Louisiana Coastal Impact Assistance Plan - Coastal Protection and ...

Louisiana Coastal Impact 

Assistance Plan 

State of Louisiana 

Governor Bobby Jindal 

Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority 

Garret Graves 

Version 4.0 

Approved March 1, 2012

United States Department of the Interior 

FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE 

Washington, D.C. 20240 

~larch I, 2012 

Mr. Jerome Zeringue 

Executive Director 

Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority of Louisiana 

450 Laurel Street, 15 111 Floor Chase Tower North 

Baton Rouge. LA 7080 I 

Re: Louisiana Coastal Impact As istance Plan Version 4.0- Proposed Amendments 

Dear Mr. Zeringue: 

This letter responds to your request, dated November I 8, 20 II, for approval of the Loui"'iana 

Coastal Impact Assi tance Program (Cl AP) Plan, Version 4.0. that proposes amendments to your 

previously approved Loui iana C l AP Plan. We have reviewed the revisions and new project 

proposaL and find that Version 4.0 fully meets the Congres-.ional requirements of Section 384 of 

the Energy Policy Act of 2005. Based on the information provided in this Plan. the proposed 

projects: I) include public review; 2) arc approved by the Governor of Louisiana: and, 3) meet 

one or more of the following eligible purposes: 

• Projects and activities for the conservation, protection. or restoration of coastal 

areas, including wetlands: 

• Mitigation of damage to fish, wildlife, or natural resources: 

• Planning assi Lance and the administrative costs of complying with this section: 

• Implementation of a federally-approved marine, coastal or comprehensive 

conservation management plan; 

• Mitigation of the impact of Outer Continental Shelf activities through funding of 

onshore infrastructure projects and public crvicc needs. 

The Louisiana Cl AP Plan, Version 4.0 is approved for implementation. Cost information 

provided in Version 4.0 is approved as preliminary and subject to change during detailed design 

and project development. In order to obligate Cl AP funds, an Application for Federal As'>istance 

(SF 424) must al5o he suhmilled hy the eligible State or Parish applicant along with the project 

~pecific grant narrative. budget detail, and other related requirements detailed in the Reque~t for 

Applications posted to Grants.gov, CFDA 15.668. Change~ to the approved Version 4.0 project

de~criptions including scope. budget~ and cost categories may be considered i r rcque~ted in the 

grant application documentation and approved through the grant award proces

LOUISIANA COASTAL IMPACT ASSISTANCE 

PLAN 


Governor Bobby Jindal 

Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority 

Garret Graves 

Version 4.0 

Approved March 1, 2012

TABLE OF CONTENTS 

I. INTRODUCTION………………………………………………………………….. 2 

II. 

DESIGNATED STATE AGENCY ………………………………………………..8 

III. DESIGNATED CONTACTS FOR COASTAL POLITICAL SUBDIVISIONS….. 8 

IV. GOVERNOR’S CERTIFICATION OF PUBLIC PARTICIPATION……………. 12 

V. COORDINATION WITH OTHER FEDERAL RESOURCES AND 

PROGRAMS……………………………………………………………………….22 

VI. PLAN IMPLEMENTATION PROGRAM………………………………………...25 

VII. PROPOSED PROJECT LISTS…………………………………………………….88 

VIII. PROPOSED PROJECT DESCRIPTIONS………………………………………...95 

IX. APPENDICES 

APPENDIX A - MAPS OF SELECTED STATE FUNDED 

RESTORATION PROJECTS……………………………………………... A-1 

APPENDIX B – GOVERNOR’S LETTER DESIGNATING STATE 

AGENCY…………………………………………………………………... B-1 

APPENDIX C – SUMMARY OF PUBLIC COMMENTS RECEIVED 

ON THE DRAFT COASTAL IMPACT ASSISTANCE PROGRAM 

PLAN………………………………………………………………………. C-1 

APPENDIX D – LOUISIANA STATE AND PARISH COASTAL 

IMPACT ASSISTANCE BUDGET SHEETS…………………………….. D-1 

APPENDIX E – SUMMARY OF PUBLIC COMMENTS RECEIVED 

DURING INITIAL COASTAL IMPACT ASSISTANCE 

PROGRAM PUBLIC MEETINGS…………………………………………E-1 

APPENDIX F – LOUISIANA COASTAL IMPACT ASSISTANCE 

PLAN REVISIONS………………………………………………………… F-1 

1

I. INTRODUCTION 

The Coastal Impact Assistance Program (CIAP) was established by Section 384 

of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (Act) to assist producing States and their coastal 

political subdivisions (CPSs) in mitigating the impacts from Outer Continental 

Shelf (OCS) oil and gas production. The CIAP legislation appropriated $250 

million per year for Fiscal Years 2007 through 2010 to be distributed among 

eligible producing States (States) and their CPSs. Allocations to each State will 

be based on the ratio of qualified OCS revenues offshore of that State to the total 

qualified OCS revenues from all States. To receive CIAP funds, States must 

submit a Coastal Impact Assistance Plan (Plan), describing how these funds will 

be expended, to the U.S. Minerals Management Service (MMS). The MMS must 

approve that Plan before disbursing any CIAP funds to a State and its CPSs. 

The CIAP provision of the Act, established by amending Section 31.d.1. of the 

Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1356 a.), listed five categories of 

authorized uses of CIAP funds. Thus, a State or CPS can use CIAP funds only for 

one or more of the following purposes: 

1. projects and activities for the conservation, protection, or restoration of 

coastal areas, including wetlands; 

2. mitigation of damage to fish, wildlife, or natural resources; 

3. planning assistance and the administrative costs of complying with CIAP; 

4. implementation of a Federally approved marine, coastal, or comprehensive 

conservation management plan; and 

5. mitigation of the impact of OCS activities through funding of onshore 

infrastructure projects and public service needs. 

Louisiana is one of six States currently eligible to receive CIAP funds. Funds 

received by Louisiana and its CPSs, which consist of 19 coastal parishes, will be 

expended according to the requirements of the Act and the CIAP guidelines 

developed by MMS. This document is the State of Louisiana’s Coastal Impact 

Assistance Plan as required by the CIAP legislation. The Plan identifies CIAP 

projects to be implemented by the State, by the coastal parishes, and jointly by the 

State and parishes. 

The State of Louisiana has worked cooperatively with the 19 coastal parishes to 

assemble a group of restoration, conservation, and infrastructure projects that will 

produce significant results in a timely manner. The restoration and conservation 

projects that are included in the Plan embody principles of sustainable coastal 

restoration and protection. The Plan components involving proposed 

expenditures of the State’s share of CIAP funds include the following major 

categories (maps of selected restoration projects are shown in Appendix A): 

2

1. Enhanced Management of Mississippi River Water and Sediment 

Improved management of the fresh water and associated sediments and 

nutrients transported by the Lower Mississippi River system is essential to the 

sustainability of coastal Louisiana. This Plan component includes: 

a. design of a freshwater diversion near Violet into the Central Wetlands 

Complex adjacent to the Mississippi River Gulf Outlet. St. Bernard Parish 

plans to cost-share with the State on this project; 

b. removal of the floodgates on the existing Bayou Lamoque freshwater 

diversion structure on the east bank of the Mississippi River near Venice, 

along with cutting openings in the banks of Bayou Lamoque to enhance the 

distribution of up to 12,000 cubic feet per second of reintroduced river inflow; 

c. installation and use of a long-distance pipeline dedicated to transporting 

Mississippi River sediment into the Barataria Basin for marsh and ridge 

restoration and creation. The pipeline will be financed with CIAP funds 

provided to the State and to Plaquemines, Jefferson, and Lafourche Parishes. 

Some of the marsh creation is expected to occur in the area to be influenced 

by river inflow via the planned Myrtle Grove Sediment Diversion Project; 

d. design of a siphon to reintroduce Mississippi River water and nutrients 

into the Blind River and adjacent coastal swamps of the Maurepas Basin. St. 

James Parish will provide a cost-share to assist in implementation of this 

project; and 

e. strategic planning for large-scale measures to enhance management of 

the freshwater, nutrients, and sediment resources of the Lower Mississippi 

River within its Deltaic Plain to better sustain that region of coastal Louisiana. 

2. Protection and Restoration of Critical Land Bridges 

Maintaining the Orleans Land Bridge and the Barataria Basin Land Bridge has 

been identified in collaborative restoration planning efforts as a key strategy 

for the long-term sustainability of the ecosystems and communities they 

protect. This Plan component proposes: 

a. protection of a key portion of the eastern Orleans Land Bridge by 

reducing shoreline erosion along Lake Borgne (Alligator Point to Bayou 

Bienvenue), and creating marsh with dredged material in the adjacent Golden 

Triangle wetlands complex between the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW) 

and the Mississippi River-Gulf Outlet. Orleans Parish plans to dedicate nearly 

all of its CIAP funds to assist in implementation of this project; and 

b. marsh creation with dredged material on a portion of the Barataria 

Basin Land Bridge, behind existing shoreline protection structures. This 

project is part of an integrated system of completed and proposed projects 

designed to sustain that land bridge and its landscape-level ecological and 

infrastructure protection functions. 

3

3. Barrier Shoreline Restoration and Protection 

Louisiana’s barrier shorelines are eroding rapidly as a result of wave erosion, 

subsidence, sea level rise, and human alteration of sediment transport 

processes. This Plan feature includes: 

a. accelerated restoration of the East Grand Terre Island component of the 

Barataria Basin barrier shoreline complex. This essentially construction-ready 

project was designed with Coastal Wetlands Planning, Protection and 

Restoration Act (CWPPRA) funds, and is part of an unfunded backlog of 

numerous CWPPRA projects. Plaquemines Parish has indicated its 

willingness to share in the cost of this project with the State; and 

b. a CWPPRA designed shoreline protection demonstration project along 

the rapidly eroding Gulf of Mexico marsh shoreline of Rockefeller Wildlife 

Management Area and Game Preserve. Erosion in this area is occurring at the 

expense of the adjacent marshes. 

4. Interior Shoreline Protection 

Severe shoreline erosion is occurring along major navigation canals and lake 

shorelines in Louisiana. Many of these (i.e., those along navigation canals) 

are artificial shorelines that cause problems due to lack of operation and 

maintenance funds to reduce wetland impacts. The Plan includes the 

following projects to address these issues: 

a. installation of bank protection along portions of Freshwater Bayou 

Navigation Channel, where wake erosion primarily from OCS support vessels 

and the resultant saltwater intrusion both threaten adjacent fresh marshes; 

b. placement of shoreline protection measures along critical reaches of the 

GIWW in Terrebonne Parish, to reduce erosion of highly sensitive floating 

freshwater marshes. Knowledge gained from the Mandalay National Wildlife 

Refuge erosion protection demonstration project would be applied to the 

proposed project’s design. This project represents a segment of a construction 

ready but unfunded CWPPRA project; 

c. installation of a CWPPRA designed breakwater to prevent erosion of 

the southern shoreline of Grand Lake and the adjacent coastal marshes located 

in the lower Mermentau River Basin; and 

d. implementation of the third and final phase of the Lake Salvador 

Shoreline Protection Project, through cost-sharing with St. Charles Parish. 

4

5. Marsh Creation with Dredged Material 

The wetlands of coastal Louisiana are disappearing at an average rate of 

nearly 24 square miles per year. This Plan element will establish marsh by 

depositing dredged material in shallow open water at elevations that support 

marsh vegetation. Two basic approaches will be used: creating marsh with 

sediment removed during maintenance of existing Federal navigation 

channels, and using material obtained by and deposited with dredges 

specifically dedicated to marsh creation. In the case of marsh creation using 

material from channel maintenance, CIAP funds will share in the additional 

cost associated with beneficial use of that material, but CIAP funds will not be 

used to subsidize maintenance dredging. The following marsh creation 

features (in addition to the marsh creation components of projects mentioned 

in Categories 1 and 2 above) are included in the Plan: 

a. marsh creation via beneficial use of material removed by maintenance 

dredging of the Calcasieu Ship Channel in southwestern Louisiana. Marsh 

creation sites will be located between the GIWW and the lower end of 

Calcasieu Lake; 

b. beneficial use of dredged material along other Federally maintained 

navigation channels in coastal Louisiana, to establish marsh and other 

important coastal habitat; and 

c. financial support of marsh creation in Plaquemines Parish by providing 

matching funds to reestablish marsh needed for buffering storm effects on 

adjacent hurricane protection levees. 

6. Coastal Forest Conservation Initiative 

The conservation, restoration, and sustainability of coastal Louisiana’s 

swamps, wooded cheniers (maritime forests), and natural levee forests are 

increasingly recognized as key to the overall sustainability and ecological 

diversity of southern Louisiana. This Plan component includes several 

measures focused on those goals, and is consistent with recommendations by 

participants in the Governor’s Coastal Wetland Forest Conservation and Use 

and Science Working Group and Advisory Panel. The goal of this initiative is 

to work with willing landowners to acquire land rights (primarily conservation 

easements) on coastal forest tracts in order to address demonstrated threats 

and/or opportunities for restoration or enhanced sustainability. In some cases, 

acquisition of land rights would be used to facilitate those wetland 

assimilation projects that utilize nutrients and fresh water in secondarily 

treated municipal wastewater and stormwater runoff to enhance coastal forest 

restoration and survival. The initiative also includes implementation of smallscale 

projects to restore and enhance forest sustainability, such as projects that 

reduce impoundment, help offset subsidence, and reforest disturbed sites. 

5

7. Infrastructure Projects to Mitigate Onshore OCS Impacts 

The Plan includes supplemental funding for critically needed improvement of 

Louisiana Highway 1 in the Port Fourchon-Leeville area, a vital link to one of 

the most important OCS support complexes in the nation. In addition, the 

Plan provides for State CIAP cost share for the repair of roads affected by 

heavy OCS related vehicular traffic in Morgan City, New Iberia, and lower 

Cameron Parish. All of those areas have experienced significantly increased 

infrastructure costs as part of their support for OCS exploration and 

production activities. 

The restoration and conservation projects to be supported with the State of 

Louisiana’s CIAP funds will have significant beneficial synergistic effects. 

Those benefits will accrue via synergies among CIAP-funded projects, and 

interactions among CIAP projects and those funded through other restoration 

and conservation programs. 

In the Pontchartrain Basin of southeastern Louisiana, significant synergistic 

effects are expected from three sources: 1) the proposed reintroduction (at 

Violet) of Mississippi River inflows into the Central Wetlands Complex and 

adjacent wetlands (such as the Golden Triangle marshes), 2) the envisioned 

project for enhanced wetland assimilation of secondarily treated municipal 

wastewater and associated nutrients within that wetlands complex, and 3) the 

potential reestablishment of cypress swamp in portions of that complex with 

support from the CIAP Coastal Forest Conservation Initiative. Those 

restoration efforts will also complement the proposed CIAP Lake Borgne 

shoreline protection and marsh creation project on the eastern Orleans Land 

Bridge between Alligator Point and Bayou Bienvenue, which is to be funded 

by the State and Orleans Parish with CIAP funds. Finally, those projects will 

support other shoreline protection projects along western Lake Borgne funded 

through CWPPRA and supplemental appropriations from Congress being 

administered by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). Farther 

upstream, yet still within the Pontchartrain Basin, the proposed Blind River 

siphon will complement coastal forest conservation and restoration actions 

implemented in the Maurepas Swamp complex via the proposed Coastal 

Forest Conservation Initiative. The Blind River structure will divert 

Mississippi River nutrients and fresh water to forested wetlands in that 

complex, and is thus expected to complement the Hope Canal diversion into 

the Maurepas Swamp, now being designed with CWPPRA funds. 

Several proposed CIAP projects in the Barataria Basin would have synergistic 

effects on the coastal habitats of the basin and the functions they serve. The 

East Grand Terre Island restoration project is an essential feature of the 

comprehensive restoration strategy for the Barataria Basin barrier shoreline 

complex. That project will work in concert with the Barataria Basin Barrier 

Shoreline Restoration near-term critical feature of the Louisiana Coastal Area 

Ecosystem Restoration (LCA) Plan now awaiting Congressional authorization 

and funding. A portion of the marsh to be created by the proposed Mississippi 

6

River long distance sediment pipeline will be located in the freshwater 

outflow footprint of the proposed Myrtle Grove Sediment Diversion Project. 

Thus, the sustainability of pipeline-created marsh within that outflow footprint 

will be enhanced. Furthermore, the marsh ultimately created with that 

pipeline, in concert with the other CIAP-financed marsh creation project near 

the upper end of Little Lake, will help to sustain the Barataria Basin Land 

Bridge and its vital ecological and surge-reduction functions. The latter 

project will also work in synergy with numerous other CWPPRA projects 

focused on sustaining the Barataria Basin Land Bridge. In addition, the Little 

Lake project will enhance additional restoration work to be accomplished in 

that area using hurricane related supplemental appropriations being 

administered by the USACE. 

In the adjacent Terrebonne Basin, accelerating the construction of the HNC 

lock and associated floodgates with State and Terrebonne Parish CIAP funds 

will expedite hurricane protection and facilitate systemic wetland benefits. 

The magnitude of those wetland benefits will depend on how the lock, 

floodgate, and associated structures are operated to enhance the distribution of 

Atchafalaya River flows moving down the HNC from the Gulf Intracoastal 

Waterway, and to reduce elevated salinity levels. 

