Summer 2005 the Presidents’ Forum on Meeting Coastal Challenges: Towards a Near-Term Agenda for Coastal Louisiana

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Summer 2005 the Presidents’ Forum on Meeting Coastal Challenges: Towards a Near-Term Agenda for Coastal Louisiana Summer 2005 The Presidents’ Forum on Meeting Coastal Challenges: Towards a Near-Term Agenda for Coastal Louisiana As Louisiana continues to pursue long-term coastal Building codes, coastal zoning and land use planning restoration goals, it is only fitting that its universities were also frequently mentioned at the first forum, and take a lead role in addressing the politically-sensitive raising those issues determined the agenda for the first and economically-challenging issues that face coastal series of follow-up meetings. residents today. With that objective in mind, the LSU Agricultural Center, Louisiana Sea Grant, and the LSU On June 2nd the Presidents’ Forum sponsored a Systems Office have embarked on an initiative special panel discussion at the 10th America’s designed to identify new partnerships between Conference on Wind Engineering. The panel attracted university researchers, outreach specialists and local 75 scientists, educators, and government officials who government officials. gathered to discuss specific issues associated with hurricanes and coastal building codes. This national The Presidents’ Forum on Meeting Coastal Challenges panel provided the springboard for a more Louisiana- is a medium for these groups to discuss ways to specific forum scheduled for September 15, 2005 at redouble and redirect university resources toward the Lod Cook Alumni Center on the LSU Baton Rouge more “near-term” challenges resulting from the state’s Campus. devastating coastal land loss problem. The initial meeting in this series was held Jan. 25, 2005 at the In addition to building codes, the September 15th Lod Cook Alumni Center on the LSU Baton Rouge Forum will also focus on zoning and coastal land use campus. At the inaugural meeting, which drew planning. Louisiana’s coastal managers are approximately 120 participants, a panel of scientists increasingly challenged by the long-term implications provided stark assessments on the current status of of industrial, commercial and residential development wetland loss, hurricane vulnerability, subsidence, in a highly vulnerable and rapidly deteriorating spatial data, and coastal resource economics. environment. The upcoming forum will provide these managers with additional information and assistance in A second panel included members of the organization dealing with development issues related to smart- Parishes Against Coastal Erosion (PACE). PACE growth, no-growth, and retreat strategies. panelists were asked to respond to a hypothetical “no- action scenario” in which no additional funding for To obtain a complete transcript of the first forum and a coastal restoration would be forthcoming. Given this copy of the technical presentations, visit: “No Action” scenario, PACE panelists identified a www.seagrantfish.lsu.edu/news/2005/forum.htm number of areas in which universities might assist them with challenges facing their communities. For additional information about the September 15th meeting or to learn more about the Presidents’ Forum Examples of the near-term priority areas identified by on Meeting Coastal Challenges, contact Mike Liffmann the Presidents Forum include: 1) additional information (225) 578-6290 ([email protected]) or Rex Caffey (225) and assistance with coastal drainage, infrastructure, 578-2266 ([email protected]). and hurricane evacuation; 2) the need for socioeconomic assessments of marine industries, coastal developments, and cultural resources; and 3) legal analysis and policy guidance pertaining to specific municipal liabilities and a growing number of disputes over public/private property. Louisiana Wetland News, Summer 2005, p. 1 LA 1 Improvements Project Update There are three phases in development of the LA 1 Source: Wilbur Smith Associates Improvements Project : The Louisiana Department of Transportation and Phase 1A: Southern Project: Fourchon to Leeville Development (DOTD) is accepting bids for Phase 1 construction of the long-awaited elevated highway Phase 1B: Leeville Project: Leeville Bridge between Golden Meadow and Fourchon. According to Bill Gremillion of the LA 1 project consulting firm Phase 2: Leeville to Golden Meadow Wilbur Smith Associates, contracts for Phase 1 - Port Fourchon to Leeville - are scheduled to be let by June The Environmental Impact Statement for Phase 1A &1B 29, 2005. was completed in 2003, and DOTD has since been finalizing construction permits, negotiating right-of way When fully completed, this 17 mile corridor project will acquisitions, and conducting pile-load testing. Phases cross wetlands, bayous, channels, and flood plains in 1A & 1B are expected to be completed by the end of a sensitive environmental