Coastal Wetlands Planning, Protection and Restoration Act

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Coastal Wetlands Planning, Protection and Restoration Act
Great Seal of the United States (obverse).svg
Acronyms (colloquial)CWPPRA
Enacted bythe 101st United States Congress
EffectiveNovember 29, 1990
Citations
Public law Pub. L.   101–646
Statutes at Large 104  Stat.   4778
Codification
Titles amended 16 U.S.C.: Conservation
U.S.C. sections created 16 U.S.C.   §§ 39513156

The Coastal Wetlands Planning, Protection and Restoration Act (CWPPRA) is a 1990 United States federal law that provides funds for wetland enhancement. [1] The law is implemented by federal and state agencies, focusing on restoration of lost wetlands of the Gulf Coast, as well as protecting the wetlands from future deterioration. The scope of the mission is not simply for the restoration of wetlands in Louisiana, but also the research and implementation of preventative measures for wetlands preservation

Contents

Introduction

Like most deltaic systems, the Louisiana coast is sinking. The natural occurrence of subsidence was historically offset by new sediment from the annual overflow of the Mississippi River. With construction of the river levees, this overflow was cut off, leaving the wetlands to continue sinking with no source of renourishment. Since the early 1900s, storms and anthropogenic impacts have compounded with subsidence to cause drastic land loss in coastal Louisiana. In the 20th century, Louisiana has lost more than 1 million acres from its coast, 24 square miles annually, because of both human and natural factors that have disrupted ecological and economic stability. Billions of dollars in seafood production, oil and gas revenue, and commercial shipping will be lost without Louisiana's coastal wetlands, which provide the basis and support for these industries. In terms of human life, the value of these wetlands is beyond estimation. Healthy marsh provides a buffer against storms, and its ability to absorb high water and slow wind is key to survival for coastal communities. As land is lost, hurricanes and tropical storms hit shore ever closer to the two million people who live near the coast. Every year as wetlands lose ground, these forces land closer to home. Without intervention, this ecosystem will be erased from the national landscape.

Components of the law

A wetlands restoration project Planning Strategies Option.jpg
A wetlands restoration project

The CWPPRA is also known as the Breaux Act, due to the involvement of Louisiana U.S. Senator John Breaux in the Act's passage. [2] The act has several mandates:

Since 1990, 210 CWPPRA Projects have been authorized. [3]

Participating agencies

Implementation of CWPPRA is managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the National Marine Fisheries Service, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Natural Resources Conservation Service, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the State of Louisiana.

Funding

The Sport Fish Restoration and Boating Trust Fund is CWPPRA's funding source supported by excise taxes on fishing equipment and small engine and motorboat fuel taxes. Funding for Louisiana CWPPRA projects is cost shared: a split of 85 percent Federal and 15 percent State of Louisiana. Funding for the Sport Fish Restoration and Boating Trust Fund is authorized through 2021 by the Fixing America's Surface Transportation (FAST) Act of 2015. The Trust Fund contributes 18.5 percent of its annual revenues to CWPPRA appropriations; that amount is divided as follows:

While the funds for the CWPPRA program are authorized through 2021, the program itself has only been re-authorized through FY 2019 by the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2004. [5]

Basin project areas

There are nine hydrologic basins in which CWPPRA projects are taking place: [6]