In and immediately adjacent to the Chenier Plain region of southwestern 

Louisiana, the proposed protection of the Freshwater Bayou Canal banks will 

complement at least two other bank protection projects installed along that 

waterway. Damaging wakes from offshore oil and gas supply vessels and 

crew boats are a serious erosion threat to the sensitive adjacent wetlands, as 

well as to the spoil banks that help to buffer the tidal surge effects of tropical 

storms. Extensive freshwater marshes to the west of that channel are 

especially vulnerable to adverse impacts from saltwater intrusion, and these 

effects will greatly increase with continued erosion of the waterway’s banks. 

A CIAP funded project, North Prong Schooner Bayou, proposed by Vermilion 

Parish, will work in concert with the Freshwater Bayou Canal bank protection 

features to address the threat of saltwater intrusion into the Mermentau 

Basin’s freshwater wetlands by closing gaps currently allowing such intrusion. 

Several beneficial use projects are planned for areas adjacent to the Calcasieu 

Ship Channel, also located in the Chenier Plain region. Those projects will 

work in synergy with other beneficial use projects already completed with 

CWPPRA funds and through the USACE’s Water Resource Development Act 

authorities, creating marsh with material dredged during maintenance of that 

navigation channel. The proposed beneficial use projects will specifically 

address the conversion of marsh to open water that has severely affected the 

Calcasieu Basin. Beneficial use of dredged material along other USACEmaintained 

navigation channels will be facilitated with CIAP funds. 

7

II. 

DESIGNATED STATE AGENCY 

The Act’s CIAP provision requires that the Governor designate a State agency to 

develop the Plan and represent the State in related interactions with the U.S. 

Department of the Interior. Then-Governor Kathleen Babineaux Blanco 

designated the Louisiana Department of Natural Resources (LDNR) to fulfill that 

function. The LDNR point of contact for development and initial implementation 

of the Plan was Secretary Scott A. Angelle. 

On February 12, 2009, Governor Bobby Jindal designated Garret Graves, 

Chairman of the Lousiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority (CPRA) 

or Jerome Zeringue, Deputy Executive Director of the CPRA, to serve as the 

CIAP representatives for the State of Louisiana. That designation includes the 

authority to certify public participation in amendments to the Coastal Impact 

Assistance Plan previously approved by the MMS. Governor Jindal also 

identified the Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority’s Execution 

Office (i.e., the Office of Coastal Protection and Restoration) as the designated 

state agency for CIAP-related purposes. 

III. 

DESIGNATED CONTACTS FOR COASTAL POLITICAL 

SUBDIVISIONS 

Nineteen Louisiana parishes lie totally or partially within the Louisiana Coastal 

Zone, established in accordance with amended section 304(1) of the Coastal Zone 

Management Act of 1972. Those parishes constitute the State’s coastal political 

subdivisions (CPSs), and include: Assumption, Calcasieu, Cameron, Iberia, 

Jefferson, Lafourche, Livingston, Orleans, Plaquemines, St. Bernard, St. Charles, 

St. James, St. John the Baptist, St. Martin, St. Mary, St. Tammany, Tangipahoa, 

Terrebonne and Vermilion. The designated point of contact for each of the 19 

CPSs qualified to participate in the CIAP from Louisiana are as follows: 

Assumption Parish: 

Calcasieu Parish: 

John Boudreaux 

Director 

Assumption Parish Office of Homeland Security & 

Emergency Preparedness 

Post Office Box 520 

Napoleonville, Louisiana 70390 

Phone: (985) 369-7386 

Fax: (985)369-7341 

johnboudreaux@assumptionoep.com 

Pam Mattingly 

Senior Planner 

Division of Planning and Development 

Post Office Drawer 3287 

Lake Charles, Louisiana 70602-3287 

Phone: (337) 721-3606 

Fax: (337)-437-3586 

pmattingly@cppj.net 

8

Cameron Parish: 

Iberia Parish: 

Jefferson Parish: 

Lafourche Parish: 

Livingston Parish: 

Tina Horn 

Parish Administrator 


Cameron, Louisiana 70631 

Phone: (337) 905-1189 

Fax: (337) 905-1191 

cppjury@camtel.net 

Sally Angers 

Iberia Parish Government 

Chief Administrative Officer 

Courthouse Building, Suite 400, 300 Iberia Street 

New Iberia, Louisiana 70560-4587 

Phone: (337) 365-8246 

Fax: (337) 369-4470 

sangers@iberiagov.net 

Marnie Winter 

Director 

Jefferson Parish Department of Environmental 

Affairs 

4901 Jefferson Highway, Suite E 

Jefferson, Louisiana 70121 

Phone: (504) 736-6443 

Fax: (504) 731-4607 

mwinter@jeffparish.net 

Archie Chaisson 

Coastal Zone Management Administrator 

Lafourche Parish Government 

16241 E. Main St., Suite B10 

Cut Off, Louisiana 70345 

Phone: (985) 632-4666 

Fax: (985) 632-8653 

czm@lafourchegov.org 

Heather Crain 

Grant Coordinator 

P.O. Box 427 

Livingston, Louisiana 70754 

Phone: (225) 686-4415 

Fax: (225) 686-7079 

hcrain@livingstonparishla.gov 

9

Orleans Parish: 

Plaquemines Parish: 

St. Bernard Parish: 

St. Charles Parish: 

St. James Parish: 

St. John the Baptist Parish: 

Charles E. Allen, III 

Advisor and Director 

Coastal and Environmental Affairs 

1300 Perdido Street, Suite 8E08 

New Orleans, Louisiana 70112 

Phone: (504) 658-4074 

Fax: (504) 658-4938 

ceallen@nola.gov 

P. J. Hahn 

Director of Coastal Restoration 

8056 Highway 23, Suite 200 

Belle Chasse, Louisiana 70037 

Phone: (504) 297-5629 

Fax: (504) 274-2463 

pjhahn@plaqueminesparish.net 

William McCartney 

St. Bernard Parish Government 

8201 West Judge Perez Drive 

Chalmette, Louisiana 70443 

Phone: (504) 442-2426 

Fax: (504) 278-4484 

wmccartney@sbpg.net 

Earl Matherne 



Hahnville, Louisiana 70057 

Phone: (985) 783-5060 

Fax: (985) 783-6447 

ematherne@stcharlesgov.net 

Jody Chenier 

Director of Operations 

5800 LA 44 


Convent, Louisiana 70723 

Phone: (225) 562-2262 

Fax: (225) 562-2279 

jody.chenier@stjamesla.com 

Michael Henderson 

Director, Planning and Zoning 

102 East Airline 

LaPlace, Louisiana 70068 

Phone: (985) 651-5565 

Fax: (985) 653-9808 

m.henderson@sjbparish.com 

10

St. Martin Parish: 

St. Mary Parish: 

St. Tammany Parish: 

Tangipahoa Parish: 

Terrebonne Parish: 

Vermilion Parish: 

Guy Cormier 

Parish President 


St. Martinville, Louisiana 70582 

Phone: (337) 394-2200 

Fax: (337) 394-5580 

parishpresident@bellsouth.net 

Henry C. “Bo” LaGrange 


St. Mary Parish Government 

500 Main Street, Fifth Floor Courthouse 

Franklin, Louisiana 70538 

Phone: (337) 828-4100 

Fax: (337) 828-4092 

hlagrange@stmaryparishla.gov 

Greg Gordon 

Director, Department of Environmental Sciences 


Covington, Louisiana 70434 

Phone: (985) 898-2535 

Fax: (985) 898-2523 

gordo@stpgov.org 

Maurice Jordan 

Parish Engineer 


Amite, Louisiana 70434 

Phone: (985) 748-3211 

Fax: (985) 748-7050 

tpcroad@i55.com 

Al Levron 

Parish Manager 

Terrebonne Parish Consolidated Government 


Houma, Louisiana 70361 

Phone: (985) 873-6407 

Fax: (985) 873-6409 

allevron@tpcg.org 

Linda Duhon 


100 North State Street, Suite 200 

Abbeville, Louisiana 70510 

Phone: (337) 898-4300 

Fax: (337) 898-4310 

vermilionppj@yahoo.com 

11

IV. 

GOVERNOR’S CERTIFICATION OF PUBLIC PARTICIPATION 

A. Public and Coastal Political Subdivision Involvement in Development of 

the Plan 

LDNR implemented extensive efforts to provide information to the public, coastal 

parishes, and numerous other entities regarding the CIAP and Louisiana’s Plan 

formulation process, and to involve those parties in that process. These efforts 

began in December 2005 with an introductory CIAP meeting involving Governor 

Kathleen Babineaux Blanco and her staff, LDNR Secretary Scott Angelle and his 

staff, and representatives of the coastal parishes. The public outreach portion of 

the Louisiana CIAP formulation and review process incorporates the following 

phases: 1) initial program notification and input by the public and parish and State 

entities regarding the State’s Plan goals and procedures; 2) dissemination of the 

State’s CIAP goals, objectives, procedures and project proposals to the coastal 

parishes, other entities, and the public; 3) communication of the Draft Plan; and 4) 

dissemination of the Final Plan. 

1. Initial Program Notification and Input on the State’s Plan Goals and 

Procedures 

On December 14, 2005, David Frugé (LDNR Office of Coastal Restoration 

and Management [OCRM] Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary) presented 

preliminary program guidance and the program schedule at a Local Coastal 

Programs Quarterly Meeting hosted by LDNR in Baton Rouge. 

On December 19, 2005, Governor Kathleen Blanco, LDNR Secretary Scott 

Angelle, and David Frugé of LDNR presented preliminary program guidance 

and the program schedule at a meeting of the Parishes Against Coastal 

Erosion held at the Governor’s Mansion in Baton Rouge. 

On December 20, 2005, Greg Grandy (LDNR Senior Project Manager) 

presented preliminary program guidance and the program schedule at a 

meeting of the Cameron Parish Long-Term Recovery (Post-Hurricane Rita) 

Environmental Subcommittee in Lake Charles. 

On January 10, 2006, Greg Grandy of LDNR presented preliminary program 

guidance and the program schedule at the CWPPRA Regional Planning Team 

(CWPPRA RPT) meeting in Abbeville. Individuals were invited to provide 

their contact information so that future program or meeting information could 

be provided to them in a timely manner. 

On January 11, 2006, Will Norman (LDNR Coastal Resources Scientist) 

presented preliminary program guidance and the program schedule at the 

CWPPRA RPT meeting in Morgan City. Individuals were invited to provide 

their contact information so that future program or meeting information could 

be provided to them in a timely manner. 

12

On January 12, 2006, Will Norman of LDNR presented preliminary program 

guidance and the program schedule at the CWPPRA RPT meeting in New 

Orleans. Individuals were invited to provide their contact information so that 

future program or meeting information could be provided to them in a timely 

manner. 

On January 12, 2006, David Frugé of LDNR presented preliminary program 

guidance and the program schedule at a meeting of the Louisiana Association 

of Conservation Districts’ (LACD) Marsh Committee in Lafayette. The 

following day, Frugé made a similar CIAP presentation at the general session 

of the annual LACD meeting. 

On January 12, 2006, David Frugé of LDNR presented preliminary program 

guidance and the program schedule at the Civitan Club meeting in Lafayette. 

On January 18, 2006, Gerald Duszynski (LDNR-OCRM Acting Assistant 

Secretary) presented preliminary program guidance and the program schedule 

at a Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority (CPRA) meeting in Baton 

Rouge. 

On January 30, 2006, Gerald Duszynski and David Frugé of LDNR met in 

Baton Rouge with Marnie Winter and O’Neal Malbrough, representing 

Jefferson Parish, to discuss preliminary program guidance, the program 

schedule, and potential Jefferson Parish CIAP proposals. 

On February 1, 2006, David Frugé, Greg Grandy, and Will Norman of LDNR 

met in Baton Rouge with Jerome Zeringue of the Terrebonne Levee and 

Conservation District to discuss that agency’s request for CIAP funding of the 

Houma Navigation Canal Lock. 

On February 2, 2006, Greg Grandy and Will Norman of LDNR met with John 

Boudreaux and Kayte Landry of Assumption Parish in Napoleonville to 

discuss preliminary program guidance and the program schedule. 

On February 3, 2006, Greg Grandy and Will Norman of LDNR met with Jim 

Anderson of Iberia Parish in New Iberia, and with Camille Punch of St. Mary 

Parish in Franklin, to discuss preliminary program guidance and the program 

schedule. 

On February 7, 2006, Greg Grandy and Will Norman of LDNR met with 

Parish President Dale Hymel, Jody Chenier, and Joan Louque of St. James 

Parish in Convent to discuss preliminary program guidance and the program 

schedule. 

On February 8, 2006, David Frugé of LDNR presented program guidance and 

a program schedule at the CWPPRA Task Force meeting in New Orleans. 

13

On February 8, 2006, Greg Grandy of LDNR met with Leslie Suazo of 

Terrebonne Parish and Andrew MacInnes of Plaquemines Parish at the 

CWPPRA Task Force meeting in New Orleans to discuss preliminary 

program guidance and the program schedule. 

On February 9, 2006, Greg Grandy of LDNR met with Maurice Jordan of 

Tangipahoa Parish in Amite to discuss preliminary program guidance and the 

program schedule. 

On February 9, 2006, David Frugé and Will Norman of LDNR met with staff 

from the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries to discuss 

preliminary program guidance and the program schedule, and to solicit CIAP 

project proposals. 

On February 10, 2006, David Frugé, Greg Grandy, and Antoinette DeBosier 

(Coastal Resources Specialist) of LDNR met with Parish President Guy 

Cormier of St. Martin Parish in St. Martinville to discuss preliminary program 

guidance, the program schedule, and potential proposals for CIAP projects. 

On February 10, 2006, Greg Grandy of LDNR presented preliminary program 

guidance and a program schedule to the Republican Round Table in Lake 

Charles. 

On February 13, 2006, David Frugé, Greg Grandy, and Will Norman of 

LDNR met with Greg Gordon of St. Tammany Parish in Covington to discuss 

preliminary program guidance, the program schedule, and potential candidates 

for CIAP funding. 


LDNR met with Wendell Curole of Lafourche Parish in Thibodaux to discuss 

preliminary program guidance and the program schedule. 


LDNR met with Grant Bush of Calcasieu Parish and Tina Horn of Cameron 

Parish in Lake Charles to discuss preliminary program guidance and the 

program schedule. 

On February 16, 2006, Greg Grandy and Will Norman of LDNR met with 

Earl Matherne and Milton Cambre of St. Charles Parish in Hahnville to 

discuss preliminary program guidance and the program schedule. 


LDNR met with Albert Foulcold and Bo LaGrange of St. Mary Parish in 

Franklin to discuss preliminary program guidance and the program schedule. 

14

On February 22, 2006, Greg Grandy, Will Norman, and Antoinette DeBosier 

of LDNR met with Parish President Mike Grimes of Livingston Parish in 

Livingston to discuss preliminary program guidance and the program 

schedule. 

On March 3, 2006, Greg Grandy and Will Norman of LDNR met with Parish 

President Henry Rodriguez and Charlie Reppel of St. Bernard Parish in 

Chalmette to discuss preliminary program guidance and the program schedule. 

2. Dissemination of the State’s CIAP Goals, Objectives, Procedures, and 

Project Proposals to the Coastal Parishes, Other Entities, and the Public 

LDNR hosted five introductory public meetings across southern Louisiana to 

educate the public on the CIAP and the State’s related goals, procedures, and 

timelines, and to encourage future submittal of project proposals. The first of 

those public meetings was held February 13, 2006, at Southeastern Louisiana 

University in Hammond. Over 60 people attended this meeting, which was cohosted 

by the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation. The second meeting was 

held on February 14, 2006, at Nicholls State University in Thibodaux. Over 

30 people attended this meeting, which was co-hosted by the Barataria- 

Terrebonne National Estuary Program. The third public meeting occurred on 

February 15, 2006, at the Civic Center in Lake Charles. Over 35 people 

attended this meeting, which was co-hosted by the Coalition to Restore 

Coastal Louisiana. The fourth public meeting was held February 16, 2006, at 

the Jefferson Parish Library in Metairie, and over 66 people participated. That 

meeting was co-hosted by the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation. The 

final introductory public meeting was held February 17, 2006, at the LSU 

Cooperative Extension Service office in Abbeville. Over 20 people attended 

this meeting, co-hosted by the Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana. 

An Orleans Parish Local Coastal Advisory Program meeting was held on 

February 17, 2006, in New Orleans. Tom Bernard (LDNR engineer) and 

Honora Buras (LDNR Coastal Resources Scientist) participated in that 

meeting, which reviewed the CIAP requirements and discussed possible 

restoration projects that Orleans Parish would consider submitting as part of 

the CIAP. 

A Plaquemines Parish Coastal Zone Advisory Committee meeting was held 

on March 2, 2006, in Belle Chasse. At that meeting, Greg Grandy of LDNR 

presented CIAP related information and provided guidance to the Parish 

Coastal Zone Advisory Committee regarding the development of a CIAP 

project proposal for Plaquemines Parish. 

On March 9, 2006, David Frugé of LDNR made a CIAP presentation to the 

Governor’s Advisory Commission on Coastal Protection, Restoration and 

Conservation in Baton Rouge. He provided basic information on the CIAP as 

well as LDNR’s proposed Plan goals, objectives, selection criteria, and 

procedures. 

15

On March 23, 2006, Gerald Duszynski of LDNR made a presentation to the 

Louisiana Ports Association in Lake Charles, providing information on the 

CIAP and Louisiana’s CIAP related goals and Plan formulation schedule. 

On April 5, 2006, Greg Grandy, Will Norman, and Daniel Dearmond (LDNR 

Engineer) of LDNR reviewed Assumption Parish CIAP project proposals with 

John Boudreaux of Assumption Parish in Napoleonville. 

