America's Wetland Foundation

Officials: Feds should do more to finance spill recovery projects

By: Deborah Barfield Berry Gannett, hattiesburgamerican.com

The federal government should do more to finance and fast-track restoration projects on the Gulf Coast, where the ecosystem has been devastated by natural disasters and the 2010 BP oil spill, officials from the region said Wednesday.

New report provides recommendations to restoring battered Gulf Coast

By: Maya Rodriguez, WWLTV.com

Two weeks after Hurricane Isaac's wind and surge battered the Louisiana coast, advocates say time is short when it comes to saving it.

Gulf of Mexico coastal restoration needs investment of billions, foundation reports

By: Bruce Alpert, Times-Picayune

Without concerted and expensive efforts to restore the dwindling ecosystems of the Gulf of Mexico, vital national resources will continue to deteriorate and eventually disappear, according to a report released today by the America’s Wetland Foundation. Based in part on a $4.2 million study and meetings with community representatives at 11 forums, “Beyond Unintended Consequences: Adaptation for Gulf Coast Resiliency and Sustainability” says an investment of about $50 billion is needed to save the Louisiana coast.

Allstate raising Louisiana homeowner rates

By: Associated Press, Times-Picayune

Allstate Corp. is raising rates for 144,000 Louisiana homeowners who get their insurance coverage from two Allstate companies. The company announced Tuesday that about 71,000 homeowners insured by Allstate Insurance Co. will see their rates increase by 11.3 percent, while 73,000 Allstate Indemnity Co. policyholders will see an average increase of 5.4 percent as of March 1.

New report outlines 30 recommendations for rebuilding the Gulf Coast

By: Alex Woodward, Gambit Weekly

Released today, “Beyond Unintended Consequences: Adaptation for Gulf Coast Resiliency and Sustainability" is the result of forums held in 11 Gulf Coast communities (including Lake Charles, Avery Island, Houma, Plaquemines Parish and New Orleans) in the last year. It gathered 1,100 "stakeholders" in environment, business, government and other agencies to make recommendations for rebuilding the coast. The report also based its recommendations on the findings of a $4.2 million study from Entergy.

Louisiana Business: Jindal, Forum Energy, Jefferson Chamber, Gary LaGrange, BR Capital, Wetlands

By: Bayou Buzz

Today, Governor Bobby Jindal and Forum Energy Technologies CEO Cris Gaut announced the company’s plans to build a new 150,000-square-foot facility in St. Martin Parish to produce onshore and offshore drilling equipment for global customers. The expansion will create 125 new direct jobs with average annual salaries of more than $45,000, plus benefits.

La. fights for coastal funding

By: Jordan Blum, Advocate

With another hurricane having battered Louisiana’s coast, leaving thousands with flooded homes, the state now has a $50 billion master plan for coastal restoration and hurricane protection that was approved earlier this year. The question state and federal officials are trying to answer is exactly how to piece together steady streams of revenue to put the plan into action before another tropical storm can wreak more havoc on south Louisiana. Hurricane Isaac demonstrated New Orleans may be better protected, but the Category 1 storm also illuminated the vulnerabilities of much of the rest of the region.

Hurricane Isaac is a reality check for Louisiana's shrinking coast: Bob Marshall

By: Bob Marshall, Times-Picayune

They've had front-row seats to the demise of our wetlands caused by river levees and canal dredging for oil, gas and shipping. They've seen duck ponds widen into lagoons, and then into lakes. They've seen islands dissolve into open water and forests of oak and cypress die and collapse while the shorelines of coastal bays moved steadily closer to their docks. They've been able to mark the advance of accelerated sea level rise pushed by the sinking of our sediment-starved deltas and global warming because roads now often flood when the high tide coincides with a stiff southerly wind even when the Gulf has no tropical storms.

Coastline erosion due to rise in sea level greater than previously thought

By: UNESCO-IHE

A new model allows researchers at UNESCO-IHE, TU Delft and Deltares to much more accurately predict coastline erosion due to rising sea levels.

Coastal plan lacks a ‘local sponsor’

By: Amy Wold, Advocate

A coalition of scientists, environmentalists and policy groups is encouraging state and federal officials to work together to make sure a coastal restoration plan in southeast Louisiana moves forward.

Sen. Vitter says focus should be on restoring wetlands

By: WWL-TV

NEW ORLEANS — Lafitte Mayor Tim Kerner has voiced his displeasure with the Corps of Engineers and the fact that, for decades, his town has been kept out of the levee protection system.

Texas A&M researchers warn of loss of natural resources in storm’s wake

By: The Eagle

The destruction and loss of life seen in the wake of Hurricanes Katrina, Ike and Rita will almost certainly happen again, says a Texas A&M University researcher — perhaps even this week, as Hurricane Isaac bears down on the Gulf Coast.

On Katrina's 7th Anniversary, A New Storm Hurtles In

By: NPR

Audie Cornish talks with Mark Schleifstein of the Times-Picayune, about New Orleans' preparedness for today versus seven years ago, when it was pummeled by Hurricane Katrina. The city is bracing for the possibility that tropical storm Isaac may turn into a hurricane.

Saltwater From Gulf Invades Mississippi River

By: Debbie Elliott, NPR

All the dry weather means there's less water flowing through the once mighty river into the Gulf of Mexico, and low outflow means saltwater from the Gulf is creeping in.

The Mississippi River: A Victim Not Just of the Drought, But the Economy

By: Whet Moser, Chicago Mag

The upper Mississippi has avoided low-water shipping restrictions because of the lock-and-dam system, but the lower Mississippi has been operating under restrictions all summer due to the drought. And an 11-mile stretch was just closed yesterday, with no timetable for its opening. But ships on the river have been running at lower capacity with some frequency, due to consistent underfunding: