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Environment

With days numbered on levee board, John Barry promises more action on coastal loss | The Lens – The outgoing levee board vice chairman may still end up serving on the board of the state coastal agency.

American Zombie| Wisner Beach:  “No further response needed” – Blogger and documentary filmmaker Jason Berry traveled to Grand Isle and snapped photos of tar balls washing up on the beach. He writes:

It’s brazenly clear that there is still a massive amount of oil in the Gulf and particularly along this area of the Louisiana coastline.  Even though BP sunk most of the oil after the spill by using dispersant, the oil didn’t magically disappear as they would have us believe.  If this much of it, a ton, is coming in after a minor tropical disturbance you can only imagine what is still in the Gulf itself and how long this problem is going to last.  What I can’t imagine is what all that oil is doing to the ecosystem of the Gulf.

Reef madness | Gambit – Should we dismantle and remove abandoned oil platforms that have become “vertical ecosystems” for sea life? This in-depth article weighs the competing factors. As a side note, I would like to see more studies on whether the platforms actually increase net biomass, or simply attract it to one place. 

BP witnesses continue to bolster company’s low Gulf oil spill estimates | NOLA.com/The Times-Picayune – “The witnesses presented their views on the compressibility of rock in the Macondo oil reservoir, the porous nature of that rock, and estimates of how much the oil ‘shrank’ after it left the reservoir, all factors in the complex accounting exercise being conducted to determine how much oil ended up in the Gulf of Mexico.”

Government & Politics

Jail consent decree left out of Landrieu administration’s proposed 2014 budget | The Lens – The administration has left it up to the City Council to figure out how to pay for a decree that could cost the city between $7 million and $22.5 million, annually.

Political sideshow plays out around coastal erosion lawsuit | NOLA.com/The Times-Picayune – Political analyst John Maginnis delves into the oil company strategy to short-circuit the levee board’s coastal erosion lawsuit: If Big Oil can “nullify the pact with the plaintiff’s lawyers … the levee board would not be able to afford the millions in research and legal fees it would take to press its case.”

NAACP New Orleans president to challenge Landrieu for mayor | Uptown Messenger – Donatus King, a frequent critic of the Landrieu administration, will run to lead City Hall.  

Stunned Republicans React to Canceled Vote | National Review Online – The “Vitter amendment” played a role in last night’s fiasco among Republicans in the House of Representatives, who failed to bring to vote compromise legislation to avert government default.

Criminal Justice

Inside Report: Law enforcement trying to match criminals’ firepower | The New Orleans Advocate –

Shotguns, a law enforcement staple, are being replaced by semi-automatic rifles, such as the AR-15, although it’s still up to the individual officer whether to keep the shotgun, take the AR-15 or, in the case of state troopers, carry both. State Police spokesman Capt. Doug Cain said the AR-15 is a more versatile weapon than a shotgun. “It’s a better tool if you look at the threats that are out there,” he said. “I know the troopers are happy.

Schools

Charter schools could hurt U.S. city school districts | Reuters – Credit agencies, Moody’s among them, are worried about the effect of the growing charter school movement on finances of urban districts. 

Common Core arguments reignite | The Advocate – Educators and parents debated Common Core in a packed BESE meeting yesterday.

Land Use

Luxury apartments slated for Rendon Street across from future Morris Jeff Community School | Mid-City Messenger – “Another ‘luxury apartment’ developer has big plans for a vacant Mid-City building and residents got a look at designs Monday night at the Mid-City Neighborhood Organization’s monthly meeting.”

Mark Moseley

Mark Moseley blogs at Your Right Hand Thief. Until mid 2014, Mark Moseley was The Lens' opinion writer, engagement specialist and coordinator for the Charter Schools Reporting Corps. After Katrina and...