On April 10, 2006, Greg Grandy, Will Norman, and Chris Williams (LDNR 

Engineer) of LDNR met with Parish President Nickie Monica, Natalie 

Robottom, Virgil Rayneu, Ralph Bean, Paul Oncale, and Adrian Labat of St. 

John the Baptist Parish in LaPlace to review that parish’s CIAP project 

proposals. 

On April 24, 2006, Greg Grandy, Will Norman, and Dewey Billodeau (LDNR 

Engineer) of LDNR reviewed Iberia Parish’s CIAP project proposals with Jim 

Anderson of that parish in New Iberia. 

On April 25, 2006, Greg Grandy, Will Norman, and Tom Bernard of LDNR 

reviewed Plaquemines Parish CIAP project proposals with Andrew MacInnes 

of Plaquemines Parish in Belle Chasse. 

On April 27, 2006, Greg Grandy, Will Norman, and Chris Williams of LDNR 

reviewed St. Bernard Parish’s CIAP project proposals with Parish President 

Henry Rodriguez and parish staff member Charlie Reppel in Chalmette, 

Louisiana. 

On May 5, 2006, LDNR hosted a CIAP workshop for the Parishes Against 

Coastal Erosion organization at the LaSalle Building in Baton Rouge. The 

goal of the meeting was to answer questions and clarify issues regarding the 

Draft CIAP Plan guidance issued by the MMS in May 2006. 

On May 9, 2006, Greg Grandy, Will Norman, and Project Manager Ralph 

Libersat of LDNR reviewed Vermilion Parish’s CIAP project proposals with 

W.P. “Judge” Edwards III and Sherrill Sagrera of the Vermilion Parish 

Coastal Advisory Committee in Abbeville. 

On May 16, 2006, Greg Grandy and Will Norman of LDNR reviewed St. 

Tammany Parish CIAP project proposals with Greg Gordon of St. Tammany 

Parish at the LDNR office in Baton Rouge. 

By May 22, 2006 (the deadline for CIAP proposals), LDNR had received 222 

proposals involving the use of the State’s CIAP funds, and an additional 104 

proposals involving the parishes’ share of those funds. 

On June 14, 2006, Greg Grandy of LDNR gave a general update to the 

CWPPRA Task Force’s Technical Committee in Baton Rouge on the status of 

the Louisiana CIAP Plan development process and how LDNR would 

coordinate CIAP project activities with CWPPRA. 

16

On June 20, 2006, LDNR hosted a public open house meeting at the LaSalle 

Building in Baton Rouge. Another such open house event was held on June 

22, 2006, at the Estuarine Habitats and Coastal Fisheries Center in Lafayette. 

At both of those events, all of the CIAP project proposals were displayed for 

the public to review, ask questions of LDNR representatives in attendance, 

and provide comments. Comments received from the public on those 

proposals were considered during the selection of projects for inclusion in the 

Draft Plan. 

On June 21, 2006, Greg Grandy of LDNR gave a general update on the status 

of the Louisiana CIAP at the Local Coastal Programs Quarterly Meeting held 

at the LDNR building in Baton Rouge. 

On July 12, 2006, David Frugé of LDNR attended a CWPPRA Task Force 

meeting in Baton Rouge and gave a brief update on the status of Louisiana’s 

CIAP Plan development and on the possible use of CIAP funds to implement 

construction ready but unfunded CWPPRA projects (CWPRRA funds might 

be used for operation and maintenance of those projects). 

3. Communication of the Draft Plan 

On February 6, 2007, LDNR announced via news release and the LDNR 

website, the availability of the Draft Plan for public review and comment. 

The Draft Plan was also placed on the LDNR web site for public review. 

Copies of the plan were provided to the coastal parishes’ CIAP contacts; the 

CPRA; the Governor’s Advisory Commission on Coastal Protection, 

Restoration and Conservation; MMS; the CWPPRA Task Force; other key 

Federal and State agencies; and members of the Louisiana Legislature and the 

Louisiana Congressional delegation. Copies of the Draft Plan were provided 

for public distribution at each of the regional libraries in the coastal zone 

parishes. This comment period for the Draft Plan ended April 2, 2007. 

On February 6, 2007, David Frugé of LDNR gave a detailed presentation 

about the Draft CIAP Plan at the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority 

meeting at the Louisiana State Capitol in Baton Rouge. 


about the Draft CIAP Plan at a meeting of the Joint Louisiana House and 

Senate Special Committee on Coastal Restoration and Flood Control at the 

Louisiana State Capitol in Baton Rouge. 


about the Draft CIAP Plan at a meeting of the CWPPRA Task Force held at 

the USACE District Office in New Orleans. 

On February 22, 2007, David Frugé of LDNR gave a brief presentation about 

the Draft CIAP Plan at the Offshore Continental Shelf (OCS) Policy 

Committee meeting held at the Loews Annapolis Hotel in Annapolis, 

Maryland. 

17

On February 23, 2007, David Frugé and Greg Grandy of LDNR gave detailed 

presentations about the Draft CIAP Plan at meetings of the Coastal Parishes 

Caucus and the Environment and Energy Committee at the Louisiana Police 

Jury Association Annual Convention in Lafayette. 

The State hosted three public hearings and one public meeting across southern 

Louisiana to review the Draft CIAP Plan, the Draft Comprehensive Coastal 

Master Plan for Louisiana, and the FY 08 Annual Plan: Ecosystem 

Restoration and Hurricane Protection in Coastal Louisiana. The first public 

hearing was held on February 26, 2007, at the Houma-Terrebonne Civic 

Center in Houma. Over 130 people attended this hearing. The second public 

hearing was held on February 27, 2007, at the L’Auberge Dulac Hotel & 

Casino in Lake Charles. Over 81 people attended this hearing. The third 

public hearing was held on February 28, 2008, at the Lindy C. Boggs 

Conference Center on the University of New Orleans campus in New Orleans. 

Over 90 people attended this hearing. The final public meeting was held on 

March 1, 2007, at the Abbeville Branch Library in Abbeville. Over 94 people 

attended this hearing. 

Between February 15-17, 2007, the public hearings and meeting were 

advertised in the following Louisiana newspapers of record: the Rayne 

Acadian-Tribune (Acadia Parish), the Gonzales Weekly (Ascension Parish), 

the Assumption Pioneer (Assumption Parish), the Lake Charles American 

Press (Calcasieu Parish), the Cameron Pilot (Cameron Parish), the Baton 

Rouge Morning Advocate (East Baton Rouge Parish), the Daily Iberian (Iberia 

Parish), the Post South (Iberville Parish), the New Orleans Times-Picayune 

(Jefferson Parish), the Jennings Daily News (Jefferson Davis Parish), the 

Lafayette Daily Advertiser (Lafayette Parish), the Daily Comet (Lafourche 

Parish), the Livingston Daily News (Livingston Parish), the New Orleans 

Times-Picayune (Orleans Parish), the Plaquemines Gazette (Plaquemines 

Parish), the St. Bernard Voice (St. Bernard Parish), the St. Charles Herald 

Guide (St. Charles Parish), the News Examiner (St. James Parish), 

L’Observateur (St. John Parish), the Teche News (St. Martin Parish), the St. 

Mary and Franklin Banner-Tribune (St. Mary Parish), the St. Tammany 

Farmer (St. Tammany Parish), the Daily Star (Tangipahoa Parish), the 

Houma Courier (Terrebonne Parish), the Abbeville Meridional (Vermilion 

Parish), and the West Side Journal (West Baton Rouge Parish). In addition, 

feature articles highlighting the public hearings and meeting were run in the 

following newspapers: the Lake Charles American Press, the Teche News, the 

Jennings Daily News, the Lafourche Gazette, the Cameron Parish Pilot, the 

Beauregard Daily News, the New Orleans Times Picayune, the Abbeville 

Meridional, and the Baton Rouge Morning Advocate. In addition, the 

meetings were advertised through the Breaux Act Newsflash, a Louisiana 

coastal restoration email list-serve that, as of April 11, 2007, had 1,803 

subscribers. 

18

On February 28, 2007, Greg Grandy of LDNR gave a detailed presentation 

about the Draft CIAP Plan at the Local Coastal Program Quarterly meeting 

held in the Harry B. Nelson Memorial Building at Louisiana State University 

in Baton Rouge. 

On March 1, 2007, David Frugé and Greg Grandy of LDNR gave a detailed 

update on the Draft CIAP Plan at the Parishes Against Coastal Erosion 

(PACE) meeting at the LaSalle Building in Baton Rouge. 

On March 30, 2007, Greg Grandy of LDNR gave a detailed update on the 

Draft CIAP Plan at the Governor’s Advisory Commission on Coastal 

Protection, Restoration and Conservation in Baton Rouge. 

On April 12, 2007, David Frugé briefed the Coastal Protection and 

Restoration Authority, at their meeting in Baton Rouge on LDNR’s efforts to 

produce a final CIAP Plan. The CPRA then adopted a resolution authorizing 

its Steering Committee to review and approve the State’s final CIAP Plan 

provided there was no substantive difference between the State-funded CIAP 

projects included in the final CIAP Plan and the one presented in the Draft 

Plan. 

4. Dissemination of the Final Plan 

LDNR announced, via news release and the LDNR web site, the availability 

of the Final CIAP Plan for Louisiana transmitted by Governor Kathleen 

Babineaux Blanco to MMS. Paper or digital copies of the Plan were 

disseminated to the CPRA; Parishes Against Coastal Erosion; the CWPPRA 

Task Force; the Governor’s Advisory Commission on Coastal Protection, 

Restoration and Conservation; members of the Louisiana Legislature and the 

Louisiana Congressional delegation; and the general public as requested. The 

Final Plan was also posted on the LDNR web site. 

5. Revisions to the Authorized Plan 

On December 27, 2007 the State of Louisiana submitted revisions (14 minor 

changes) to the Louisiana Coastal Impact Assistance Plan to the Minerals 

Management Service. Those changes were accepted as modifications to the 

Louisiana CIAP Plan by the Minerals Management Service on April 25, 2008. 

Those changes are documented and tracked in Appendix F, Louisiana Coastal 

Impact Assistance Plan Revisions. 

On June 20, 2008, the Plaquemines Parish Council authorized a resolution of 

support at their council meeting allocating Plaquemines Parish CIAP funding 

for the Update of the Plaquemines Parish Coastal Management Plan. In May 

2008, the Plaquemines Parish Coastal Zone Committee recommended the 

addition of the Update of the Plaquemines Parish Coastal Management Plan 

with Plaquemines Parish CIAP funding at their monthly meeting. 

19

On June 29, 2009, Greg Grandy briefed the Louisiana Coastal Protection and 

Restoration Authority, at their meeting in Baton Rouge, Louisiana on the 

proposed amendments and minor changes to the Louisiana Coastal Impact 

Assistance Plan. The two amendments proposed to the plan are the addition of 

the State of Louisiana – Administration of CIAP Program and the addition of 

the Update of the Plaquemines Parish Coastal Management Plan by 

Plaquemines Parish. The revised version of the Louisiana CIAP Plan - 

Version 3.0, was posted on the Louisiana CIAP website on both the LDNR 

(http://dnr.louisiana.gov/crm/ciap/ciap.asp) and the Louisiana Coastal 

Protection and Restoration (http://www.lacpra.org) websites and a 30-day 

comment period was initiated on June 29, 2009 to allow for public comments 

on the proposed revisions to the Louisiana CIAP plan. The 30 day comment 

period closed on August 4, 2009 and no comments were submitted by the 

public regarding the proposed revisions to the Louisiana CIAP Plan. The 

proposed revisions (and previous revisions) are documented and tracked in 

Appendix F, Louisiana Coastal Impact Assistance Plan Revisions. 

On August 19, 2009, Greg Grandy presented the proposed revisions to the 

Louisiana Coastal Impact Assistance Plan, LA CIAP Plan – Version 3.0, to 

the Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority at their meeting in 

Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The Authority ratified and approved the proposed 

amendments to the Louisiana CIAP plan. 

Louisiana Coastal Impact Assistance Plan, Version 3.0 was submitted and 

received by the Minerals Management Service (MMS) on August 24, 2009. 

The amendments and revisions proposed to the Louisiana Coastal Impact 

Assistance Plan in Version 3.0 were approved by the Bureau of Ocean Energy 

Management, Regulation, and Enforcement (BOEMRE, formerly MMS) on 

September 29, 2010. 

On July 12, 2011 the Louisiana Coastal Impact Assistance Plan Version 3.1, 

the July 2011 Administrative Update to the Louisiana Coastal Impact 

Assistance Plan Version 3.0, was submitted to BOEMRE in accordance with 

the current CIAP State Plan and Plan Amendment Guidelines issued 

September 2010. The guidelines require each state to submit an administrative 

update to its State CIAP Plan annually, incorporating all approved project 

changes since the last administrative update or plan amendment was submitted 

to BOEMRE according to the schedule provided in the guidelines. All 

revisions are listed in Appendix F, Louisiana Coastal Impact Assistance Plan 

Revisions. 

20

On August 6, 2009, the addition of the “Calcasieu Parish Administrative 

Assistance” project was presented to the Police Jury of Calcasieu Parish at 

their meeting. The Police Jury of Calcasieu Parish adopted a resolution 

allowing for the addition of the “Calcasieu Parish Administrative Assistance” 

project as a Calcasieu Parish CIAP project. The project is being added as a 

Parish Tier 2 Project with no funding from any fiscal year allocation dedicated 

to the project at this time. 

On August 11, 2011, the addition of the “Livingston Parish Debris Collection 

Vessel” was presented to the Livingston Parish Council at their meeting. The 

Livingston Parish Council adopted a resolution allowing for the addition of 

the “Livingston Parish Debris Collection Vessel” project as a Livingston 

Parish CIAP Tier 1 Project dedicating funding from the FY2008 Parish CIAP 

allocation to the project. 

On June 15, 2011, Robert Routon briefed the Louisiana Coastal Protection 

and Restoration Authority (CPRA), at their regularly scheduled meeting in 

Baton Rouge, Louisiana on the need to reallocate LA CIAP funds allocated to 

projects that would not be able to be completed within the program deadlines. 

The CPRA passed a resolution directing the Office of Coastal Protection and 

Restoration to take the necessary actions to propose reallocation of LA CIAP 

funds within the program as needed, receive public comment on those 

proposals, and then present the amended plan to the CPRA. 

The proposed draft Amendments to the Louisiana CIAP Plan - Version 4.0, 

was posted on the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority of Louisiana 

website (Coastal.Louisiana.Gov) and a 30-day comment period was initiated 

on October 5, 2011 to allow for the public to have the opportunity to provide 

their comments on the proposed draft Amendments to the Louisiana CIAP 

Plan – Version 4.0. The 30 day comment period closed on November 5, 2011 

and no comments regarding the proposed draft Amendments to the Louisiana 

CIAP Plan – Version 4.0 were submitted by the public. All previously 

approved and proposed amendments and revisions are listed in Appendix F, 

Louisiana Coastal Impact Assistance Plan Revisions. 

On November 16, 2011, Robert Routon presented the draft of the proposed 

Amendments to the Louisiana Coastal Impact Assistance Plan – Version 4.0 

to the Members of the Board of the Coastal Protection and Restoration 

Authority of Louisiana at their meeting in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The 

Authority passed a resolution approving the Louisiana CIAP Plan – Version 

4.0 as amended and allowing for the Proposed Amendments to the Louisiana 

CIAP Plan to be submitted to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for approval. 

21

V. COORDINATION WITH OTHER FEDERAL RESOURCES AND 

PROGRAMS 

The CIAP guidelines issued by MMS in September 2006 state that: “A Plan must 

describe the measures taken to determine the availability of assistance from other 

relevant Federal resources and programs for proposed Plan projects.” As part of 

the State’s effort to satisfy that requirement, LDNR coordinated extensively with 

Federal agencies responsible for administering Federal programs and resources 

affecting coastal Louisiana. LDNR encouraged those agencies to submit proposals 

for CIAP funding, and provided opportunities for them to provide input during the 

Plan formulation and review process. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 

submitted several proposals for use of CIAP funds to restore coastal habitats on 

National Wildlife Refuges in southeastern Louisiana. Furthermore, Federal 

agencies provided informal comments on proposals that were being considered by 

the State for CIAP funding. 

The development of Louisiana’s CIAP Plan relied heavily on the strategies 

developed by previous State and Federal comprehensive planning efforts. Those 

efforts include the CWPPRA Louisiana Coastal Restoration Plan, the Coast 2050 

Plan, and the Louisiana Coastal Area Ecosystem Restoration Plan (LCA Plan). 

CWPPRA’s authorizing legislation required the development of a comprehensive 

Louisiana Coastal Wetlands Restoration Plan. The first such plan was completed 

in 1993. Subsequently, the CWPPRA Task Force and the State Wetlands 

Authority developed the Coast 2050 Plan under the legislative mandates described 

above, recognizing that a single plan was needed. The Coast 2050 Plan 

incorporates a vision for the coast, builds on previous work, integrates coastal 

management and coastal restoration approaches, and adopts a multiple-use 

approach to restoration planning. 

In 1999, Louisiana and the USACE began a reconnaissance study that grew out of 

the Coast 2050 Plan. The two entities envisioned that a series of feasibility reports 

assessing restoration projects would be prepared over a 10-year period and then 

submitted to the U.S. Congress for funding through the Water Resources 

Development Act. The first such feasibility report focused on barrier shoreline 

restoration and marsh creation features in the Barataria Basin. 

