The future of Louisiana

Coastal erosion causes remapping of coastline

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By Charles Nunmaker

Louisiana is home to some of the most unique landscapes in the country. With this unique land, though, comes a great price for the residents of the state. With Lake Pontchartrain located near New Orleans, the Mississippi River flowing down through the whole state, and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana is constantly threatened by rising waters.

Louisiana is now finding itself in crisis. As hurricanes hit and global water levels continue to rise, Louisiana's wetlands and coastal areas are constantly receding and leaving the state to deal with the threat of massive land loss.

From Hurricanes Katrina and Rita alone, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) reported in a release from July 2007 that the coastal water areas increased by 217 square miles. The USGS also reported that this increase in coastal water areas and eradication of coastal lands is directly caused by the removal of wetlands.

At the time of the report, the USGS could not verify if the land losses would be permanent, but as time progressed, these land losses increased into what they are today.

LSU Professor Robert Twilley has spent a great amount of time researching the ecosystems and structures of the wetlands and knows much about Louisiana's yearly land losses.

"There is some confusion to the exact number of wetland lost each year, but the number that I think is the best to use is the number that was quoted by a report by the Academy of Science," said Dr. Twilley. "The number given by the report is 24 square miles per year, and that is based off of an analysis by the USGS in 2005. It does not include the loss rates associated with Katrina and Rita."

This influx in land loss has led to a new resolution that was recently passed by the Louisiana legislature to redefine the state's coastline. This comes 30 years after the legislature passed a law that first defined the location and mapping of Louisiana's coastline throughout the southern part of the state.

The new resolution under the preceding coastal zone law will set the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority to conduct a "science-based study of the adequacy of the current inland boundary of the coastal zone of Louisiana to meet the state's current and future needs to manage, protect, and restore its coastal resources."

This study will define the Louisiana coastline and evaluate the exact land loss among southern parishes. Moreover, this new coastline has the potential to change the map of Louisiana and bring more parishes into the coastal zone.

"I think [remapping] is a very interesting concept and a very good idea. One of the real problems in dealing with the public's perception of coastal Louisiana is the perception that the coast is a static landscape," said Dr. Twilley. "Down here, we have a very dynamic landscape, and the shift between what is land and what becomes water changes within a person's lifetime. So, maps should be dynamic, and our definition of a coastal zone should mean something that needs to be updated and modified as appropriate."

Dr. Twilley also said that it is necessary for the government and the parishes within the new coastal zone to modify and adapt to the new changes.

"Now the public can get some perception of how dynamic things change, and the government needs to change along with it," he said.

Once a parish is legally located within the coastal zone, it will be able to protect its land and have more power over what happens to the land as a result of government actions. However, a parish will also face the downside of losing commercial and residential interests in the area due to the environmental factors and fears of residing in the zone.

So, can we save the wetlands and stop the water from rising? Louisiana Senator Mary Landrieu believes we can with a little inspiration from abroad.

Last month, Senator Landrieu went on a trip to the Netherlands to view the Dutch waterway systems. On her trip, Senator Landrieu was introduced to several flood control models with various designs that differ from our own. According to Landrieu, the Dutch have combined both flood protection and urban development in a way that is "aesthetically pleasing and that spurs economic development."

In the Netherlands, the national water policy and flood protection systems are run by Water Boards. There are 27 Water Boards that lie across the Dutch Delta and cover a specific area of land based on natural landscapes instead of political boundaries. These Water Boards care for all of the flooding and waterway systems within the area and provide safety and economic development for its residents.

After viewing these models, Senator Landrieu returned home to urge the U.S. government to adopt waterway systems similar to those of the Dutch in order to save important cities and land across the nation. According to Landrieu, a system like that of the Netherlands would be able to prevent another massive and catastrophic flooding of the city of New Orleans - much like the flooding which resulted from levee breaks during Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

Senator Landrieu's new understanding of the Netherlands' flood protection system led her to give an eye-opening testimony to the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee.

"We need a new direction. The piecemeal approach that we have used for over the last 40 to 50 years is what I now call the 'Patch and Pray' model," Landrieu said to the Committee. "This model has failed our nation. It failed the people of New Orleans and our region. It has failed South Louisiana. We must build a better model. We must find a new way to focus our efforts at the federal, state and local level so that we can construct water infrastructure in a more natural landscape that keeps communities safer and stronger."

"This Committee must work to develop a more 'Dutch' styled model," Landrieu continued. "If we do not act in a new direction to quickly adopt the same level of commitment to integrated water management in the United States, the consequences will be devastating. For millions of Americans living along our coasts, this is truly a life and death matter."

Dr. Twilley, who is the director of wetland biogeochemistry at LSU, also testified before the Committee alongside Senator Landrieu.

"I appreciate the fact that Senator Landrieu looks at the Dutch and wants the U.S. to be that ambitious relevant to the fact that it is national priority," he said.

"There were two points that I made to Senator Landrieu at the testimony. One is that we have to learn from the Dutch mistakes, and what the Dutch will tell you is that you have to work with nature," said Dr. Twilley.

"The other thing that the Dutch are aware of ... is the challenges of climate change and rising waters," he added. "You have to design for the next 100 years given that the ocean levels are rising, and that is going to give more challenges to cities like New Orleans."

Another issue that Senator Landrieu brought to the Committee's attention is the role of the Army Corps of Engineers. Senator Landrieu said that she believes the Corps must change to meet the needs of the rising waters by extending the district commander's rotation to a longer term and by moving the Corps and federal response to a more "comprehensive approach" that will focus on the specific needs of the Louisiana Coastal Delta.

Meanwhile, the Army Corps of Engineers once again caught national attention for its new policy concerning trees and vegetation.

Across the country, the Corps new policy has started a program to "reduce the risk to public safety caused by the existence of trees and other woody vegetation on or near levees and floodwalls."

This means that all across the country, the Corps is cutting down any tree that is within 15 feet of a levee or waterway system, including trees that have been on that land 100 years or more.

The largest issue about this program is that there are studies that say trees and vegetation may actually help to reinforce levee structure. However, the Corps study says that they pose a threat to the existing waterway systems. As a result, many people want the Corps to halt their destruction of trees until they are certain that the trees in a given area are causing damage to the systems.

With all of these issues circling around New Orleans, one of Louisiana's most vital cities, the threat of the 2009 hurricane season still looms overhead. As a result of new reports and new ideas, Louisiana officials and residents remains hopeful about the future of their beloved state - hopeful that the necessary steps toward total flood protection and coastal restoration will take place before the next catastrophe strikes, hopeful that Louisiana will find a solution to save its land, its residents, and its wildlife.

Originally Published: Issue 805 - June 24, 2009

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