See also
- America's WETLAND Foundation
- Coastal Wetlands Planning, Protection and Restoration Act—CWPPRA (a federal agency)
| Agency overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | 2005 |
| Jurisdiction | Louisiana Coastal Zone |
| Headquarters | Baton Rouge, Louisiana |
| Annual budget | $1.7 b USD (2025) |
| Agency executives |
|
| Parent department | Office of the Governor of Louisiana |
| Website | https://coastal.la.gov/ |
The Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority (CPRA) is a governmental authority created by the Louisiana State Legislature in the aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The CPRA reports to the Office of the Governor of Louisiana. [1] The organization takes advantage of both federal and state funding of around $1 billion annually. [2] Since its founding, the organization has completed over 140 projects, benefitting 55,807 acres (87.198 sq mi) of land, placing 193 million cubic yards of sediment, improving 369 miles (594 km) of levee s, and restoring 71.6 miles (115.2 km) of barrier island s. [3] CPRA predicts that, without action over the next 50 years, between 1,100 and 3,000 square miles (2,800 and 7,800 km2) of coastal land may be lost, depending on a low (1.6 feet (0.49 m)) or high (2.5 feet (0.76 m)) forecast of local sea level rise. [3] [4]
The creation of CPRA was ordered by U.S. Congress in Pub. L. 109–148 (text) (PDF). [5] The CPRA's forerunner, the Wetlands Conservation and Restoration Authority, was restructured as the CPRA by Act 8 of the First Extraordinary Session of 2005 [1] when the tasks of coastal restoration and hurricane protection were consolidated under a single authority. The authority is responsible for overseeing all levee districts in the Louisiana Coastal Zone and dispersal of funding from Louisiana's Coastal Protection and Restoration Trust Fund to be used exclusively for wetland restoration and hurricane protection projects. Act 8 defines the CPRA's mandate as, "hurricane protection and the protection, conservation, restoration, and enhancement of coastal wetlands and barrier shorelines or reefs." Additionally, the act defined the term "coastal area" as the Louisiana Coastal Zone and contiguous areas that are subject to storm or tidal surge. [1]
In April 2007, the CPRA submitted Louisiana's first ever Comprehensive Master Plan for coastal restoration and hurricane protection to the state's legislature for approval. The legislature approved the plan unanimously. Entitled: "Integrated Ecosystem Restoration and Hurricane Protection: Louisiana's Comprehensive Master Plan for a Sustainable Coast," the Master Plan represents an overarching vision that fully incorporates hurricane protection projects and structures with coastal wetland and hydrology restoration projects. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers officials will use the CPRA Master Plan as the cornerstone of the Congressionally mandated Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration (LaCPR) Report scheduled to be written and submitted to Congress by December 2007.[ needs update ]
In 2012, an article in The New York Times reviewed the current state of improvements to New Orleans defenses. [6] August 24, 2015, an article in The Huffington Post titled "10 Years After Katrina, Louisiana Is Becoming A Model For Climate Resilience" summarized the current state of Louisiana's shoreline and coastal community protection. [7]
Every five to six years CPRA must submit a revised plan to the state legislature. The current plan is the 2023 Master Plan, which was passed unanimously by the state legislature in May 2023. [8]
Projects detailed in the plan fall into the following categories:
There are many projects listed on both the CPRA and CWPPRA websites, and both sites have interactive maps to readily display projects.
As of 2023, Louisiana's Coastal Master Plan [3] intends two diversions:
The following Levee Districts are overseen by the CPRA.
Additionally, decisions are pending on the Southwest Louisiana Parishes of Cameron, Vermillion and Iberia.[ needs update ]
Grand Isle is a town in Jefferson Parish in the U.S. state of Louisiana, located on a barrier island of the same name in the Gulf of Mexico. The island is at the mouth of Barataria Bay where it meets the gulf. The town of Grand Isle is statistically part of the New Orleans−Metairie−Kenner metropolitan statistical area, though it is not connected to New Orleans' continuous urbanized area.