In 2002, the State of Louisiana and the USACE recognized that it would be more 

efficient to develop a comprehensive restoration proposal for submittal to 

Congress as a blueprint for future coastal restoration efforts in Louisiana. The 

Louisiana USACE effort, which included extensive participation from numerous 

other Federal and State agencies and outside scientific advisors, culminated in a 

January 31, 2005, report by the USACE’s Chief of Engineers to the Secretary of 

the Army. That report recommended approval of the LCA Plan, including: a) 15 

near-term critical restoration features (with Congressional authorization 

recommended for five features, and feasibility studies proposed for the other 10); 

22

) an LCA Science and Technology Program; c) programmatic authorization of 

demonstration projects recommended by the LCA Science and Technology 

Program; d) programmatic authorization for the beneficial use of material dredged 

during Federal navigation channel maintenance, and for studies of changes to 

existing water resources structures and/or their operation to meet LCA Plan 

restoration objectives; and e) studies of large-scale, long-term coastal restoration 

concepts. 

The LCA Plan is included in Water Resource Development Act legislation 

awaiting Congressional approval. The State previously intended to use CIAP 

funds as the required non-Federal match on several features of the LCA Plan 

(such as beneficial use of dredged material). Assistant Secretary of the Army 

(Civil Works) John Paul Woodley, Jr., however, advised Governor Kathleen 

Babineaux Blanco in an October 2, 2006, letter that the USACE lacked legal 

authority to accept CIAP funds to meet non-Federal cost-sharing requirements. 

LDNR has met several times with the CWPPRA Task Force and its Technical 

Committee to encourage a CIAP/CWPPRA partnership designed to expedite 

implementation of CWPPRA designed coastal restoration projects and to facilitate 

their operation and management. There is a large backlog of such CWPPRA 

projects; thus, CIAP funding of some of those projects or portions thereof 

provides one mechanism to expedite their implementation. The CWPPRA Task 

Force approved, during its October 18, 2006, meeting, a process for approving 

CWPPRA operations and maintenance funding for selected CWPPRA designed 

projects that are constructed with CIAP funds. 

Following a presentation on Louisiana’s draft CIAP Plan on February 15, 2007, 

the CWPPRA Task Force approved $9 million of CWPPRA funding to complete 

the remaining 15% of the CWPPRA designed Grand Lake Shoreline Protection 

Project being implemented by the State with CIAP funds, and to fund operations 

and maintenance of the project. The CWPPRA Task Force plans to discuss, at its 

next meeting, providing operations, maintenance and monitoring funds for other 

specific CWPPRA designed projects proposed to be implemented with CIAP 

funds. LDNR and USACE are also coordinating on numerous coastal projects 

being planned and implemented under several Federal funding sources, in the area 

extending from the Caernarvon Freshwater Diversion structure to Alligator Point 

on the Orleans Land Bridge. The purpose of that coordination is to avoid 

duplication of effort and to enhance the collective benefits of those projects. That 

coordination will continue, and will include design and implementation of the 

CIAP-funded Orleans Land Bridge Shoreline Protection and Marsh Creation 

Project, the Central Wetlands Assimilation Project (Phase I), and the Violet 

Diversion project. 

23

Louisiana relies heavily on Coastal Zone Management Act grants administered by 

the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to operate the 

State’s coastal permitting program. Therefore, redirecting NOAA funds from 

coastal permitting activities to implement coastal conservation and restoration 

projects is not a viable funding alternative. 

Other NOAA programs may offer a viable mechanism for leveraging CIAP funds. 

NOAA’s Coastal and Estuarine Land Conservation Program (CELCP) was 

established in 2002 to protect coastal and estuarine lands considered important for 

their ecological, conservation, recreational, historical, or aesthetic values. The 

program provides State and local governments with matching funds to purchase 

significant coastal and estuarine lands, or conservation easements on such lands, 

from willing sellers. Lands or conservation easements acquired with CELCP 

funds are protected in perpetuity so that they may be enjoyed by future 

generations. The Coastal Forest Conservation Initiative of Louisiana’s CIAP Plan 

includes protection and restoration of declining coastal forested habitats (see 

Section I). The State intends to seek opportunities under the CELCP to help 

fulfill those objectives, in concert with other complementary Federal funding 

mechanisms such as the North American Wetlands Conservation Act, U.S. 

Department of Agriculture (USDA) landowner incentive programs, CWPPRA, 

and the proposed LCA Plan. 

LDNR staff also coordinated with USDA personnel regarding Federal landowner 

incentive programs that could complement efforts funded by CIAP 

LDNR personnel and CIAP Selection Committee members familiar with 

CWPPRA Task Force restoration activities, LCA Plan formulation, and other 

coastal restoration efforts were mindful of additional relevant Federal resources 

and programs of potential use in maximizing CIAP funding benefits. When 

appropriate, CIAP proposals were coordinated with Federal, State, and local 

entities as well as relevant non-governmental organizations. 

The LA Highway 1 Improvements-Fourchon to Leeville Bridge (Phase IA) 

project is another example of using CIAP funds to help accelerate implementation 

of projects supported by Federal programs. In this case, Federal highway funding 

and other available sources were insufficient to complete this project. The 

proposed expenditure of approximately $35.2 million of State and Lafourche 

Parish CIAP funds was a key factor in moving that project forward in a timely 

manner. The benefited highway segment plays a key role in supporting OCS 

exploration activities in the Gulf of Mexico. 

24

VI. 

PLAN IMPLEMENTATION PROGRAM 

State of Louisiana CIAP Plan Implementation Program 

A. State of Louisiana Goals and Objectives Under the CIAP 

The goals of the Louisiana CIAP are to: 1) implement, support, and accelerate 

effective and timely coastal conservation and restoration projects; and 2) 

implement, support, and accelerate coastal infrastructure projects which mitigate 

onshore impacts within the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS). The conservation and 

restoration objectives of the Louisiana CIAP are to: 1) implement Coast 2050 

near-term and intermediate-term strategies; 2) implement certain constructionready 

CWPPRA projects and LCA Plan features that can be initiated in the near 

term; 3) implement a coastal forest conservation and restoration initiative; 4) 

support projects to benefit wetland and aquatic habitats in inland portions of 

coastal parishes; and 5) conduct monitoring and related science-support activities. 

The objectives of the infrastructure portion of the Louisiana CIAP are to: 1) 

implement and support projects that will protect the coastal communities and 

infrastructure involved in and impacted by OCS-related exploration and 

production activities; and 2) implement and support onshore projects that address 

other infrastructure needs associated with and impacted by OCS related 

exploration and production activities. 

B. How the State of Louisiana will Manage, Implement, and Monitor the 

CIAP 

The State of Louisiana will manage the CIAP through LDNR’s Office of Coastal 

Restoration and Management (OCRM). OCRM’s Coastal Engineering and 

Coastal Restoration Divisions house the employees responsible for managing the 

program. Those employees, assisted by contract staff, will also be primarily 

responsible for engineering and design, permitting, and land rights tasks for CIAP 

projects. Staff from LDNR field offices in Thibodaux, New Orleans, and 

Lafayette will be primarily responsible for supervising construction and 

monitoring specific completed projects. 

Coordination of State and parish activities on cost-shared projects will be 

formalized through periodic (e.g., monthly) conference calls documented through 

meeting minutes, dissemination of preliminary design reports, preliminary design 

conferences, dissemination of formal bid packages, and dissemination of 

construction completion reports. LDNR will communicate at regular intervals 

with parishes regarding parish CIAP projects that are not cost-shared, to facilitate 

LDNR’s maintenance of a comprehensive status list of all Louisiana CIAP 

projects. 

Program implementation will be structured to provide significant benefits early, 

and to initiate pre-construction work on complex projects so that they can be 

completed in a timely manner. Projects that are more complex will also be 

phased in over several years to facilitate cash flow management. Early 

25

implementation of selected construction ready but unfunded CWPPRA projects 

that are particularly certain to provide benefits will be a priority. Engineering and 

design of highly complex projects expected to have substantial benefits will also 

be initiated early in the Program. Programmatic efforts (e.g., coastal forest 

conservation and beneficial use of dredged material) and construction of other 

projects for which engineering, design, and land rights tasks have not been 

completed will be phased in over the life of the Program, providing flexibility to 

the implementation effort. LDNR will hold an annual review of CIAP funding 

and project implementation priorities in conjunction with the annual State Coastal 

Protection and Restoration Plan development and review, and will adjust the 

implementation schedule as needed to best achieve program priorities. 

The State will perform project-specific performance analyses on a limited number 

of projects, and general performance analyses on all completed CIAP 

conservation and restoration projects, in conjunction with the Coastwide 

Reference Monitoring System (CRMS) administered by LDNR for the CWPPRA 

program. Project specific performance monitoring will be conducted on a limited 

number of CIAP projects to answer specific questions regarding coastal 

restoration and conservation effectiveness. LDNR intends to carry out an internal 

and external review of selected restoration issues and/or project types, and 

potentially a performance analysis that could address those issues, to identify the 

specific intensive monitoring activities to be implemented through this program. 

In addition, pre- and post-implementation aerial imagery will be analyzed on all 

CIAP funded restoration projects, using coastwide aerial imagery being collected 

for the CRMS monitoring of CWPPRA restoration projects. LDNR will use 

CIAP funds to pay for the incremental cost of specific monitoring related analysis 

of CIAP funded projects to determine their effectiveness. 

C. State of Louisiana Public Participation Process: Dates and Periodicals in 

which Notices are Placed; Locations, Dates, and Times of Meetings, and 

Number of Attendees; and Summary of Public Comments on the Draft 

Plan 

Details of the public participation process involving review and comments on the 

Draft Plan, a summary of comments received, and responses to those comments 

are provided in Appendix C. Additional details are included in Section IV. A. 3. 

above. 

D. State of Louisiana Decision-Making Process for Selecting Projects 

Early in the Plan formulation process, LDNR began soliciting input and project 

proposals from the 19 coastal parishes, State agencies, Federal agencies, nongovernmental 

organizations, and the general public (see Section IV). A 

description of the Program, guidelines for application, and project selection 

criteria were disseminated through meetings and mailings, and were posted for 

download from the LDNR CIAP website. LDNR noted during the initial public 

meetings that the CIAP Plan would draw heavily from previous collaborative 

coastal planning efforts that have occurred in recent years (e.g., the Coast 2050 

26

Plan, the LCA Plan, and the work of the Governor’s Advisory Panel and Science 

Working Group on Coastal Wetland Forest Conservation and Use). 

The evaluation criteria for coastal conservation and restoration project proposals 

(CIAP authorized uses 1, 2, and 4; see page 3) included the following: 

1. Is the proposed project free of issues that may impact timely 

implementation of the project features 

2. Is the proposed project linked to a regional strategy that maintains 

established landscape features critical to a sustainable ecosystem structure and 

function 

3. Does the proposed project protect health, safety, or infrastructure of 

national, State, regional, or local significance 

4. How cost effective is the project 

5. What is the certainty of the project’s benefits 

6. Does the project address an area of critical need or high land loss 

7. How sustainable are the project’s benefits 

LDNR staff provided technical assistance to parishes and other potential 

submitters as needed in the development of their proposals. May 22, 2006, was 

set as the deadline for receipt of project proposals; that date represented an 

extension of two earlier deadlines. Response to the notice of CIAP funding 

availability was very impressive. Three hundred and thirty-seven proposals were 

received and reviewed by LDNR. Those proposals were received from the 19 

coastal political subdivisions (CPSs; Louisiana’s coastal parishes), municipalities, 

State agencies, Federal agencies, universities, private corporations, nongovernmental 

organizations, landowners, and the general public. 

Following the May 22, 2006, proposal deadline, LDNR staff visited the sites of 

proposed projects in order to assess the project-area conditions and the proposed 

projects’ features and potential benefits. LDNR’s Restoration Technology 

Section assembled four regional maps that showed the location of each proposed 

restoration project (Figures 1-4 in Appendix D). After completing those maps, 

the Restoration Technology Section generated reports on each project proposed to 

receive State CIAP funds. Those reports identified up to 67 key features found 

within a 500 foot radius of proposed projects (e.g., existing restoration projects, 

permitted coastal use activities, pipeline rights of way, etc.). The LDNR Land 

Section reviewed projects proposed for State CIAP funding to evaluate landowner 

status within the proposed project area, existence of infrastructure, existence of 

leases, and any other land-rights issue that might impact project implementation. 

27

LDNR solicited public input on the proposed projects at regional open house 

events in Baton Rouge and Lafayette (June 20 and 22, 2006, respectively). All 

proposals were also available for review on the LDNR CIAP website, and 

comments from the public were solicited via the website for consideration during 

the selection process. 

Project proposals were initially screened by LDNR CIAP staff to determine 

whether State CIAP funds were being requested, whether the projects complied 

with the authorized uses of CIAP funds, and whether the proposals were focused 

on conservation/restoration or infrastructure. Each conservation and restoration 

proposal involving State CIAP funding for one or more of the authorized uses was 

then reviewed to determine whether it had clear links to a regional strategy for 

maintaining established landscape features deemed critical to a sustainable 

ecosystem structure and function. A key related question asked by LDNR staff in 

making that determination was whether the proposal would produce regional 

benefits. Another key question was whether the cost of the proposal would 

exceed a level reasonably supportable by CIAP. The conservation/restoration 

projects that met the above criteria had a high degree of certainty of benefits, and 

were generally within a cost range deemed to be supportable with CIAP funds 

were then selected for detailed technical analysis. An exception to that procedure 

involved projects that were currently being engineered and designed with 

CWPPRA funds; those projects were generally excluded from further 

consideration for CIAP evaluation and funding purposes as the projects were 

currently being addressed through the CWPPRA program. 

An external technical review of CIAP conservation and restoration projects 

proposed for State funding and selected by LDNR staff for detailed analysis was 

conducted by a group of natural resource researchers from Louisiana. That 

interactive review identified the strengths and weaknesses of individual proposals, 

and assessed their competitiveness as candidates for CIAP funding. 

Using information compiled for those projects selected for detailed analysis 

(including but not limited to the external technical review findings), an LDNR 

technical review panel assigned a score (0 to 10) to each proposal. That panel 

then generated a preliminary list of projects for inclusion in the Draft CIAP Plan. 

That preliminary list formed the primary basis of the recommended list of Statefunded 

projects presented by LDNR’s CIAP Team to the CIAP project selection 

committee. That committee was comprised of CPRA agency representatives from 

the Louisiana Departments of Transportation and Development, Wildlife and 

Fisheries, Environmental Quality, Natural Resources, and Agriculture and 

Forestry, and the Governor’s Office of Coastal Activities. Members of the 

CPRA’s Integrated Planning Team participated in the selection meeting. The lead 

external science advisor, who coordinated the external science review of CIAP 

proposals, also participated at that meeting. The list ultimately adopted by that 

selection committee at its August 22, 2006, meeting became the primary 

component of the Draft CIAP Plan relative to projects involving State CIAP 

funding. 

28

On February 5, 2007, the Draft CIAP Plan was made available for public review 

and comment. That Draft Plan was then presented at a series of public meetings 

held from February 26 through March 1, 2007. Following the comment period 

ending April 2, 2007, the Draft Plan was revised, and the Final Plan was 

submitted to MMS for review following approval by Louisiana’s CPRA. 

E. How the State of Louisiana Plans to Ensure Compliance with All 

Relevant Federal, State, and Local Laws, Including Its Coastal Zone 

Management Program (CZMP) 

LDNR’s Office of Coastal Restoration and Management (OCRM) has 

implemented coastal restoration projects for nearly two decades and has worked 

diligently to ensure that all projects comply with all relevant local, State, and 

Federal laws. The process utilized to assure CIAP compliance with relevant laws 

will be similar to the implementation procedures followed for CWPPRA project 

implementation. Compliance with those laws will be a prerequisite for approval of 

CIAP grants by MMS. 

During the CIAP planning process, LDNR coordinated with the relevant Federal 

regulatory and natural resource agencies to solicit their opinions regarding 

potential projects and potential regulatory problems. LDNR intends to 

collaborate with those entities during the development phase of each project. In 

addition, some of those projects have already received all necessary permits 

through the appropriate local, State, and Federal regulatory entities, and copies of 

those permits will be provided to MMS. In addition to addressing regulatory 

issues, LDNR personnel have coordinated with other coastal restoration and 

protection efforts in Louisiana to help ensure consistency and eliminate 

duplication of effort. 

F. A Description of the Major Activities and/or Categories to be Funded by 

the State of Louisiana under the CIAP Program 

Louisiana 

Total 

Hydrologic 

Restoration 

Beneficial Use of 

Dredged Material 

Marsh 

Management 

Marsh Creation 

Shoreline 

Protection 

Freshwater 

Diversion 

Vegetation 

Planting 

Sediment and 

Nutrient 

Trapping 

Barrier Island 

Land Acquisition 

Planning and 

Engineering 

Infrastructure 

Administrative 

Other 

Authorized 

Use 1 

24 1 1 0 3 8 2 0 1 2 1 4 0 0 1 

Authorized 

Use 2 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 3 

1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 

Authorized 

Use 4 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 5 

6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 0 0 

Total 31 1 1 0 3 8 2 0 1 2 1 4 6 1 1 

29

G. An Estimate of Funds that will be Spent Annually by the State of 

Louisiana on each Authorized Use 


FY 2007 Funding 

by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 

Total Funding by 

Authorized Use 

Authorized 

Use 1 

Authorized 

Use 2 

Authorized 

Use 3 

Authorized 

Use 4 

Authorized 

Use 5 

$69,737,723.07 0 $2,000,000.00 0 $11,168,411.00 

$64,967,045.07 0 $2,000,000.00 0 $15,939,089.00 

$69,292,532.74 0 $1,000,000.00 0 $8,300,000.00 

$76,781,314.50 0 $1,000,000.00 0 $0 

$280,778,615.38 0 $6,000,000.00 $35,407,500.00 

Assumption Parish CIAP Plan Implementation Program 

A. Assumption Parish goals and objectives under the CIAP 

Assumption Parish identified priority physical features to target for protection and 

restoration through the CIAP. These areas are degraded natural ridges and 

wetlands that help protect adjacent infrastructure. The parish is specifically 

emphasizing the use of existing waterways and the beneficial use of dredged 

material to restore these wetlands. Lake Verret Basin is the concentrated area for 

all CIAP projects. Efforts will also be made there to improve fishing with 

recreational improvements. 