area. The existing LA 1 is a 2008. If you have any questions or concerns about the primary transportation route for foreign oil offloaded proposed LA 1 Improvements project, please contact from ships in the Gulf of Mexico and also serves as a William Huffstetler at Wilbur Smith Associates hurricane evacuation route for a population of 35,000 [email protected] or David Miller at DTOD, and 6,000 offshore workers. [email protected]. Image credit: Wilbur Smith Associates Leeville Bridge and La Hwy 1 after T.S. Matthew October 10, 2004 The vulnerability of La Highway 1 was exposed Proposed new bridge of the La 1 Improvements once again when the last storm of the 2004 season, Project. The new bridge and elevated roadway will Tropical Storm Matthew, inundated lower Lafourche replace 17 miles of substandard highway between Parish with torrential rains and high tides. Golden Meadow and Port Fourchon. The existing road floods with severe weather and For additional LA 1 Project information on the web, requires replacing with a 17-mile elevated roadway check out these links: www.la1project.com/index.cfm consisting of low-level and medium-level bridges, two and www.la1coalition.org/home.html, http:// elevated interchanges, and two fixed high-level bridges over navigable waterways – one over Bayou Lafourche and the Boudreaux Canal at Leeville and one over Bollinger Canal. The elevated four-lane Hollywood Captures LA-1 Vulnerability structure will be built at a height above the 100 year flood line. A toll plaza facility and scenic overlook or The movie “Oil Storm” is a recently completed bird watching area may be included in the final design docudrama that depicts the national crisis that could concept. potentially unfold if critical petroleum infrastructure in south Louisiana is severely damaged from a hurricane. This project will replace the sinking LA 1 Highway by The movie focuses specifically on Port Fourchon and constructing one of the longest bridges in Louisiana the vulnerability of the LA Highway 1 corridor. “Oil and possibly the longest bridge in the Americas except Storm” premiers Sunday, June 5, 8 PM ET/PT on the the nearby Pontchartrain Bridge in New Orleans, FX channel. For additional air times and information generally regarded as the world’s longest bridge. The about the film, go to: project will be built in phases as funding permits, with www.fxnetworks.com/shows/originals/oilstorm/main.html the most critical sections of the project (the southernmost) built first. Louisiana Wetland News, Summer 2005, p. 2 NOAA Publication Release: “Volume Two provides support for and expands upon the Science-Based Restoration Monitoring of Coastal framework for restoration monitoring presented in Volume Habitats, Volume Two: Tools for Monitoring Coastal One,” said lead author Gordon Thayer, of the NOAA Na- Habitats tional Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS). “Readers are presented with the background needed to In October 2003, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric make critical decisions necessary in the process of devel- Administration (NOAA), part of the U.S. Department of oping and implementing a monitoring plan.” Commerce, released Science-Based Restoration Monitoring of Coastal Habitats, Volume One: A While the effort to develop this manual was based in Framework for Monitoring Plans Under the Estuaries and NCCOS, the volumes are the product of teamwork among Clean Waters Act of 2000 (Public Law 160-457). This scientists from NOAA (NCCOS, the Office of Habitat Con- book brought together for the first time key restoration servation, the Great Lakes Environmental Research monitoring information applicable to coastal habitats Laboratory, and the Office of Science and Technology) nationwide. It provides useful tools for developing and and the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. Au- carrying out monitoring of coastal restoration efforts. thors, contributors, and reviewers in this project came NOAA is pleased to announce the publication of Science- from academia, private industry, non-governmental or- Based Restoration Monitoring of Coastal Habitats, ganizations, as well as Federal and State government Volume Two: Tools for Monitoring Coastal Habitats. agencies. Volume Two: Tools for Monitoring Coastal Habitats expands upon the information in Volume One and For additional information and printed copies of the man- provides tools that aid in the implementation of the ual, please contact, Teresa McTigue; National Centers for framework established in Volume One. Information Coastal Ocean Science (N/SCI1); Center for Coastal provided in Volume Two is designed more for Monitoring and Assessment; 1305 East-West Highway, practitioners who may not have extensive experience in Room 8409; Silver Spring, MD 20910; phone: (301) 713- coastal ecology. More experienced restoration 3028 x 141; email: [email protected].
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