Projects By Parish
ParishProject Number
Acadia LA-03b, LA-30
Ascension BA-25b,LA-03b, LA-30,PO-29, LA-280
Assumption BA-25b, LA-03a, LA-03b, LA-30, LA-280
Calcasieu CS-09, CS-22, CS-24, CS-27, CS-30, LA-03a, LA-03b, LA-30, LA-280
Cameron CS-04a, CS-09, CS-11b, CS-17, CS-18, CS-19, CS-20, CS-21, CS-23, CS-25, CS-26, CS-27, CS-28-1, CS-28-2, CS-28-3, CS-28-4-5, CS-29, CS-31, CS-32, CS-49, CS-53, CS-54, CS-59, CS-66, CS-78, CS-79, LA-03a, LA-03b, LA-30, LA-280, ME-09, ME-11, ME-16, ME-17, ME-18, ME-19, ME-20, ME-21a, ME-24, ME-32
East Baton Rouge LA-03b, LA-30
Iberia LA-03a, LA-03b, LA-16, LA-30, LA-280, TV-13a, TV-14, TV-19, TV-21
Iberville BA-25, LA-03b, LA-30
Jefferson BA-03c, BA-19, BA-20, BA-21, BA-23, BA-26, BA-27, BA-27c, BA-27d, BA-28, BA-30, BA-33, BA-36, BA-39, BA-41, BA-48, BA-125, BA-164, BA-193, BA-195, LA-03a, LA-03b, LA-05, LA-30, LA-280
Jefferson Davis LA-03b, LA-30
Lafayette LA-03b, LA-30
Lafourche BA-02, BA-18, BA-22, BA-25b, BA-29, BA-33, BA-37, BA-171, BA-193, BA-194, LA-03a, LA-03b, LA-05, LA-30, LA-280, TE-10, TE-23, TE-25, TE-30, TE-31, TE-52, TE-112, TE-134
Livingston LA-03a, LA-03b, LA-30, LA-280
Orleans LA-03a, LA-03b, LA-30, LA-280, PO-16, PO-18, PO-22, PO-34, PO-169
Plaquemines BA-03c, BA-04c, BA-24, BA-33, BA-35, BA-38, BA-39, BA-40, BA-42, BA-47, BA-68, BA-76, BA-164, BA-173, BA-195, BS-03a, BS-04a, BS-07, BS-09, BS-10, BS-11, BS-12, BS-13, BS-15, BS-18, BS-24, LA-03a, LA-03b, LA-05, LA-30, LA-280, MR-03, MR-06, MR-07, MR-08, MR-09, MR-10, MR-11, MR-12, MR-13, MR-14, MR-15, PO-27
St. Bernard LA-03a, LA-03b, LA-30, LA-280, PO-09a, PO-19, PO-24, PO-25, PO-27, PO-30, PO-32, PO-168
St. Charles BA-15, LA-03a, LA-03b, LA-05, LA-30, LA-280, PO-17, PO-26, PO-28, PO-75, PO-133
St. James BA-25b, BA-34-3, LA-03a, LA-03b, LA-30, LA-280, PO-20, PO-29
St. John the Baptist LA-03a, LA-03b, LA-05, LA-30, LA-280, PO-29
St. Martin LA-03a, LA-03b, LA-30, LA-280, TE-33
St. Mary AT-02, AT-03, AT-04, LA-03a, LA-03b, LA-05, LA-30, LA-280, TE-35, TE-49, TV-04, TV-15, TV-20
St. Tammany LA-03a, LA-03b, LA-30, LA-280, PO-06, PO-21, PO-33, PO-104, PO-173, LA-280
Tangipahoa LA-03a, LA-03b, LA-30, LA-280
Terrebonne LA-03a, LA-03b, LA-05, LA-30, LA-280, TE-17, TE-18, TE-19, TE-20, TE-22, TE-24, TE-26, TE-27, TE-28, TE-29, TE-32a, TE-34, TE-36, TE-37, TE-39, TE-40, TE-41, TE-43, TE-44, TE-45, TE-46, TE-47, TE-48, TE-50, TE-51, TE-66, TE-72, TE-83, TE-117
Vermilion LA-03a, LA-03b, LA-06, LA-30, LA-280, ME-04, ME-08, ME-12, ME-13, ME-14, ME-22, ME-23, ME-24, ME-31, TV-03, TV-09, TV-11b, TV-12, TV-13a, TV-16, TV-17, TV-18, TV-63
West Baton Rouge LA-03a, LA-30

Project types

Many restoration projects employ two or more restoration techniques.

Rock revetments like these help defend the shoreline. Shoreline Protection.jpg
Rock revetments like these help defend the shoreline.
Terraces help trap sediment to build new land. Terracing.jpg
Terraces help trap sediment to build new land.
This hydrologic modification weir controls and regulates waterflow. Hydrologic Modification Weir.jpg
This hydrologic modification weir controls and regulates waterflow.

Benefits of CWPPRA projects

These images show BA-38 Barataria Barrier Island Complex Project: Pelican Island and Pass La Mer to Chaland Pass before and after restoration. BA-38 Before and After.jpg
These images show BA-38 Barataria Barrier Island Complex Project: Pelican Island and Pass La Mer to Chaland Pass before and after restoration.

Benefits that CWPPRA projects contribute: [7]

CWPPRA task force members

The task force consists of the State of Louisiana and five Federal Agencies: [8]

Hurricane effects

In 2005, two of the United States' most devastating hurricanes hit the Gulf Coast (Hurricane Katrina, August 2005; Hurricane Rita, September 2005). Their impact gained national attention due to the vast property damage and loss of life. These two storms also impacted CWPPRA efforts for coastal restoration, for the better. As scientists and policy makers seek ways to protect coastal communities and industries from future hurricanes, they look to the marshes and barrier islands that form the coast's first line of hurricane defense. [9] This is magnifying the importance of CWPPRA and related projects and the necessity for the successful restoration of the coastal wetlands.

More recently, in 2008, Hurricanes Gustav and Ike have left their mark on Louisiana's Coastal Wetlands. Experts are comparing Hurricane Ike's impacts to those of Hurricane Rita in 2005. Assessment of the impact is on-going and may not be fully realized for some time.

See also

References

  1. United States. Coastal Wetlands Planning, Protection and Restoration Act. Pub. L.   101–646 Approved November 29, 1990. 16 U.S.C.   § 3951-3156
  2. 1 2 (February 2005). “The Breaux Act CWPPRA”, WaterMarks, 27.
  3. "About CWPPRA". www.lacoast.gov.
  4. The 2015 Evaluation Report to the U.S. Congress on the Effectiveness of Coastal Wetlands Planning, Protection, and Restoration Act Projects. 2015. p. 5. ISBN   978-1-4113-4004-6.
  5. Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2004.
  6. "CWPPRA". LaCoast.gov. 2019-02-05. Retrieved 2021-10-02.
  7. (December 2008). “Do CWPPRA Projects Make a Difference?”, WaterMarks, 39.
  8. "CWPPRA -- Mission Statement and Active Projects". Archived from the original on 2008-06-25. Retrieved 2008-08-21.
  9. (March 2006). "Storms Reveal High Cost of Marsh Loss Hurricanes Prove the Urgency of Rebuilding Wetlands", WaterMarks, 30.

Related restoration projects

Additional resources