B. How Assumption Parish will manage, implement, and monitor the CIAP 

Management, implementation and monitoring of the Assumption Parish CIAP 

program will be coordinated by the Emergency Preparedness Director, John 

Boudreaux, who is listed as that parish’s CIAP point of contact. Administration 

of specific CIAP responsibilities will involve the assistance of assigned parish 

government departments, including the Office of Homeland Security and 

Emergency Preparedness, Public Works, Engineering, and Finance. The parish’s 

CIAP program coordinator will also be supported on project specific duties by 

consultants assigned to the management and/or supervision of individual projects. 

Implementation of individual CIAP projects will follow the priority schedule 

reflected in the funding for individual projects in the program allocation budget 

sheets for Assumption Parish included in Appendix D of this plan. A detailed 

implementation schedule for each individual project will be submitted in 

conjunction with the grant application for each project and will be updated once 

the grant has been executed and project work initiated. 

30

The Assumption Parish CIAP point of contact, or his agent, will be responsible 

for conducting periodic site visits to all projects; he will monitor and report 

progress through annual reports and financial reports, and will be responsible for 

other monitoring and related analysis depending on the type of project. The 

parish CIAP point of contact, in collaboration with the LDNR CIAP Program 

Manager, will conduct an annual review of CIAP funding and project 

implementation priorities and will adjust the implementation schedule and 

propose modifications/revisions to the CIAP Plan to best achieve Assumption 

Parish CIAP program goals and objectives. The Assumption Parish and LDNR’s 

CIAP program managers will continue to discuss program details and to 

collaborate on the oversight of the program at regular intervals. The LDNR CIAP 

Program Manager will communicate at regular intervals with Assumption Parish 

regarding their CIAP projects, to facilitate and oversee implementation of the 

overall state/parish CIAP effort. 

The Assumption Parish public participation process including: the dates and 

periodicals in which notices are placed; the locations, dates, and times of 

meetings and the number of attendees; and a summary of public comments 

on the Draft Plan 

The public has participated in the development of the Assumption Parish CIAP 

plan during open public meetings of the Parish Police Jury when the proposed 

plan was presented and discussed. These meetings were advertised in the 

Assumption Pioneer and meeting notices were posted at the governmental offices 

where the meetings were held. 

C. The Assumption Parish decision-making process for selecting projects 

Projects that met the parish goals and objectives for the CIAP were nominated 

through the Police Jury. All of these projects were nominated for funding through 

the CIAP to the State of Louisiana. Once the State made a decision on funding of 

proposed CIAP projects, the parish reviewed the remaining projects and selected 

those ones that best achieved the parish goals within the funding available. These 

projects were reviewed and approved by the Assumption Parish Police Jury at 

their August 23, 2006, meeting. 

D. How Assumption Parish plans to ensure compliance with all relevant 

Federal, State, and local laws, including Louisiana’s Coastal Zone 


The Assumption Parish government will ensure compliance with all relevant laws 

through the submittal of permits according to the regular permit process for 

coastal zone activities in Louisiana. In addition, the parish will coordinate CIAP 

project activities with all parish departments to ensure that they are compatible 

with other parish activities. 

31

E. How Assumption Parish plans to ensure compliance with all relevant 



The Assumption Parish government will ensure compliance with all relevant laws 






Assumption Parish under the CIAP Program 

Assumption 

Total 

Hydrologic 

Restoration 



Marsh 

Management 


Shoreline 


Freshwater 

Diversion 

Vegetation 



Nutrient 

Trapping 




Engineering 



Other 


1 

2 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 


2 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 


3 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 


4 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 


5 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Total 2 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

G. An Estimate of Funds, that will be Spent Annually by Assumption Parish 

on each Authorized Use 

Assumption 

Parish 

Authorized 

Use 1 

Authorized 

Use 2 

Authorized 

Use 3 

Authorized 

Use 4 

Authorized 

Use 5 

FY 2007 Funding $1,464,263.20 0 0 0 0 

by Authorized 

Use 

FY 2008 Funding $1,464,263.20 0 0 0 0 

by Authorized 

Use 

FY 2009 Funding $1,430,190.39 0 0 0 0 

by Authorized 

Use 

FY 2010 Funding $1,415,428.74 0 0 0 0 

by Authorized 

Use 



$5,774,145.53 0 0 0 0 

32

Calcasieu Parish CIAP Plan Implementation Program 

A. Calcasieu Parish goals and objectives under the CIAP 

Calcasieu Parish identified priority physical features to target for protection and 

restoration through the CIAP. Some areas include assisting with Cameron Parish 

projects. Calcasieu Parish and Cameron Parish have projects that coincide with 

each other. Calcasieu Parish is requesting assistance in efforts to restore and 

protect those overlapping target areas of concern for both parishes. Also, in order 

to make the most efficient use of existing structures and practices, Calcasieu 

Parish is specifically emphasizing the rehabilitation of existing structures and the 

beneficial use of materials to restore and protect surrounding wetlands. 

B. How Calcasieu Parish will manage, implement, and monitor the CIAP 

The responsibilities for the CIAP will be coordinated through different 

departments of Calcasieu Parish Government, including Planning and 

Development, Public Works, Engineering, and Finance. Overall CIAP program 

management, implementation, and monitoring will be the responsibility of the 

Coastal Zone Management (CZM) Administrator, who is listed as the CIAP point 

of contact for Calcasieu Parish and will be assisted by a consultant. In addition to 

support from Calcasieu Parish departments, the CIAP program coordinator for 

Calcasieu Parish will be supported on project specific duties by consultants who 

will be responsible for the management or supervision of individual projects. 



sheets for Calcasieu Parish listed in Appendix D of this plan. A detailed 


conjunction with the grant for each individual project and will be updated once 


Since Calcasieu Parish has projects which will be implemented in conjunction 

with other entities, the Parish will enter into cooperative agreements on those 

projects which will set forth the terms of work on the CIAP project, identify the 

deliverables anticipated for the project and the time frame for implementation of 

the project. The activities and timeline described in the agreement will be used to 

measure the progress of the project over time. On those projects, the Calcasieu 

Parish point of contact, or his agent, will be a member of the project team and will 

participate in project meetings as outlined in the cooperative agreement. 

The CIAP point of contact for Calcasieu Parish, or his agent, will be responsible 

for conducting periodic site visits to all projects, and will monitor progress 

through annual reports, financial reports and will be responsible for the 

performance of other monitoring analysis depending on the type of project. The 

CIAP point of contact for Calcasieu Parish, in collaboration with the LDNR CIAP 

33

Program Manager, will conduct an annual review of CIAP funding and project 

implementation priorities and will adjust the implementation schedule and revise 

the CIAP Plan to best achieve Calcasieu Parish CIAP program goals and 

objectives. The CIAP Program Managers for Calcasieu Parish and the State of 

Louisiana will continue to discuss program details and to collaborate on the 

oversight of the program at regular intervals. The Program Manager from LDNR 

will communicate at regular intervals with Calcasieu Parish regarding their CIAP 

projects and will facilitate and oversee implementation of the comprehensive 

State and parish program. 

C. The Calcasieu Parish public participation process including: the dates 

and periodicals in which notices are placed; the locations, dates, and 

times of meetings and the number of attendees; and a summary of public 

comments on the Draft Plan 

The public participated in the development of the Calcasieu Parish CIAP plan 

during an open public meeting held in Lake Charles on February 15, 2006, hosted 

by the LDNR, and again on April 20, 2006, when the proposed plan was 

presented to the Calcasieu Parish Police Jury. No public comments were received 

by the Parish CZM Administrator from the public regarding the parish Draft 

CIAP Plan. 

D. The Calcasieu Parish decision-making process for selecting projects 

The Calcasieu Parish Police Jury nominated projects that met the parish goals and 

objectives for the CIAP. All of these projects were nominated for funding 

through CIAP to the State of Louisiana. 

E. How Calcasieu Parish plans to ensure compliance with all relevant 



The Calcasieu Parish government will ensure compliance with all relevant laws 





34


Calcasieu Parish under the CIAP Program 

Calcasieu 

Total 

Hydrologic 

Restoration 



Marsh 

Management 


Shoreline 


Freshwater 

Diversion 

Vegetation 



Nutrient 

Trapping 




Engineering 



Other 

Authorized 

Use 1 

6 0 2 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 

Authorized 

Use 2 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 3 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 4 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 5 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Total 6 0 2 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 

G. An Estimate of Funds, that will be Spent Annually by Calcasieu Parish on 

each Authorized Use 

Calcasieu 

Parish 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 



Authorized 

Use 1 

Authorized 

Use 2 

Authorized 

Use 3 

Authorized 

Use 4 

Authorized 

Use 5 

$2,209,951.24 0 0 0 0 

$2,209,951.24 0 0 0 0 

$1,919,903.00 $114,815.98 0 0 0 

$1,500,000.00 $513,716.16 0 0 0 

$7,839,805.48 $628,532.14 0 0 0 

35

Cameron Parish CIAP Plan Implementation Program 

A. Cameron Parish goals and objectives under the CIAP 

Cameron Parish identified priority physical features to target for protection and 

restoration through the CIAP. These areas include island restoration, shoreline 

protection and restoration, and beneficial use of dredged materials. Heavy oilfield 

traffic has taken a toll on many parish roads parish roads in Cameron. 

Approximately 23% of the parish’s CIAP grant money will be used to repair these 

roads. 

B. How Cameron Parish will manage, implement, and monitor the CIAP 


departments of the Cameron Parish Police Jury, including Coastal Zone 

Management and Public Works. Overall CIAP program management, 

implementation and monitoring for the CIAP program will be the responsibility of 

the through the Parish Administrator and the Coastal Zone Administrator, who are 

listed as the CIAP points of contact for Cameron Parish. In addition to support 

from Cameron Parish departments, the CIAP program coordinator for Cameron 

Parish will be supported on project specific duties by consultants who will be 

responsible for the management or supervision of individual projects. 



sheets for Cameron Parish listed in Appendix D of this plan. A detailed 




Since Cameron Parish has projects which will be implemented in conjunction 

with other entities, the Parish will enter into cooperative agreements on those 

projects which will set forth the terms of work on the CIAP project, identify the 

deliverables anticipated for the project and the time frame for implementation of 

the project. The activities and timeline described in the agreement will be used to 

measure the progress of the project over time. On those projects, the Cameron 

Parish point of contact, or his agent, will be a member of the project team and will 

participate in project meetings as outlined in the cooperative agreement. 

The CIAP point of contact for Cameron Parish, or his agent, will be responsible 



performance of other monitoring analysis depending on the type of project. The 

CIAP point of contact for Cameron Parish, in collaboration with the LDNR CIAP 

Program Manager, will conduct an annual review of CIAP funding and project 


36

the CIAP Plan to best achieve Cameron Parish CIAP program goals and 

objectives. The CIAP Program Managers for Cameron Parish and the State of 



will communicate at regular intervals with Cameron Parish regarding their CIAP 



C. The Cameron Parish public participation process including: the dates 



comments on the Draft Plan. 

The public participated in the development of the Cameron Parish CIAP Plan 

during public meetings calling for project submittals (held in Grand Lake on 

February 27, 2006, with 22 participants; in Hackberry on March 22, 2006, with 10 

participants; and in Grand Lake on March 29, 2006, with nine participants). The 

parish Draft Plan was presented to the Cameron Parish Police Jury and approved 

on April 3, 2006. The parish’s final plan was approved by the Cameron Parish 

Police Jury at its October 30, 2006, meeting. 

D. The Cameron Parish decision-making process for selecting projects 

Projects were nominated for the CIAP and submitted to the LDNR for possible 

State and local match funding through the CIAP. Once the State made a decision 

on the funding of proposed CIAP projects, the Cameron Parish Police Jury 

reviewed and selected those that best achieved the CIAP parish goals within the 

funding available. 

E. How Cameron Parish plans to ensure compliance with all relevant 



The Cameron Parish government will ensure compliance with all relevant laws 





37


Cameron Parish under the CIAP Program 

Cameron 

Total 

Hydrologic 

Restoration 



Marsh 

Management 


Shoreline 


Freshwater 

Diversion 

Vegetation 



Nutrient 

Trapping 




Engineering 



Other 

Authorized 

Use 1 

3 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 

Authorized 

Use 2 

6 0 0 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 3 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 4 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 5 

1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 

Total 10 0 1 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 

G. An Estimate of Funds, that will be Spent Annually by Cameron Parish on 


Cameron 

Parish 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 



Authorized 

Use 1 

Authorized 

Use 2 

Authorized 

Use 3 

Authorized 

Use 4 

Authorized 

Use 5 

$764,000.00 $1,499,085.76 0 0 $675,986.65 

$80,000.00 $2,183,085.76 0 0 $675,986.65 

$15,381.18 $2,280,969.38 0 0 $287,618.91 

$500,000.00 $2,057,295.50 0 0 0 

$1,359,381.18 $8,020,436.40 0 0 $1,639,592.21 

38

Iberia Parish CIAP Plan Implementation Program 

A. Iberia Parish goals and objectives under the CIAP 

Iberia Parish identified priority physical features to target for protection and 

restoration through the CIAP. These areas include a barrier island, degraded 

natural ridges, and marshes in close proximity to existing infrastructure. Also, 

several infrastructure projects were identified that fit the implementation program. 

B. How Iberia Parish will manage, implement, and monitor the CIAP 

The responsibilities for the CIAP Program will be coordinated through the 

engineering firm of Sellers and Sellers, in partnership with The Shaw Group. 

Iberia Parish Government and the Department of Public Works will assist. 

Monitoring and reporting for the CIAP will be coordinated through the CZM 

Administrator, Jim Anderson, Director of Homeland Security and Emergency 

Preparedness, who is listed as the CIAP point of contact for Iberia Parish. 



sheets for Iberia Parish listed in Appendix D of this plan. A detailed 




The CIAP point of contact for Iberia Parish, or his agent, will be responsible for 

conducting periodic site visits to all projects, will monitor progress through 

annual reports and financial reports, and will be responsible for the performance 

of other monitoring analysis depending on the type of project. The CIAP point of 

contact for Iberia Parish, in collaboration with the LDNR CIAP Program 



the CIAP Plan to best achieve Iberia Parish CIAP program goals and objectives. 

The CIAP Program Managers for Iberia Parish and the State of Louisiana will 

continue to discuss program details and to collaborate on the oversight of the 

program at regular intervals. The Program Manager from LDNR will 

communicate at regular intervals with Iberia Parish regarding their CIAP projects 

and will facilitate and oversee implementation of the comprehensive State and 

parish program. 

39

C. The Iberia Parish public participation process including: the dates and 


meetings and the number of attendees; and a summary of public 


The public has participated in the development of the Iberia Parish CIAP Plan 

during an open public meeting of the Parish Council (held in Council Chambers 

on May 12, 2006), when the proposed plan was presented. These meetings were 

advertised in the Daily Iberian and the meeting notices were posted at the 

governmental offices where the meetings were held. Except for the advisory 

committee, Mr. Anderson received no public comments regarding the parish 

CIAP Draft Plan. 

D. The Iberia Parish decision-making process for selecting projects 

Projects that met parish goals and objectives for the CIAP were nominated at the 

Coastal Planning Advisory Committee. All of these projects were nominated for 

funding through CIAP to the State of Louisiana. Once the State made a decision 

on the funding of proposed CIAP projects, the parish Coastal Zone Advisory 

Committee reviewed the remaining projects and selected those that best achieved 

the parish goals within the funding available. These projects will be reviewed and 

eventually recommended to the Iberia Parish Council for approval at an upcoming 

meeting. 

E. How Iberia Parish plans to ensure compliance with all relevant Federal, 

State, and local laws, including Louisiana’s Coastal Zone Management 

Program (CZMP) 

The Iberia Parish Government will ensure compliance with all relevant laws 





40


Iberia Parish under the CIAP Program 

Iberia 

Total 

Hydrologic 

Restoration 



Marsh 

Management 


Shoreline 


Freshwater 

Diversion 

Vegetation 



Nutrient 

Trapping 




Engineering 



Other 

Authorized 

Use 1 

4 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 2 0 0 1 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 2 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 3 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 4 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 5 

4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 0 0 

Total 8 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 2 0 0 1 5 0 0 

G. An Estimate of Funds, that will be Spent Annually by Iberia Parish on 


Iberia 

Parish 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 



Authorized 

Use 1 

Authorized 

Use 2 

Authorized 

Use 3 

Authorized 

Use 4 

Authorized 

Use 5 

$1,760,671.00 0 0 0 $489,999.86 

$1,900,670.72 0 0 0 $350,000.14 

$1,662,727.73 0 0 0 $460,745.00 

$1,640,810.51 0 0 0 $460,744.00 

$6,964,879.96 0 0 0 $1,761,489.00 

41

Jefferson Parish CIAP Plan Implementation Program 

A. Jefferson Parish goals and objectives under the CIAP 

Jefferson Parish identified priority physical features to target for protection and 

restoration through the CIAP. These areas include barrier islands, degraded 

natural ridges, and marshes in close proximity to existing infrastructure, and 

restoration features to maintain and restore the Barataria Basin Land Bridge. The 

parish is specifically emphasizing the beneficial use of dredge material to restore 

these wetlands. 

