As legislators debate changes to levee boards, it’s worth remembering why the levee boards were reformed, what remains undone – AND that all evidence shows that the pre-Katrina Orleans Levee Board was not at fault.
Category: Environment
Posted inEnvironment
Will Ascension Parish become Ammonia Parish?
Three new proposed chemical plants could more than quadruple ammonia production in the Donaldsonville area, leaving Ascension residents to face more toxic air pollution and possible chemical disasters, according to a new report from Rural Roots and the Louisiana Bucket Brigade.
Posted inHealth
Air pollution messes up pregnant women’s metabolism, spurs preterm births
Tiny air pollutants appear to cause molecular changes in expectant mothers’ blood that can impact fetal development and cause stress in the mother, which could be behind early labor and health problems for babies.
Posted inOpinion
Louisiana can’t afford a mirage
“We must stick with real plans for our future,” the writer contends about the recent halt to the Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion. “Every delay means more land lost, more families unprotected, more risk from rising seas and stronger storms. We don’t have that kind of time.”
Posted inOpinion
Nothing is ever black and white on a plantation
The recent fire at Nottoway Plantation, which reduced the “big house” to ashes, serves as a stark reminder of the complexities we navigate to uncover the truth of our history.
Posted inEnvironment
Tracking the sediment carried by the muddy Mississippi
New research shows that typically, less than 10% of land-building alluvium reaches the Bird’s Foot Delta region, the southernmost reach of the river, where it meets the Gulf.
Posted inOpinion
Legislature must demand that Mid-Barataria Diversion proceed, as planned
At stake is decades of scientific consensus, years of bipartisan commitment and the credibility of Louisiana’s entire coastal program.
Posted inEnvironment
Through a new Mississippi River channel, Mother Nature shows the land-building power of sediment diversions
As the Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion flounders amid politics, some scientists say that doubts about its effectiveness can be addressed by Neptune Pass, which branched off the Mississippi on its own and is creating the largest new delta in North America.
Posted inEnvironment
LNG terminals threaten to push Calcasieu River pollution ‘beyond repair’
The shrimp stopped coming up the Calcasieu River after Venture Global built its Liquified Natural Gas terminal. The river’s ongoing pollution, on top of decades of hazardous waste dumping, earned the Calcasieu the #9 slot on American Rivers’ 2025 list of most endangered rivers.
Posted inOpinion
Levee board members have no sway over Army Corps design
The Army Corps controls the design and operational procedures of flood reduction, so it doesn’t matter whether the governor selects the levee board members or if a panel picks candidates – or even if we choose the first nine people coming out of church on Sunday.