Bayou Lafourche, originally called Chetimachas River or La Fourche des Chetimaches,, is a 106-mile-long (171 km) bayou in southeastern Louisiana, United States, that flows into the Gulf of Mexico. The bayou is flanked by Louisiana Highway 1 on the west and Louisiana Highway 308 on the east, and is known as "the longest Main Street in the world." It flows through parts of Ascension, Assumption, and Lafourche parishes. Today, approximately 300,000 Louisiana residents drink water drawn from the bayou.
Pointe à la Hache is a census-designated place (CDP) and unincorporated community in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana, United States. Located on the east bank of the Mississippi River, the village has been the seat for Plaquemines Parish since the formation of the parish. As of the 2020 census, its population was 183, less than half its 1930 population. It suffered severe damage from Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and Tropical Storm Lee in 2011.
The Mississippi River–Gulf Outlet Canal is a 76 mi (122 km) channel constructed by the United States Army Corps of Engineers at the direction of Congress in the mid-20th century that provided a shorter route between the Gulf of Mexico and New Orleans' inner harbor Industrial Canal via the Intracoastal Waterway. In 2005, the MRGO channeled Hurricane Katrina's storm surge into the heart of Greater New Orleans, contributing significantly to the subsequent multiple engineering failures experienced by the region's hurricane protection network. In the aftermath the channel was closed. A permanent storm surge barrier was constructed in the MRGO in 2009, and the channel has been closed to maritime shipping.
Lake Borgne is a lagoon of the Gulf of Mexico in southeastern Louisiana. Although early maps show it as a lake surrounded by land, coastal erosion has made it an arm of the Gulf of Mexico. Its name comes from the French word borgne, which means "one-eyed."
The Mississippi River Delta is the confluence of the Mississippi River with the Gulf of Mexico in Louisiana, southeastern United States. The river delta is a three-million-acre area of land that stretches from Vermilion Bay on the west, to the Chandeleur Islands in the east, on Louisiana's southeastern coast. It is part of the Gulf of Mexico and the Louisiana coastal plain, one of the largest areas of coastal wetlands in the United States. The Mississippi River Delta is the 7th largest river delta on Earth (USGS) and is an important coastal region for the United States, containing more than 2.7 million acres of coastal wetlands and 37% of the estuarine marsh in the conterminous U.S. The coastal area is the nation's largest drainage basin and drains about 41% of the contiguous United States into the Gulf of Mexico at an average rate of 470,000 cubic feet per second.
Hurricane preparedness in New Orleans has been an issue since the city's early settlement because of its location.
Hurricane Katrina struck the United States on August 29, 2005, causing over a thousand deaths and extreme property damage, particularly in New Orleans. The incident affected numerous areas of governance, including disaster preparedness and environmental policy.
The wetlands of Louisiana are water-saturated coastal and swamp regions of southern Louisiana, often called 'Bayou'.
The Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection Authority (SLFPA) was established by Louisiana state law Revised Statute §38:330.1 in September 2006. Its operation began in January 2007. The Authority consists of two regional levee boards which oversee flood protection in the Greater New Orleans area on the east and west banks of the Mississippi River. Commissioners of both Authorities have clearly defined term limits. The Authority also has a Nominating Committee.
The Morganza to the Gulf Hurricane Protection Project is a flood protection system for Terrebonne Parish and Lafourche Parish in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The targeted area is bounded on the west by Bayou Du Large and LA 311 and on the east by Bayou Lafourche. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is the federal sponsor for this project, and the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development with the Terrebonne Levee and Conservation District jointly serve as the local sponsor. The Terrebonne Levee and Conservation District will provide operations and maintenance once the system is complete.
The Flood Control Act of 1965, Title II of Pub. L.Tooltip Public Law 89–298, was enacted on October 27, 1965, by the 89th Congress and authorized the United States Army Corps of Engineers to design and construct numerous flood control projects including the Lake Pontchartrain and Vicinity, Louisiana Hurricane Protection Project in the New Orleans region of south Louisiana.
Caernarvon is an unincorporated community in St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana, United States. The name of the community is from a plantation originally located here. The plantation's name is widely believed to be from a similarly named town and castle in Wales. Names of antebellum plantations in the American South were often reflective of European roots and aspirations of grandeur; two upriver Mississippi River plantations, Nottoway near White Castle, Louisiana, and Sans Souci near Osceola, Arkansas, are two examples of this tradition.
The Water Resources Development Act of 1996 is part of Pub. L.Tooltip Public Law 104–303 (text)(PDF), was enacted by Congress of the United States on October 12, 1996. Most of the provisions of WRDA 1996 are administered by the United States Army Corps of Engineers.
The Water Resources Development Act of 1999, Pub. L.Tooltip Public Law 106–53 (text)(PDF), was enacted by Congress of the United States on August 17, 1999. Most of the provisions of WRDA 1999 are administered by the United States Army Corps of Engineers.
The Coastal Wetlands Planning, Protection and Restoration Act (CWPPRA) was passed by Congress in 1990 to fund wetland enhancement. In cooperation with multiple government agencies, CWPPRA is moving forward to restore the 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 Louisiana's Wetlands, but also the research and implementation of preventative measures for wetlands preservation.
There are three outfall canals in New Orleans, Louisiana – the 17th Street, Orleans Avenue and London Avenue canals. These canals are a critical element of New Orleans’ flood control system, serving as drainage conduits for much of the city. There are 13 miles (21 km) of levees and floodwalls that line the sides of the canals. The 17th Street Canal is the largest and most important drainage canal and is capable of conveying more water than the Orleans Avenue and London Avenue Canals combined.
The effects of Hurricane Isaac in Louisiana were more severe than anywhere in the storm's path, and included $611.8615 million in damages and five total deaths. Forming from a tropical wave in the central Atlantic, Isaac traversed across many of the Lesser and Greater Antilles, before reaching peak intensity with winds of 80 mph (130 km/h) on August 28, 2012 while in the Gulf of Mexico. Nearing the coast of Louisiana, the Category 1 hurricane slowly moved towards the west, making two landfalls in the state with little change of intensity prior to moving inland for a final time. The hurricane weakened and later dissipated on September 1 while over Missouri. Before landfall, Governor Bobby Jindal declared a state of emergency to the state, as well as ordering the mandatory evacuation of 60,000 residents in low-lying areas of Louisiana along the Tangipahoa River in Tangipahoa Parish.
Coastal erosion in Louisiana is the process of steady depletion of wetlands along the state's coastline in marshes, swamps, and barrier islands, particularly affecting the alluvial basin surrounding the mouth of the Mississippi River. In the last century, coastal Louisiana has lost an estimated 4,833 square kilometers (1,866 sq mi) of land, approximately the size of Delaware's land area. Coastwide rates of wetland change have varied from −83.5 square kilometers (−32.2 sq mi) to −28.01 square kilometers (−10.81 sq mi) annually, with peak loss rates occurring during the 1970s. One consequence of coastal erosion is an increased vulnerability to hurricane storm surges, which affects the New Orleans metropolitan area and other communities in the region. The state has outlined a comprehensive master plan for coastal restoration and has begun to implement various restoration projects such as fresh water diversions, but certain zones will have to be prioritized and targeted for restoration efforts, as it is unlikely that all depleted wetlands can be rehabilitated.
Terrebonne Basin is an abandoned delta complex, in Terrebonne Parish, Louisiana. The area is identified by thick sections of unconsolidated sediments that are undergoing dewatering and compaction which contributes to high subsidence. There is a network of old distributary ridges, associated with past distributaries of the Mississippi River, extending south from Houma, Louisiana into the Gulf of Mexico.
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