B. How Jefferson Parish will manage, implement, and monitor the CIAP 

The responsibilities for the CIAP will be coordinated through the Jefferson Parish 

Department of Environmental Affairs and will be supported by different 

departments of Jefferson Parish government, including Finance, Engineering, and 

Public Works. Monitoring and reporting for the CIAP will be coordinated 

through the Director of the Department of Environmental Affairs, who is listed as 

the CIAP point of contact for Jefferson Parish. In addition, Jefferson Parish has 

engineering/environmental consultants under contract, selected in accordance 

with Federal, State, and local laws for selection of professional services. These 

consultants will assist with coastal planning, including CIAP project 

implementation. 

Since one of the Jefferson Parish CIAP projects is being implemented in 

conjunction with LDNR, the Jefferson Parish point of contact, or his agent, will 

be a member of the project design team and will participate in the project kickoff 

meeting, site visit, monthly conference calls, the preliminary design conference, 

the final design conference. In addition, as a project partner, the Jefferson Parish 

CIAP point of contact will confer with LDNR on a regular basis to ensure that the 

Jefferson Parish goals and objectives are being met. Jefferson Parish and the 

State of Louisiana will enter into a cooperative agreement which will set forth the 

terms of work on the CIAP project, identify the deliverables anticipated for the 

project and the time frame for implementation of the project. The activities and 

timeline described in the agreement will be used to measure the progress of the 

project over time. 



sheets for Jefferson Parish listed in Appendix D of this plan. I n general, Jefferson 

Parish is initiating engineering and design on all of their CIAP projects 

concurrently to maximize the opportunity for all the projects to be constructed in 

the shortest time possible. A detailed implementation schedule for the Jefferson 

Parish CIAP projects will be submitted in conjunction with the grants for each 

project and will be updated once the grants have been executed and project work 

initiated. 

42

The CIAP point of contact for Jefferson Parish, or his agent, will be responsible 



performance of other monitoring analysis. The CIAP point of contact for 

Jefferson Parish, in collaboration with the LDNR CIAP Program Manager, will 

conduct an annual review of CIAP funding and project implementation priorities 

and will adjust the implementation schedule and revise the CIAP Plan to best 

achieve Jefferson Parish CIAP program goals and objectives. The CIAP Program 

Managers for Jefferson Parish and the State of Louisiana will continue to discuss 

program details and to collaborate on the oversight of the program at regular 

intervals. The Program Manager from LDNR will communicate at regular 

intervals with Jefferson Parish regarding their CIAP projects and will facilitate 

and oversee implementation of the comprehensive State and parish program. 

C. The Jefferson Parish public participation process including: the dates 




The public has participated in the development of the Jefferson Parish CIAP plan 

during a series of open public meetings held by LDNR and as detailed in the 

state’s CIAP plan and summarized below: 

LDNR hosted five public meetings to advise the public of the process that the 

State used to formulate the plan required by the CIAP, one of which was held in 

Jefferson Parish on February 16, 2006, 6:30–8:00 p.m., at the Jefferson Parish 

Regional Library, 4747 West Napoleon Avenue, Room A, Metairie. 

In addition to the public notices issued by LDNR, Jefferson Parish sent letters and 

called members of the Jefferson Parish Coastal Stakeholders Citizen Group to 

advise them of the local meeting, and held a public workshop with the 

stakeholders group on March 31, 2006, to get input into project development and 

prioritization. The parish has maintained a database of coastal stakeholders that 

has grown over the years as interest in and awareness of coastal restoration 

increased. That list consists of present and past members of the Jefferson Parish 

Marine Fisheries Advisory Board, civic and environmental group members and 

leaders, and recreational and commercial fishermen, landowners, and residents of 

outlying coastal communities, including the towns of Jean Lafitte and Grand Isle. 

Although there has been no formal establishment of a Coastal Advisory 

Committee, this diverse group of stakeholders constitutes the Jefferson Parish 

Coastal Stakeholders Citizen Group, which serves as an adjunct to the parish’s 

Coastal Zone Management (CZM) program. 

In order to reach consensus on projects that cross parish lines and have regional 

benefits, Jefferson Parish coordinated with members of the Parishes Against 

Coastal Erosion (PAC E) organization. PAC E was formed in 2003 to unite and 

organize local governments in coastal parishes to assist their individual efforts to 

raise the important issues of the loss of coastal marshes to the policy makers at the 

43

State and federal level, alert their citizens to the need to be informed, and speak 

out on the issue, and assist in crafting innovative restoration alternatives. PACE 

membership consists of the parish presidents of all Louisiana coastal parishes and 

includes several mayors of coastal towns. PACE met on March 30, 2006 to 

discuss potential CIAP projects that would have regional benefits. 

The Jefferson Parish project list was developed through the public participation 

process summarized above, drawing project from the 1993 and 2003 Jefferson 

Parish Coastal Wetland Conservation and Restoration Plans, COAST 2050, the 

Coastal Wetlands Planning, Protection, and Restoration Act (CWPPRA) Program, 

the Louisiana Coastal Area Ecosystem Restoration Plan (LCA) and other 

collaborative restoration and conservation planning efforts that were conducted 

with full public input. 

The final project list for Jefferson Parish was included on the agenda and 

presented at two regularly scheduled Jefferson Parish Council meetings where the 

public has the opportunity to comment on any agenda item. At these meetings 

held on May 17, 2006 and December 13, 2006, the Council adopted resolutions in 

support of the project list. No comments have been received by the Jefferson 

Parish Department of Environmental Affairs regarding the parish CIAP Draft 


D. The Jefferson Parish decision-making process for selecting projects 

Projects for consideration were identified through a review of the Jefferson Parish 

Conservation Plan; through projects nominated or approved for the CWPPRA 

Project Priority Lists; and through projects identified within the FEMA long-term 

community recovery planning process, the Federal Interagency Emergency 

Support Function #14 (ESF #14), and through input from the Barataria 

Terrebonne National Estuary Program (BTNEP), local coastal parish 

representatives, and the Parishes Against Coastal Erosion (PACE) organization. 

Projects identified were evaluated for their ability to meet CIAP guidelines, 

restoration needs, likelihood of success, and estimated time to implement. A list 

of projects deemed suitable for the CIAP was then developed. This “Long List” 

was discussed in preliminary meetings with the State of Louisiana to garner the 

State’s input and was then presented to the Jefferson Parish coastal stakeholder’s 

citizen advisory group for comments, additional project identification, and 

prioritization. A “Short List” of projects having the most stakeholder support was 

developed, and projects that had the most stakeholder support and best achieved 

the parish goals within the CPS funding available were selected for parish 

funding. The entire Short List was ratified by the Jefferson Parish Council during 

a regularly scheduled council meeting and then submitted to the State of 

Louisiana with a request for State funding for those projects that lacked sufficient 

parish funding. All projects from the Short List were either selected for funding 

by the parish or the state, or were included as Tier II projects in the final CIAP 

plan. 

44

E. How Jefferson Parish plans to ensure compliance with all relevant 



The Jefferson Parish government will ensure compliance with all relevant laws 






Jefferson Parish under the CIAP Program 

Jefferson 

Total 

Hydrologic 

Restoration 



Marsh 

Management 


Shoreline 


Freshwater 

Diversion 

Vegetation 



Nutrient 

Trapping 




Engineering 



Other 

Authorized 

Use 1 

5 0 0 0 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 2 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 3 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 4 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 5 

2 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Total 7 0 0 0 1 5 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 

G. An Estimate of Funds, that will be Spent Annually by Jefferson Parish on 


Jefferson 

Parish 

Authorized 

Use 1 

Authorized 

Use 2 

Authorized 

Use 3 

Authorized 

Use 4 

Authorized 

Use 5 

FY 2007 Funding $3,096,003.79 0 0 0 $719,516.74 

by Authorized 

Use 

FY 2008 Funding $3,062,938.73 0 0 0 $752,581.80 

by Authorized 

Use 

FY 2009 Funding $2,831,100.96 0 0 0 $844,692.04 

by Authorized 

Use 

FY 2010 Funding $2,801,146.91 0 0 0 $836,706.00 

by Authorized 

Use 



$11,791,190.39 0 0 0 $3,153,496.58 

45

Lafourche Parish CIAP Plan Implementation Program 

A. Lafourche Parish goals and objectives under the CIAP 

CIAP can provide Lafourche Parish with enough funding to attempt projects that 

can aggressively tackle the parish’s extreme land loss. Lafourche Parish plans to 

maintain the structure of its estuaries, including the barrier beaches, natural 

ridges, and land bridges, and to use funding for infrastructure that is directly 

affected or supportive of offshore oil development. Those projects include the 

Larose to Golden Meadow Hurricane Protection Project, LA 1 Project, and Port 

Fourchon. 

B. How Lafourche Parish will manage, implement, and monitor the CIAP 

CIAP projects will be managed and monitored primarily through the Lafourche 

Parish Coastal Zone Office and Advisory Committee and the parish finance 

department, with the assistance of field personnel from LDNR. Overall CIAP 

program management, implementation and monitoring for the Lafourche CIAP 

program will be the responsibility of the Lafourche Parish CZM Administrator 

and Permits Officer. In addition to support from Lafourche Parish departments, 

the CIAP program coordinator for Lafourche Parish may be supported on project 

specific duties by consultants who will be responsible for the management or 

supervision of individual projects. 

Since one of the Lafourche Parish CIAP projects is being implemented in 

conjunction with the state, the Lafourche Parish and the State of Louisiana will 

enter into a cooperative agreement which will set forth the terms of work on the 

CIAP project, identify the deliverables anticipated for the project and the time 

frame for implementation of the project. The activities and timeline described in 

the agreement will be used to measure the progress of the project over time. 



sheets for Lafourche Parish listed in Appendix D of this plan. A detailed 

implementation schedule for the Lafourche Parish CIAP projects will be 

submitted in conjunction with the grants for each project and will be updated once 

the grants have been executed and project work initiated. 

The CIAP point of contact for Lafourche Parish, or his agent, will be responsible 

for conducting periodic site visits to all projects, will monitor progress through 


of other monitoring analysis. The CIAP point of contact for Lafourche Parish, in 

collaboration with the LDNR CIAP Program Manager, will conduct an annual 

review of CIAP funding and project implementation priorities and will adjust the 

implementation schedule and revise the CIAP Plan to best achieve Lafourche 

Parish CIAP program goals and objectives. The CIAP Program Managers for 

46

Lafourche Parish and the State of Louisiana will continue to discuss program 

details and to collaborate on the oversight of the program at regular intervals. The 

Program Manager from LDNR will communicate at regular intervals with 

Lafourche Parish regarding their CIAP projects and will facilitate and oversee 

implementation of the comprehensive State and parish program. 

C. The Lafourche Parish public participation process including: the dates 




The public has always been encouraged and specifically requested to provide 

information and guidance for all projects in Lafourche Parish. The Parish CIAP 

projects were discussed at meetings of the Lafourche Parish Coastal Zone 

Management Advisory Committee monthly meetings on August 15, 2006; 

September 28, 2006; October 17, 2006, December 19, 2006 and February 12, 

2007. The CZM meetings are advertised by posting the dates of the meeting in 

public places including the Greater Lafourche Port Commission Office Building. 

In addition, the Coastal Zone administrator discussed the program on local radio. 

D. The Lafourche Parish decision-making process for selecting projects 

Projects were nominated by the CZM Committee and approved by the Lafourche 

Parish Council. The projects were reviewed by the State, and then parish officials 

met with the State. The Advisory Committee then selected the projects that 

maximize the benefits to Lafourche Parish. The Lafourche Parish Council 

provided the last review and approval. 

E. How Lafourche Parish plans to ensure compliance with all relevant 



The CZM Committee will review the projects to ensure compliance. The 

administration will also provide a review. 

47


Lafourche Parish under the CIAP Program 

Lafourche 

Total 

Hydrologic 

Restoration 



Marsh 

Management 


Shoreline 


Freshwater 

Diversion 

Vegetation 



Nutrient 

Trapping 




Engineering 



Other 

Authorized 

Use 1 

3 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 2 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 3 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 4 

1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 5 

1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 

Total 5 0 0 0 3 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 

G. An Estimate of Funds, that will be Spent Annually by Lafourche Parish 


Lafourche 

Parish 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 



Authorized 

Use 1 

Authorized 

Use 2 

Authorized 

Use 3 

Authorized 

Use 4 

Authorized 

Use 5 

$1,108,728.27 0 0 $700,000.00 $540,269.48 

$1,808,728.27 0 0 0 $540,269.48 

$1,741,068.01 0 0 0 $520,059.27 

$1,723,097.25 0 0 0 $514,691.39 

$6,381,621.80 0 0 $700,000.00 $2,115,289.62 

48

Livingston Parish CIAP Plan Implementation Program 

A. Livingston Parish goals and objectives under the CIAP 

Livingston Parish identified priority physical features to target for protection and 

restoration through the CIAP. These areas include coastal environmental projects, 

rebuilding of coastal areas, and restoring degraded natural wetlands in close 

proximity to existing infrastructure. 

B 

How Livingston Parish will manage, implement, and monitor the CIAP 

Responsibility for the CIAP will be coordinated through different departments of 

Livingston Parish government and agencies within Livingston Parish, including 

Public Works, Finance, and the Livingston Parish Waterways Commission. 

Monitoring and reporting for the CIAP will be coordinated through Grant Finders, 

Inc. 



sheets for Livingston Parish listed in Appendix D of this plan. A detailed 




The CIAP point of contact for Livingston Parish will be responsible for 




contact for Livingston Parish, in collaboration with the LDNR CIAP Program 



the CIAP Plan to best achieve Livingston Parish CIAP program goals and 

objectives. The CIAP Program Managers for Livingston Parish and the State of 



will communicate at regular intervals with Livingston Parish regarding their CIAP 



49

C. The Livingston Parish public participation process including: the dates 




The public has participated in the development of the Livingston Parish CIAP 

plan during an open public meeting of the Parish Council (held in Livingston 

Parish on March 9, 2006). A second public meeting was held in conjunction with 

the Livingston Parish Waterways Commission on March 21, 2006. The public 

meeting produced two projects: the Amite Gapping Project and the Bald Cypress 

Tupelo Coastal Forest Protection Project. These projects were reviewed at this 

meeting and also with the Livingston Parish Waterways Commission during 

meetings (also held in Livingston on March 20, 2006) when the CIAP was the 

main issue presented and discussed. These meetings were advertised in the 

Livingston Parish News and meeting notices were posted at the governmental 

offices where the meetings were held. Except for the advisory committee, Parish 

President Mike Grimmer received no public comments on the parish’s CIAP 

Draft Plan. 

D. The Livingston Parish decision-making process for selecting projects 

Projects that met the parish goals and objectives for the CIAP were nominated by 

the Coastal Zone Advisory Committee. All of these projects were nominated for 




the CIAP parish goals within the funding available. 

E. How Livingston Parish plans to ensure compliance with all relevant 



The Livingston Parish government will ensure compliance with all relevant laws 





50


Livingston Parish under the CIAP Program 

Livingston 

Total 

Hydrologic 

Restoration 



Marsh 

Management 


Shoreline 


Freshwater 

Diversion 

Vegetation 



Nutrient 

Trapping 




Engineering 



Other 

Authorized 

Use 1 

2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 2 

1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 

Authorized 

Use 3 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 4 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 5 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Total 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 

G. An Estimate of Funds, that will be Spent Annually by Livingston Parish 


Livingston 

Parish 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 



Authorized 

Use 1 

Authorized 

Use 2 

Authorized 

Use 3 

Authorized 

Use 4 

Authorized 

Use 5 

$1,652,927.20 0 0 0 0 

$1,477,927.20 $175,000.00 0 0 0 

$1,601,637.38 0 0 0 0 

$1,585,105.73 0 0 0 0 

$6,317,597.51 $175,000.00 0 0 0 

51

Orleans Parish CIAP Plan Implementation Program 

A. Orleans Parish goals and objectives under the CIAP 

Orleans Parish (equivalent to the City of New Orleans) identified Lake Borgne 

shoreline protection and marsh creation from Bayou Bienvenue to Alligator Point 

as targets for CIAP funding. LDNR has agreed to partner with the City of New 

Orleans by providing financial, engineering, and construction management 

assistance that will increase the breadth of the project. This project will meet the 

goals of protecting and building brackish marsh, which will provide habitat for 

estuarine wildlife and fisheries and flood protection for existing communities and 

infrastructure. Objectives under these goals will be to measure the reduction of 

shoreline erosion, the increase in wetland growth, and the overall success of 

restoration methods. 

B. How Orleans Parish will manage, implement, and monitor the CIAP 

The responsibilities for the Orleans Parish CIAP will be coordinated through the 

City of New Orleans Local Coastal Program (LCP). The LCP is administered by 

the Mayor’s Office of Environmental Affairs, which is in the Office of Economic 

Development. LDNR will implement the project while the City of New Orleans 

shares responsibilities of management and monitoring. The New Orleans’ share 

of management, monitoring, and reporting tasks will be the responsibility of the 

LCP Administrator, who is listed as the CIAP point of contact for Orleans Parish. 

