Well everyone, the month of May is here and the outside temperatures can cause you to feel that the cool winds of spring are a distant memory and the heat of summer is on! And thankfully, after a 2-year pause due to the COVID pandemic, we were able to enjoy a very successful French Quarter Fest, Jazz Fest and everything else in between. And, of course, let’s not forget that the month of May is replete with graduation ceremonies and those have also begun to take on more a pre-pandemic look and feel.
As we further progress through May and on into the month of June, let’s also remember that we don’t get a reprieve from hurricane season. So, let’s remember to develop a personal plan for evacuation (visit GetAGamePlan.org!) and all other arrangements we tend to have to make when severe storms come knocking at our doors. Thankfully, the work of coastal restoration continues and the work of all our MRD coalition organizations continues as well. And, this newsletter as all others provides a plethora of information regarding the very meaningful work of our coalition. Lastly, let’s also remember that the month of May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. As such, we recognize all the richness that has been given and continues to be given to this country from the many generations of Asian and Pacific Islanders.
So, as best you can, enjoy the heat as it continues, get a good snow-ball from somewhere and enjoy this latest edition of our Delta Dispatches Newsletter.
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- Charles Allen
Community Engagement Director
National Audubon Society
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Coastal Restoration is More Important than ever for Communities across Louisiana’s Central Coast
As communities across Louisiana continue to recover from the devastation of the last two hurricane seasons, it’s difficult to think that another hurricane season is about to begin. In 2021, Hurricane Ida was one of the strongest hurricanes to ever make landfall in Louisiana and particularly impacted communities across Louisiana’s central coast including Terrebonne and Lafourche Parishes. As devastating as that storm was, leaders at Louisiana’s Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority (CPRA) indicated that the damage would have been significantly worse without prior investments in coastal restoration and protection. These include a number of project types in this region such as the Terrebonne Basin Ridge and Marsh Creation – Bayou Terrebonne Increment and Bayou Dularge Ridge and Marsh Creation projects.
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Job Opportunities
Director of Development at Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana, implement comprehensive annual fundraising program
Senior Outreach Coordinator at National Wildlife Federation, work with a diverse group of stakeholders to help Louisiana’s people, wildlife and economy adapt and thrive in face of climate change.
Outreach Intern at National Wildlife Federation, help advance the goals of NWF’s Mississippi River Delta (MRD) Restoration Program in Louisiana
Native Plants Program Technician (Serve Louisiana) at Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana, support the planning and preparation of volunteer restoration project workdays as well as the monitoring of current and past plantings
Outreach Assistant (Serve Louisiana) at Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana, focus will be expanding youth engagement initiatives
Oyster Shell Recycling Technician (Serve Louisiana) at Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana, design and implement strategies, perform research and analyses, and coordinate program logistics for increased awareness and reach
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Volunteer Opportunities
CRCL Big Branch Recycled Glass Deployment
Our friends and partners at Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana are organizing two volunteer days for a deployment of recycled glass sand in Big Branch! They will be working to deploy Glass Half Full's recycled sand to restore blowouts along the shore caused by Hurricane Ida, before adding additional stabilization with marsh grass. This project will help to minimize salt water intrusion into freshwater marsh habitat. Volunteers will ride on airboats to the project site. Register for this event:
CRCL Oyster Shell Bagging Event
Launched in June 2014, CRCL’s Oyster Shell Recycling Program recycles shell from participating New Orleans-based restaurants and uses that shell to restore oyster reefs and shoreline habitat across Coastal Louisiana. As a volunteer, you will help prepare the shell for a future restoration. Volunteers will place the recycled shell into bags that will later be transported to oyster reef restoration sites. Volunteers will also help clean up our shell pile and remove trash and plastics as we bag. By helping prep the shell, volunteers will play a role in creating a new oyster reef that will allow for the growth of new oysters, create new fish habitat, and act as a wave break which will knock down storm surge and allow new land to build up behind the reef. Register for this event:
CRCL Big Branch Planting
The Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana (CRCL) is hosting a volunteer event for a marsh grass planting in Big Branch. They will be working to plant southern bullrush and deploy Glass Half Full recycled sand to restore blowouts along the shore caused by Hurricane Ida. This project will help to minimize salt water intrusion into freshwater marsh habitat. Volunteers will ride on airboats to the project site. Register for this event:
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Upcoming Events
For Storm Sweep 2022, the Pontchartrain Conservancy (PC) will be giving away hurricane prep supplies and information, and there will be information and activities for adults and kids too.
There will be snowballs for both kids and adults. Get prepared for this hurricane season, and find out how you can help reduce Louisiana’s risk for the future! Presented by Entergy and made possible by PC’s partners: NOLA Ready, Restore the Mississippi River Delta, and All Hands and Hearts.
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It’s a Home Run!
The Bay Denesse Delta Water Management Project, just north of Buras on the east side of the Mississippi River, reconnected the river to nearby wetlands, conveying freshwater and sediment into a nearby shallow bay and constructing terraces that built 2500 acres of marsh habitat.
The project is now a over a year past completion and project partner, Ryan Lambert, describes the project this way, “Bay Denesse is an incredible success story. It’s a home run! In just a year and a half, we have about 10,000 willow trees, many are 20 feet tall! Land is building and when you walk on it, it’s as hard as a rock. It’s really beautiful to watch Louisiana come back to life. I’m seeing habitat for so many species of birds and wildlife. It’s amazing.”
The Bay Denesse project was a joint effort between Vanishing Paradise, Ducks Unlimited, North American Wetlands Conservation Council and Louisiana’s Coastal Protection & Restoration Authority. (The pictures below were provided courtesy of Richie Blink.)
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