Dec. 14, 2011, the trustees released a Draft Phase I Early Restoration Plan/Environmental Assessment that proposes two restoration projects in Louisiana. The public comment period opened Dec. 14 and continues for 60 days, closing Feb. 14, 2012.
Researchers assess the oiling of marshes in Barataria Bay, La. (Credit: www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov)
The opportunity for public comment is an important part of any government activity that affects citizens near a project. Under the Oil Pollution Act, trustees must provide at least 30 days for public input and must adequately consider all comments. While commenting is not limited to Gulf Coast residents, they certainly have a lot at stake. The Louisiana projects selected by the trustees include seeding 800 acres of public oyster grounds and revitalizing 104 new acres of marsh in St. Bernard Parish. Commenting on these projects is important for a variety of reasons, from improving the individual proposals to increasing the accountability and transparency of the process. It also helps inform the trustees about whether they are meeting restoration goals in the eyes of the public — after all, it’s the fishermen, bird watchers and oyster lovers who will be the ones reporting firsthand about how recovery is progressing.
On Dec. 14, 2011, the trustees released a Draft Phase I Early Restoration Plan/Environmental Assessmentthat proposes two restoration projects in Louisiana. The public comment period opened Dec. 14 and continues for 60 days, closing Feb. 14, 2012. (Photo credit: www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov)
Commenting on the projects does not require any special tools or expertise, and anyone can comment either online or by mail. The comments can be as simple as letting the trustees know they are doing a good job, or contain more critical comments regarding project selection and prioritization. Our coalition, for example, developed Core Principles and Selection Criteria that we believe the trustees should consider when selecting projects. Feel free to review these Principles and Criteria here.
There are other organizations also working in the Gulf to support citizens’ participation in these processes and ability to write meaningful and productive comments. For example, the Environmental Law Institute (ELI) has developed a series of programs designed specifically to support community and stakeholder engagement in Gulf restoration and recovery.
In fall 2010, ELI began working with local partners to develop and host a series of workshops in the Gulf to help community members engage in the NRDA process. To supplement the workshops, ELI created fact sheets (available in English, Vietnamese and Spanish) that describe the efforts to address economic and natural resource damages. ELI is expanding this work in 2012 with new workshops and fact sheets that clarify the relationships between the various ongoing processes, as well as other materials about how things may develop. You can access ELI’s resources on Gulf restoration here.
While the trustees may enjoy chocolate and candy hearts, save those for your loved ones!
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Latest news: January 26, 2012
January 26, 2012 | Posted by Kevin Chandler in Latest NewsNew Orleans Protection Plan Will Rely on Wetlands to Hold Back Hurricanes
By Mark Fischetti, Scientific American. January 26, 2012.
"More than six years after Hurricane Katrina plowed into New Orleans and the Mississippi River delta, a plan has finally emerged to protect the area from future storms…"
Master plan forgets bayou communities, residents say
By Nikki Buskey, Houma Courier. January 25, 2012.
"The state's new 50-year, $50 billion draft plan for coastal protection and restoration does not do enough to replace rapidly disappearing marshes in eastern Terrebonne that protect bayou communities, residents told state officials Tuesday…"
St. Charles Parish west bank levee omitted from state's coastal restoration plan
By Matt Scallan, The Times-Picayune. January 25, 2012.
"The state's new 50-year, $50 billion draft plan for coastal protection and restoration does not do enough to replace rapidly disappearing marshes in eastern Terrebonne that protect bayou communities, residents told state officials Tuesday…"
Opportunity open for wetlands protection funding
Town Talk staff. January 25, 2012.
"A funding opportunity for wetland protection, restoration and enhancement activities on eligible lands in Louisiana has been announced by USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service State Conservationist Kevin Norton…"
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Latest news: January 25, 2012
January 25, 2012 | Posted by Kevin Chandler in Latest NewsTake the long view on Louisiana's coastal restoration plan: An editorial
By Editorial Page Staff, The Times-Picayune. January 25, 2012.
"Louisiana's first public hearing on its proposed 50-year master plan for coastal restoration and protection, held in New Orleans Monday, drew criticism from fishers who oppose large diversions of freshwater and sediment because they fear damage to their industry. The master plan offers speculative land-building at the cost of saltwater species, they argued…"
GOP congressional challengers oppose RESTORE act
By George Altman, Press-Register. January 24, 2012.
"Some challengers to Rep. Jo Bonner, R-Mobile, are blasting a bill in Congress that would send potentially billions of dollars in oil spill fines to Gulf state governments, arguing that the proposal would create additional bureaucracy and give public officials too much power…"
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Audubon mini dredge: Building land at Rainey, one acre at a time
January 24, 2012 | Posted by Kevin Chandler in Restoration ProjectsBy Kevin Chandler, Mississippi River Delta Restoration Campaign
Louisiana coastal restoration often seems like a distant process – a product of reports and large-scale projects. And while reconnecting the Mississippi River to its delta is ultimately the only sustainable way to save Louisiana’s coast, the National Audubon Society’s Louisiana Coastal Initiative team has devised a way to put short-term local restoration efforts affordably in the hands of local property owners.
The John James dredge at Rainey.
For this, enter the John James, a 24-foot dredge operated by Karen Westphal, Audubon’s Atchafalaya Basin program manager, and Timmy Vincent, senior sanctuary manager for the Paul J. Rainey Wildlife Sanctuary, where the dredge operates.
Put simply, the pair hopes to demonstrate that small, independent dredges have the potential to create new land in areas where erosion and subsidence currently threaten wetlands and property lines.
Initiated and partially funded by TogetherGreen, a collaborative project between Audubon and Toyota, the John James’ work officially began on November 22, 2010, and for the past year Karen and Timmy have become part-time dredge operators in an effort to combat erosion in the sanctuary.
As with most new ideas, progress started slow.
“The learning curve has been rather bumpy,” said Karen, expanding upon the challenges of figuring out the finer points of moving sediment, but she quickly added that progress was improving. “It really works – we’re doing it.”
As evidence, throughout their dredging cells, the pair now sees alluvial flows – mini deltas of mud fanning out across the marsh. In times of lower water, birds, raccoons and alligators leave their tracks across the new mud, and on the primary test site, marsh vegetation – the backbone of the wetlands – has begun to take hold. Visitors can now walk down a boardwalk to the site and see bacopa, spikerush and three-square grasses fanning out along the new mud bed.
New land created by pumping sediment into a dredging cell at Rainey.
To move sediment and create this land, the dredge’s 15-horsepower submersible pump agitates the bottom of partially filled waterways. From there, sediment pumps through a 4-inch transport hose to the deposition area. The muddy discharge can be pumped into semi-contained open water (they often use reed barriers and plywood to build containment areas) to create new land or sprayed to distribute sediment more evenly through fragmented marsh.
At maximum efficiency, the dredge moves mud at a rate of 20 cubic yards per hour through the 4-inch hose over a distance of up to 800 feet, though as of yet, this ratio has been difficult to reach. Still, with the dredge’s low-fuel costs, two people operating the dredge at near maximum efficiency can create an acre of land one foot high in 75 hours.
More importantly, Karen and the Louisiana State University graduate students she works with to provide a full evaluation of the project estimate the total cost at less than $10,000 per acre of land. For coastal landowners facing rapid land loss, this certainly begins to look attractive, offering them an affordable way to snatch back land from the spreading open water.
“Even if you can create only an acre,” said Karen, “that’s an acre you haven’t lost.”
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