Once the project has undergone the engineering and design phase, the LCP 

Administrator will direct some of the management, monitoring, and reporting 

duties to an appropriate contractor. The contractor will report project progress to 

the LCP Administrator. 

Since the Orleans Parish CIAP project is being implemented in conjunction with 

LDNR, the Orleans Parish point of contact, or his agent, will be a member of the 

project design team and will participate in the project kickoff meeting, site visit, 

monthly conference calls, the preliminary design conference, the final design 

conference. In addition, as a project partner, the Orleans Parish CIAP point of 

contact will confer with LDNR on a regular basis to ensure that the Orleans Parish 

goals and objectives are being met. Orleans Parish and the State of Louisiana will 

enter into a cooperative agreement which will set forth the terms of work on the 

CIAP project, identify the deliverables anticipated for the project and the time 

frame for implementation of the project. The activities and timeline described in 

the agreement will be used to measure the progress of the project over time. 

Overall CIAP program management, implementation and monitoring for the 

Orleans Parish CIAP program will be managed by the CIAP point of contact for 

Orleans Parish. A detailed implementation schedule for the Orleans Parish CIAP 

project will be submitted in conjunction with the grant for the project and will be 

updated once the grant has been executed and project work initiated. 

52

The CIAP point of contact for Orleans Parish, or his/her agent, will be responsible 



of other monitoring analysis. The CIAP point of contact for Orleans Parish, in 



implementation schedule and revise the CIAP Plan to best achieve Orleans Parish 

CIAP program goals and objectives. The CIAP Program Managers for Orleans 

Parish and the State of Louisiana will continue to discuss program details and to 

collaborate on the oversight of the program at regular intervals. The Program 

Manager from LDNR will communicate at regular intervals with Orleans Parish 

regarding their CIAP projects and will facilitate and oversee implementation of 

the comprehensive State and parish program. 

C. Orleans Parish public participation process including: the dates and 




The public participated in the development of the City of New Orleans CIAP 

priorities during an open public meeting held by the Mayor’s Office of 

Environmental Affairs at the USACE, New Orleans District, on February 17, 

2006 (15 people attended). This was an informal Orleans Coastal Advisory 

Committee meeting dedicated to CIAP project planning that was advertised to the 

public at an LDNR-led CIAP workshop. The LCP Administrator has received no 

public comments on the Lake Borgne shoreline protection and marsh creation 

project proposed for CIAP funding. 

D. The Orleans Parish decision-making process for selecting projects 

After meeting with the public and working with wetlands experts over the past 

two years, the Department of Environmental Affairs was able to create a list of 11 

large-scale coastal restoration projects. The Coastal Advisory Committee ranked 

the 11 restoration projects, with rankings based on both scoring and criteria 

including timely implementation, regional appeal, health and safety of the public 

and infrastructure, certainty of benefits, critical need, sustainability, and proven 

methodology. Two of the top five projects were combined into one, which was 

submitted to the State. 

E. How Orleans Parish plans to ensure compliance with all relevant Federal, 

State, and local laws, including Louisiana’s Coastal Zone Management 

Program (CZMP) 

The City of New Orleans will ensure compliance with all relevant laws through 

the submittal of permits according to the regular permit process for coastal zone 

activities in Louisiana. In addition, the city will coordinate CIAP project 

activities with all city departments to ensure that they are compatible with other 

city activities. 

53


Orleans Parish under the CIAP Program 

Orleans 

Total 

Hydrologic 

Restoration 



Marsh 

Management 


Shoreline 


Freshwater 

Diversion 

Vegetation 



Nutrient Trapping 




Engineering 



Other 

Authorized 

Use 1 

1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 2 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 3 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 4 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 5 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Total 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

G. An Estimate of Funds, that will be Spent Annually by Orleans Parish on 


Orleans 

Parish 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 



Authorized 

Use 1 

Authorized 

Use 2 

Authorized 

Use 3 

Authorized 

Use 4 

Authorized 

Use 5 

$3,773,991.48 0 0 0 0 

$3,773,991.48 0 0 0 0 

$3,610,110.69 0 0 0 0 

$3,572,848.05 0 0 0 0 

$14,730,941.70 0 0 0 0 

54

Plaquemines Parish CIAP Plan Implementation Program 

A. Plaquemines Parish goals and objectives under the CIAP 

Plaquemines Parish identified priority physical features to target for protection 

and restoration through the CIAP. These areas include barrier islands, degraded 

natural ridges, and marshes in close proximity to existing infrastructure. In order 

to make the most efficient use of existing structures and practices, Plaquemines 

Parish is specifically emphasizing the rehabilitation of existing diversion 

structures and the beneficial use of dredge material to restore these wetlands. 

B. How Plaquemines Parish will manage, implement, and monitor the CIAP 


departments of Plaquemines Parish government, including Coastal Zone 

Management, Public Works, Water Quality, Engineering, Finance, and Port 

Authority. Overall CIAP program management, implementation and monitoring 

for the Plaquemines Parish CIAP program will be the responsibility of the CZM 

Administrator, who is listed as the CIAP point of contact for Plaquemines Parish. 

In addition to support from Plaquemines Parish departments, the CIAP program 

coordinator for Plaquemines Parish will be supported on project specific duties by 

consultants who will be responsible for the management or supervision of 

individual CIAP projects. 

Since two of the Plaquemines Parish CIAP projects are being implemented by the 

State and one of the State CIAP projects is being implemented by Plaquemines 

Parish, the Parish and the State of Louisiana will enter into cooperative 

agreements which will set forth the terms of work on the CIAP projects, the 

deliverables anticipated for the projects, and the time frame for implementation of 

the projects. The activities and timelines described in the agreements will be used 

to measure the progress of the project over time. 



sheets for Plaquemines Parish listed in Appendix D of this plan. A detailed 

implementation schedule for the Plaquemines Parish CIAP projects will be 



The CIAP point of contact for Plaquemines Parish, or his/her agent, will be 

responsible for conducting periodic site visits to all projects, will monitor progress 

through annual reports and financial reports, and will be responsible for the 


Plaquemines Parish, in collaboration with the LDNR CIAP Program Manager, 

will conduct an annual review of CIAP funding and project implementation 

priorities and will adjust the implementation schedule and revise the CIAP Plan to 

55

est achieve Plaquemines Parish CIAP program goals and objectives. The CIAP 

Program Managers for Plaquemines Parish and the State of Louisiana will 

continue to discuss program details and to collaborate on the oversight of the 

program at regular intervals. The Program Manager from LDNR will 

communicate at regular intervals with Plaquemines Parish regarding their CIAP 



C. The Plaquemines Parish public participation process including: the dates 




The public has participated in the development of the Plaquemines Parish CIAP 

plan during an open public meeting of the Parish Council (held in Belle Chasse on 

May 12, 2006), when the proposed plan was presented, and at Coastal Zone 

Advisory Committee meetings (also held in Belle Chasse, on February 13, March 

2, April 4, May 16, and July 25, 2006), when the CIAP was the main issue 

presented and discussed. These meetings were advertised in the Plaquemines 

Gazette, and meeting notices were posted at the governmental offices where the 

meetings were held. CZM Committee meetings are also advertised in the 

“Breaux Act Newsflash,” an email list-serve that has over 1,800 recipients. 

Except for the advisory committee, no comments have been received from the 

public regarding the parish CIAP Draft Plan. 

D. The Plaquemines Parish decision-making process for selecting projects 

Projects that met the parish goals and objectives for the CIAP were nominated by 





the CIAP parish goals within the funding available. These projects were reviewed 

and eventually recommended to the Plaquemines Parish Council for approval. 

E. How Plaquemines Parish plans to ensure compliance with all relevant 



The Plaquemines Parish government will ensure compliance with all relevant 

laws through the submittal of permits according to the regular permit process for 




56


Plaquemines Parish under the CIAP Program 

Plaquemines 

Total 

Hydrologic 

Restoration 



Marsh 

Management 


Shoreline 


Freshwater 

Diversion 

Vegetation 



Nutrient 

Trapping 




Engineering 



Other 

Authorized 

Use 1 

5 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 2 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 3 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 4 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 5 

1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 

Total 6 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 

G. An Estimate of Funds, that will be Spent Annually by Plaquemines 

Parish on each Authorized Use 

Plaquemines 

Parish 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 



Authorized 

Use 1 

Authorized 

Use 2 

Authorized 

Use 3 

Authorized 

Use 4 

Authorized 

Use 5 

$3,896,612.21 0 0 0 $657,641.76 

$3,806,776.00 0 0 0 $747,477.97 

$3,296,526.81 0 0 0 $984,676.84 

$3,262,500.22 0 0 0 $974,513.05 

$14,262,415.24 0 0 0 $3,364,309.62 

57

St. Bernard Parish CIAP Implementation Program 

A. St. Bernard Parish goals and objectives under the CIAP 

Marsh restoration, bank stabilization, and shoreline protection in the Lake Lery 

area form St. Bernard Parish’s top priority proposed for CIAP funds. The parish 

is emphasizing the use of the existing Violet Diversion structure and the 

beneficial use of dredge material for the projects. 

B. How St. Bernard Parish will manage, implement, and monitor the CIAP 

Responsibilities for the CIAP will be coordinated through different departments 

of St. Bernard Parish government, including CZM Administrator, as well as the 

departments of Public Works, Engineering, and Finance. Overall CIAP program 

management, implementation and monitoring for the St. Bernard CIAP program 

will be the responsibility of the CZM Administrator, who is listed as the CIAP 

point of contact for St. Bernard Parish. In addition to support from St. Bernard 

Parish departments, the CIAP program coordinator for St. Bernard Parish will be 

supported on project specific duties by consultants who will be responsible for the 

management or supervision of individual projects. 

Since one of the St. Bernard Parish CIAP projects is being implemented in 

conjunction with the state, St. Bernard Parish and the State of Louisiana will enter 

into a cooperative agreement which will set forth the terms of work on the CIAP 

project, identify the deliverables anticipated for the project and the time frame for 

implementation of the project. The activities and timeline described in the 

agreement will be used to measure the progress of the project over time. 



sheets for St. Bernard Parish listed in Appendix D of this plan. A detailed 

implementation schedule for the St. Bernard Parish CIAP projects will be 



The CIAP point of contact for St. Bernard Parish, or his agent, will be responsible 



of other monitoring analysis. The CIAP point of contact for St. Bernard Parish, in 



implementation schedule and revise the CIAP Plan to best achieve St. Bernard 

Parish CIAP program goals and objectives. The CIAP Program Managers for St. 

Bernard Parish and the State of Louisiana will continue to discuss program details 

and to collaborate on the oversight of the program at regular intervals. The 

Program Manager from LDNR will communicate at regular intervals with St. 

Bernard Parish regarding their CIAP projects and will facilitate and oversee 


58

C. The St. Bernard Parish public participation process including: the dates 




The public has participated in the development of the St. Bernard Parish CIAP 

plan during the September 27, 2006, meeting of the Coastal Zone Advisory 

Committee when the CIAP was the main issue presented and discussed. Meeting 

notices were posted at the governmental offices where the meetings were held. 

D. The St. Bernard Parish decision-making process for selecting projects 

Projects were nominated at the Coastal Zone Advisory Committee that met the 

parish goals and objectives for the CIAP. All of these projects were nominated 

for funding through CIAP to the State of Louisiana. Once the State made a 

decision on the funding of proposed CIAP projects, the parish Coastal Zone 

Advisory Committee reviewed the remaining projects and selected those that best 

achieved the CIAP parish goals within the funding available. These projects were 

then reviewed and approved by the St. Bernard Parish government. 

E. How St. Bernard Parish plans to ensure compliance with all relevant 



The St. Bernard Parish Government will ensure compliance with all relevant laws 

by submitting permits through the regular permit process for coastal zone 

activities in Louisiana. In addition, the parish will coordinate CIAP project 

activities with all parish departments to ensure that they are compatible with other 

parish activities. 


St. Bernard Parish under the CIAP Program 

St. Bernard 

Total 

Hydrologic 

Restoration 



Marsh 

Management 


Shoreline 


Freshwater 

Diversion 

Vegetation 



Nutrient 

Trapping 




Engineering 



Other 

Authorized 

Use 1 

3 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 2 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 3 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 4 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 5 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Total 3 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 

59

G An Estimate of Funds, that will be Spent Annually by St. Bernard Parish 


St. Bernard 

Parish 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 



Authorized 

Use 1 

Authorized 

Use 2 

Authorized 

Use 3 

Authorized 

Use 4 

Authorized 

Use 5 

$2,307,278.02 0 0 0 0 

$2,307,278.02 0 0 0 0 

$2,146,655.06 0 0 0 0 

$2,124,498.89 0 0 0 0 

$8,885,709.99 0 0 0 0 

St. Charles Parish CIAP Plan Implementation Program 

A. St. Charles Parish goals and objectives under the CIAP 

St. Charles Parish identified three priority areas to target for protection and 

restoration through the CIAP. These areas include shorelines on Lakes Salvador 

and Pontchartrain that protect delicate marshes in St. Charles Parish. Also, in 

order to make the most efficient use of future resources, St. Charles Parish has 

identified education as a priority protection and restoration goal. 

B. How St. Charles Parish will manage, implement, and monitor the CIAP 

The responsibilities for the CIAP program management, implementation, and 

monitoring for the St. CharlesCIAP program will be coordinated through the 

Coastal Zone Management (CZM) Section of St. Charles Parish government. The 

CZM Section is part of the Planning & Zoning Department and has a support staff 

of 17 employees, with one person dedicated to CZM functions full time. The 

parish finance department (staff of about 15 people) has assigned an accountant to 

help with the Automated Standard Application for Payments (ASAP) system and 

with financial reporting. Furthermore, the CZM Section has budgeted for an 

additional clerical employee for 2007 in anticipation of an increased workload 

once construction begins. In addition to support from St. Bernard Parish 

departments, the CIAP program coordinator for St. Bernard Parish will be 



60

Since one of the St. Charles Parish CIAP projects is being implemented in 

conjunction with the state, St. Charles Parish and the State of Louisiana will enter 







sheets for St. Charles Parish listed in Appendix D of this plan. A detailed 

implementation schedule for the St. Charles Parish CIAP projects will be 



The CIAP point of contact for St. Charles Parish, or his agent, will be responsible 



of other monitoring analysis. The CIAP point of contact for St. Charles Parish, in 



implementation schedule and revise the CIAP Plan to best achieve St. Charles 

Parish CIAP program goals and objectives. The CIAP Program Managers for St. 

Charles Parish and the State of Louisiana will continue to discuss program details 

and to collaborate on the oversight of the program at regular intervals. The 


Charles Parish regarding their CIAP projects and will facilitate and oversee 


C. The St. Charles Parish public participation process including: the dates 




The public has participated in the development of the St. Charles Parish CIAP 

plan during an open public meeting of the Coastal Zone Advisory Committee 

meetings in the last quarter of 2005 and first quarter of 2006. These meetings 

were advertised in the St. Charles Guide, and meeting notices were posted at the 

governmental offices where the meetings were held. CZM Committee meetings 

are also advertised in the “Breaux Act Newsflash,” an email list-serve that has 

over 1,800 recipients. Except for the advisory committee, no comments have 

been received from the public regarding the parish CIAP Draft Plan. 

D. The St. Charles Parish decision-making process for selecting projects 

Projects that met the parish goals and objectives for the CIAP program were 

nominated by the Coastal Zone Advisory Committee. All St. Charles Parish 

projects were existing priorities before the creation of the CIAP. All of these 

projects were nominated for funding through CIAP to the State of Louisiana. 

61

E. How St. Charles Parish plans to ensure compliance with all relevant 



The St. Charles Parish Government will ensure compliance with all relevant laws 






St. Charles Parish under the CIAP Program 

St. Charles 

Total 

Hydrologic 

Restoration 



Marsh 

Management 


Shoreline 


Freshwater 

Diversion 

Vegetation 



Nutrient 

Trapping 




Engineering 



Other 

Authorized 

Use 1 

3 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 2 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 3 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 4 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 5 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Total 3 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

G. An Estimate of Funds, that will be Spent Annually by St. Charles Parish 


St. Charles 

Parish 

Authorized 

Use 1 

Authorized 

Use 2 

Authorized 

Use 3 

Authorized 

Use 4 

Authorized 

Use 5 

FY 2007 Funding $1,577,519.47 0 0 0 0 

by Authorized 

Use 

FY 2008 Funding $1,577,519.47 0 0 0 0 

by Authorized 

Use 

FY 2009 Funding $1,538,688.43 0 0 0 0 

by Authorized 

Use 

FY 2010 Funding $1,522,806.81 0 0 0 0 

by Authorized 

Use 



$6,216,534.18 0 0 0 0 

62

St. James Parish CIAP Plan Implementation Program 

A. St. James Parish goals and objectives under the CIAP 

St. James Parish will use funds from the CIAP to target four major objectives that 

are eligible for project funding, the first being conservation, restoration, and 

protection of coastal and wetland areas. This will be accomplished through land 

purchases and restoration projects. Second is the use of funds to develop plans for 

future projects and programs that will benefit wetlands through the use of 

wastewater assimilation. The third group of projects includes those that can be 

developed to mitigate damages to fish, wildlife, and natural resources. These 

projects include freshwater diversion projects, water hydrology improvements, 

and berm gapping. The fourth category of projects represents small infrastructure 

projects that will help parish residents and businesses offset some of the effects of 

offshore exploration. All of the projects selected represent activities that can be 

readily implemented and monitored for success, while at the same time better 

protecting the parish’s wetland areas. Additionally, several proposed projects 

focus on preventing future destruction of wetland areas and provide for the 

protection and nourishment of wetlands and swampland areas within and around 

St. James Parish. 

