Conservation groups seek revisions to Louisiana coastal restoration plan

News - March 22, 2010

Five local and national conservation groups working on coastal Louisiana restoration are calling on Louisiana's Office of Coastal Protection and Restoration (OCPR) to amend its Fiscal Year 2011 draft plan for coastal restoration and hurricane protection.

"Restoring the wetlands and making sure that our levees are strong and reliable must be backed up with necessary resources, so residents and businesses can build for - and live with - the always present remaining storm risk," said a joint statement by Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana, Environmental Defense Fund, Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation, National Audubon Society and National Wildlife Federation.

"Architectural, land use, and community planning solutions - such as elevation and evacuation planning, must work in conjunction with restoring wetlands and strategically placed levees - to reduce risk to people and property. The good news is that such techniques can be implemented in just a few years and they are very cost-effective."

The groups are recommending that the state identify funding sources and specific projects for cost-effective, community-based programs that can reduce hurricane risk quickly, which the Army Corps of Engineers calls "non-structural" storm protection measures. They include: elevating homes, maintaining effective evacuation routes, using commercial flood mitigation techniques, instituting planning and zoning reforms, storm-proofing critical public facilities, and using flood insurance.

The groups are recommending the state amend the Annual Plan to:

1. Clearly articulate a commitment to providing leadership on establishing and implementing a strong non-structural program; and
2. Coordinate state agencies currently overseeing the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program and Community Development Block Grant disaster recovery funds to ensure that these funds work with coastal restoration and hurricane protection to provide resilience for communities.

"Without providing a framework for cost-effective, community-based programs that can diminish hurricane risk quickly, the draft plan greatly reduces the effectiveness of other restoration and protection projects," the groups added. "Currently, unused disaster recovery funds can be tapped to implement these programs. The state should use these funds to ensure a more comprehensive strategy to defend coastal communities from storms."

"The draft plan currently calls for a multiple lines of defense approach to restoration and protection in Louisiana, including long-term coastal restoration and strategically placed levees," the groups concluded. "A robust, non-structural program must be an essential element of any natural hazards protection plan. Unfortunately, the draft plan lacks specific details for these cost-effective, community-based programs that can reduce hurricane risk in the near term. This omission must be rectified to protect millions of Louisianans from another Katrina."