Louisiana officially canceled the $3 billion Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion Project aimed at rebuilding coastal land to combat sea-level rise and erosion. The project intended to use sediment-laden water from the Mississippi River but faced political opposition after the election of Republican Gov. Jeff Landry. Supporters had argued the project was crucial for addressing Louisiana's disappearing coastline. Concerns were raised by Landry about potential negative impacts on local fisheries, prompting reevaluation of the project. The future of funds already spent remains uncertain amid ongoing debates over conservation and economic impacts.
The Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion Project had been intended to rebuild upward of 20 square miles of land in southeast Louisiana to combat sea level rise and erosion on the Gulf Coast.
Conservation groups stressed it was an ambitious, science-based approach to mitigating the worst effects of a vanishing coastline in a state where a football field of land is lost every 100 minutes.
The science has not changed, nor has the need for urgent action. What has changed is the political landscape.
Gov. Landry has amplified concerns that the massive influx of freshwater would destroy fisheries that local communities rely on for their livelihoods.
#coastal-restoration #louisiana #sediment-diversion-project #deepwater-horizon #environmental-policy
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