The Mississippi Delta is the world's seventh largest river delta. But we are losing these wetlands at an alarming rate.
80 years of national actions to channelize and control the Mississippi River for economic development and navigation have diverted sediment and freshwater from the Delta.
As a result, since the 1930s, more than 1.2 million acres, an area the size of Delaware, has disappeared. Every 30 minutes, an area of coastal land the size of a football field vanishes.
Congress first directed agencies to work together on a restoration plan in 1990. But while multiple plans have been written, little has been accomplished on the ground.
Please do your part by emailing President Obama and urging him to restore coastal Louisiana.
Since the 1930s, national actions to channelize and control the Mississippi River have diverted sediment and freshwater from the Delta. As a result, more than 1.2 million acres, an area the size of Delaware, has disappeared and we're losing an area of coastal land the size of a football field every 30 minutes.
Congress first directed agencies to work together on a restoration plan in 1990. But while multiple plans have been written, little has been accomplished on the ground.
Your leadership offers us a new opportunity to get coastal restoration right.
Here are five guiding principles I hope you and your administration will adopt in promoting coastal restoration:
1. Complete the near-term restoration program authorized by Congress in 2007.
2. Apply multi-agency resources and coordination.
3. Streamline bureaucracy and reconcile inconsistent policies.
4. Develop multi-year programmatic funding and budgeting, starting with Fiscal Year 2011.
5. Complete the authorized comprehensive planning, design, and management effort.
These principles will serve as a roadmap on how to rebuild coastal Louisiana effectively and quickly.
[Your comments]
Thank you for your attention on the desperate need to restore wetlands and barrier islands along Louisiana's Gulf Coast.