B. How St. James Parish will manage, implement, and monitor the CIAP 

The management, implementation and monitoring for the St. James Parish CIAP 

program will be the responsibility of the Operations Department of the Parish 

President’s Office. The Operations Department oversees all public works 

projects, land purchases, and coastal zone activities and permitting. Therefore, 

with a single source oversight, the proper monitoring and reporting required in the 

program will be the responsibility of the Department of Operations. The Coastal 

Zone Management (CZM) Administrator is a component of the Department of 

Operations, which will help ensure compliance, prevent duplication of services, 

and, most importantly, will prevent the permitting of activities that may be 

detrimental to the goals and objectives set forth in the parish CIAP Plan. The 

point of contact for all CIAP activities for St. James Parish will be the Department 

of Operations Director. In addition to support from St. James Parish departments, 

the CIAP program coordinator for St. James Parish may be supported on project 



Since one of the St. James Parish CIAP projects is being implemented in 

conjunction with the state, St. James Parish and the State of Louisiana will enter 





63



sheets for St. James Parish listed in Appendix D of this plan. A detailed 

implementation schedule for the St. James Parish CIAP projects will be submitted 

in conjunction with the grants for each project and will be updated once the grants 

have been executed and project work initiated. 

The CIAP point of contact for St. James Parish, or his agent, will be responsible 



performance of other monitoring analysis. The CIAP point of contact for St. 

James Parish in collaboration with the LDNR CIAP Program Manager, will 



achieve St. James Parish CIAP program goals and objectives. The CIAP Program 

Managers for St. James Parish and the State of Louisiana will continue to discuss 



intervals with St. James Parish regarding their CIAP projects and will facilitate 


C. The St. James Parish public participation process including: the dates 




The St. James Parish Coastal Zone Advisory Committee holds open meetings on 

the last Wednesday of every month. These meetings begin at 6:00 p.m. and the 

summary of the meeting activities and decisions are published in the minutes in 

the parish’s official journal. The St. James Parish CZM Committee met on 

February 22, 2006, and was presented with proposed projects and suggestions for 

CIAP projects. On April 26, 2006, Ms. Jennifer Bell and Ms. Carol Parson were 

part of the CZM agenda; they discussed possible projects and offered planning 

and technical assistance on projects that would help restore and protect wetland 

areas in the parish. Finally, in July, all parish CZM members as well as the 

members of the parish government were given copies of the proposed CIAP 

projects for their review and comments. 

64

D. The St. James Parish decision-making process for selecting projects 

Projects were nominated and developed by the St. James Parish CZM 

administrator and the Parish President’s Office. All of the projects that met the 

objectives and guidelines were further developed and submitted for consideration 

to the State. Once the State reviewed the projects for consistency in meeting the 

State and CIAP objectives and rules, they were compiled and offered for public 

review on June 20, 2006. The projects were prioritized and split into Tier I and 

Tier II groups, with Tier I being proposed as those the parish would like to see 

funded first. Once the State accepted and/or made necessary changes to the 

projects listed by the parish, the St. James Parish President’s Office recommended 

approval of the local CIAP projects to the Parish Council. The approval took 

place a regular meeting of the Parish Council, which is open to the public and 

encourages questions and comments. The adoption of the CIAP projects took 

place through Council resolution. 

E. How St. James Parish plans to ensure compliance with all relevant 



The St. James Parish Government will ensure compliance with all relevant laws 


coastal zone activities in Louisiana. In addition, the Parish Department of 

Operations will coordinate all CIAP project activities with the parish to ensure 

that they are compatible with other parish activities. St. James Parish is an active 

participant in the local and State CZMP and will continue to be active in the 

planning and implementation of all projects undertaken through the CIAP 

process. 


St. James Parish under the CIAP Program 

St. James 

Total 

Hydrologic 

Restoration 



Marsh 

Management 


Shoreline 


Freshwater 

Diversion 

Vegetation 



Nutrient 

Trapping 




Engineering 



Other 

Authorized 

Use 1 

7 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0 3 1 0 0 1 

Authorized 

Use 2 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 3 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 4 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 5 

2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 

Total 9 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0 3 1 0 0 1 

65

G. An Estimate of Funds, that will be Spent Annually by St. James Parish on 


St. James 

Parish 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 



Authorized 

Use 1 

Authorized 

Use 2 

Authorized 

Use 3 

Authorized 

Use 4 

Authorized 

Use 5 

$1,168,918.90 0 0 0 $205,680.00 

$1,058,478.90 0 0 0 $316,120.00 

$1,342,634.42 0 0 0 0 

$1,328,776.36 0 0 0 0 

$4,898,808.58 0 0 0 $521,800.00 

St. John the Baptist Parish CIAP Plan Implementation Program 

A. St. John the Baptist Parish goals and objectives under the CIAP program 

St. John the Baptist Parish identified priority physical features to target for 

protection and restoration through the CIAP. These areas include degraded 

natural ridges and wetlands in close proximity to existing infrastructure, one of 

which is in conjunction with other parishes and governmental entities. One of the 

areas overlaps with Tangipahoa Parish and other governmental entities. All of the 

parish’s proposed projects will help restore critical marshlands, as well as reduce 

flooding and support navigation. 

B. How St. John the Baptist Parish will manage, implement, and monitor 

the CIAP 

Overall CIAP program management, implementation and monitoring for the St. 

John the Baptist CIAP program will be the responsibility of the Director of 

Planning & Zoning, who is listed as a CIAP point of contact for St. John the 

Baptist Parish. The responsibilities for the CIAP will be coordinated through 

different departments of St. John the Baptist Parish Government, including 

Coastal Zone Management, Planning & Zoning, Public Works, Water Quality, 

Engineering, and Finance. In addition to support from St. John the Baptist Parish 

departments, the CIAP program coordinator for St John the Baptist Parish may be 



66



sheets for St. John Parish listed in Appendix D of this plan. A detailed 




The CIAP point of contact for St. John Parish will be responsible for conducting 

periodic site visits to all projects, will monitor progress through annual and 

financial reports, and will be responsible for the performance of other monitoring 

analysis depending on the type of project. The CIAP point of contact for St. John 

Parish, in collaboration with the LDNR CIAP Program Manager, will conduct an 

annual review of CIAP funding and project implementation priorities and will 

adjust the implementation schedule and revise the CIAP Plan to best achieve St. 

John Parish CIAP program goals and objectives. The CIAP Program Managers 

for St. John Parish and the State of Louisiana will continue to discuss program 



John Parish regarding their CIAP projects and will facilitate and oversee 


C. The St. John the Baptist Parish public participation process including: 

the dates and periodicals in which notices are placed; the locations, dates, 

and times of meetings and the number of attendees; and a summary of 

public comments on the Draft Plan 

The public participated in the development of the St. John the Baptist Parish 

CIAP plan during public meetings held February 6, February 15, February 20, and 

April 10, 2006, at the Percy Hebert Building, LaPlace; in April 2006 in 

conjunction with Tangipahoa Parish for the Manchac project; and on May 4 and 

May 18, 2006, in Pleasure Bend, Vacherie. Comments in support of the project 

were received on the Lac Des Allemands project. 

D. The St. John the Baptist Parish decision-making process for selecting 

projects 

Projects were nominated through the various committees and advisory boards of 

interest that met the parish goals and objectives for the CIAP program. All of 

these projects were nominated for funding through CIAP to the State of 

Louisiana. Once the State made a decision on the funding of proposed CIAP 

projects, the Parish Planning & Zoning Department reviewed the remaining 

projects and selected those that best achieved the parish goals within the funding 

available. 

E. How St. John the Baptist Parish plans to ensure compliance with all 

relevant Federal, State, and local laws, including Louisiana’s Coastal 

Zone Management Program (CZMP) 

67

The St. John the Baptist Parish Government will ensure compliance with all 

relevant laws through the submittal of permits according to the regular permit 

process for coastal zone activities in Louisiana. In addition, the parish will 

coordinate CIAP project activities with all parish departments to ensure that they 

are compatible with other parish activities. 


St. John Parish under the CIAP Program 

St. John 

the 

Baptist 

Total 

Hydrologic 

Restoration 



Marsh 

Management 


Shoreline 


Freshwater 

Diversion 

Vegetation 



Nutrient 

Trapping 




Engineering 



Other 

Authorized 

Use 1 

2 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 2 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 3 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 4 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 5 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Total 2 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

G. An Estimate of Funds, that will be Spent Annually by St. John Parish on 


St. John 

Parish 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 



Authorized 

Use 1 

Authorized 

Use 2 

Authorized 

Use 3 

Authorized 

Use 4 

Authorized 

Use 5 

$1,479,903.09 0 0 0 0 

$1,479,903.09 0 0 0 0 

$1,444,355.45 0 0 0 0 

$1,429,447.46 0 0 0 0 

$5,833,609.09 0 0 0 0 

68

St. Martin Parish CIAP Plan Implementation Program 

A. St. Martin Parish goals and objectives under the CIAP 

St. Martin Parish is specifically emphasizing the conservation, restoration, 

enhanced management, and wise use of the key aquatic and wetland habitats 

within the parish. Projects are focused on improving and maintaining water 

quality and aquatic productivity, and enhancing the public’s recreational and 

educational experience through enhanced access and associated environmental 

education opportunities of the natural resources of the parish. 

The Beau Bayou Swamp Hydrologic Restoration Project meets St. Martin 

Parish’s project objectives for mitigating impacts of altered hydrology on fish and 

other natural resources. Beau Bayou, a well known and once heavily used 

natural, forested, deepwater swamp, is located inside of the east and west 

protection levees of the Atchafalaya Basin. It was once regarded as a highly 

productive fisheries area. Hydrologic manipulation within the Atchafalaya Basin, 

however, from such activities as levee construction, pipeline canal spoil banks, 

sediment diversion, and channelization of the Atchafalaya River, has led to 

hypoxic conditions within the swamp. A combination of dredging, gapping, and 

creating inline-sediment traps are all project elements that interagency team 

members feel will work to restore fisheries habitat and the overall ecology of the 

area. 

The Stephensville Sanitation System and Wastewater Assimilation Project also 

meet St. Martin Parish’s project objectives for mitigating human impacts on fish 

and other natural resources. The Stephensville wastewater facility is located in 

Lower St. Martin Parish, and is situated between an expanse of cypress/tupelo 

swamp and Milhomme Bayou, which feeds into Lake Palourde. Upgrading of the 

Stephensville Sanitation System, part of the St. Martin Parish Water and Sewer 

Department, will alleviate the current problems associated with water infiltration 

into the system’s intake pipes and structures. The project will also eliminate any 

seepage into Milhomme Bayou. In addition, as part of the system upgrade, the 

town of Stephensville has employed an innovative tertiary biological wastewater 

treatment system to utilize the assimilative functions of the adjacent wetlands to 

help stimulate growth and productivity of the flora in the adjacent wetlands. That 

system will further improve water quality and ultimately benefit fisheries habitat 

in the Belle River, Milhomme Bayou, Lake Palourde, and adjacent areas; all of 

which are inland waterways that impact coastal waters. 

The Bayou Amy Boat Launch Facility and Educational Pavilion Project speaks to 

St. Martin Parish’s commitment to continuing environmental awareness through 

education and public access to the parish’s different aquatic ecosystems and their 

resources, within the Atchafalaya Basin and surrounding areas. Bayou Amy is 

located along the toe of the West Guide Levee of the Atchafalaya Basin Floodway 

System and provides a hydrologic connection with Bayou Berard and Lake 

Catahoula, which flow into Lakes Dauterive and Fausse Point. The project will 

allow for public access to an existing canoe trail (built by the State’s Atchafalaya 

69

Basin Program) that ends at one of Louisiana’s premiere State parks, i.e., Lake 

Fausse Point State Park. In addition, the Educational Pavilion will support a 

number of educational outreach programs that center on hands-on experiences for 

children. 

B. How St. Martin Parish will manage, implement, and monitor the CIAP 


Martin CIAP program will be the responsibility of the CIAP point of contact for 

St. Martin Parish. Program responsibilities will be coordinated through St. Martin 

Parish Government. The Public Works, Engineering, and Finance departments 

will administer tasks. In addition to support from St. Martin Parish departments, 

the CIAP program coordinator for St. Martin Parish may be supported on project 





sheets for St. Martin Parish listed in Appendix D of this plan. A detailed 




The CIAP point of contact for St. Martin Parish will be responsible for conducting 

periodic site visits to all projects, will monitor progress through annual reports 

and financial reports, and will be responsible for the performance of other 

monitoring analysis depending on the type of project. The CIAP point of contact 

for St. Martin Parish, in collaboration with the LDNR CIAP Program Manager, 

will conduct an annual review of CIAP funding and project implementation 

priorities and will adjust the implementation schedule and revise the CIAP Plan to 

best achieve St. Martin Parish CIAP program goals and objectives. The CIAP 

Program Managers for St. Martin Parish and the State of Louisiana will continue 

to discuss program details and to collaborate on the oversight of the program at 

regular intervals. The Program Manager from LDNR will communicate at regular 

intervals with St. Martin Parish regarding their CIAP projects and will facilitate 


C. The St. Martin Parish public participation process including: the dates 




The public participated in the development of the St. Martin Parish CIAP plan 

during an open public meeting of the Parish Council (held in St. Martinville 

on October 17, 2006), when the proposed plan was presented. Meetings were 

advertised in the Teche News, Daily Iberian, Daily Advertiser, and Morning 

Advocate. Meeting notices were posted on the bulletin board of the lobby of St. 

Martin Parish Annex Building. CZM Committee meetings are also advertised in 

the Breaux Act Newsflash, an email list-serve that has over 1,800 recipients. 

70

D. The St. Martin Parish decision-making process for selecting projects 


and approved at the St. Martin Parish Council Meeting held October 17, 2006. 

All projects were nominated for funding through CIAP to the State of Louisiana. 

Once the State made a decision on the funding of proposed CIAP projects, the 

Parish Council reviewed the projects and selected those that best achieved the 

parish goals with the available funding. 

E. How St. Martin Parish plans to ensure compliance with all relevant 



St. Martin Parish Government will ensure compliance with all relevant laws by 

submitting permit applications where necessary and through the regular permit 

process for coastal zone activities in Louisiana where applicable. In addition, the 

parish will coordinate CIAP project activities with all parish departments and the 

LDNR Atchafalaya Basin Program to ensure that they are compatible with other 

State and parish activities. 


St. Martin Parish under the CIAP Program 

St. Martin 

Total 

Hydrologic 

Restoration 



Marsh 

Management 


Shoreline 


Freshwater 

Diversion 

Vegetation 



Nutrient 

Trapping 




Engineering 



Other 

Authorized 

Use 1 

2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 

Authorized 

Use 2 

1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 3 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 4 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 5 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Total 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 

71

G. An Estimate of Funds, that will be Spent Annually by St. Martin Parish 


St. Martin 

Parish 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 



Authorized 

Use 1 

Authorized 

Use 2 

Authorized 

Use 3 

Authorized 

Use 4 

Authorized 

Use 5 

$890,000.00 $717,963.60 0 0 0 

$125,925.60 $1,482,038.00 0 0 0 

$1,545,724.99 0 0 0 0 

$1,529,770.44 0 0 0 0 

$4,091,421.03 $2,200,001.60 0 0 0 

St. Mary Parish CIAP Plan Implementation Program 

A. St. Mary Parish goals and objectives under the CIAP 

St. Mary Parish identified priority infrastructure requirements and essential 

coastal restoration elements that require much-needed attention. St. Mary Parish 

addresses the establishment and repair of two roads that have been used 

extensively by the oil and gas industry. Establishing and improving the 

infrastructure that is available now will only increase the quality of life for the 

residences and improve conditions for the industry. 

The parish’s coastal restoration approach involved taking into consideration two 

of the most needed areas. First is the restoration and maintenance of the 

shorelines and/or appurtenances associated with these shorelines. Two coastal 

restoration projects address shoreline restoration. These projects will make sure 

that the features’ sustainability will protect the natural resources and land based 

human infrastructures. The second area of need is to manipulate and distribute 

the fresh water, sediments, and nutrients from the Atchafalaya River. One of the 

proposed CIAP projects for St. Mary Parish centers on this theme. 

72

B. How St. Mary Parish will manage, implement, and monitor the CIAP 


Mary CIAP program will be the responsibility of the Parish Administrator, who is 

the CIAP point of contact for St. Mary Parish. Responsibilities for the program 

will be coordinated through different departments of the St. Mary Parish 

government. In addition to support from St. Mary Parish departments, the CIAP 

program coordinator for St. Mary Parish will be supported on project specific 

duties by consultants who will be responsible for the management or supervision 

of individual projects. 

Since one of the St. Mary Parish CIAP projects is being implemented in 

conjunction with the state, St. Mary Parish and the State of Louisiana will enter 







sheets for St. Mary Parish listed in Appendix D of this plan. A detailed 

implementation schedule for the St. Mary Parish CIAP projects will be submitted 

in conjunction with the grants for each project and will be updated once the grants 

have been executed and project work initiated. 

The CIAP point of contact for St. Mary Parish, or his agent, will be responsible 



performance of other monitoring analysis. The CIAP point of contact for St. 

Mary Parish in collaboration with the LDNR CIAP Program Manager, will 



achieve St. Mary Parish CIAP program goals and objectives. The CIAP Program 

Managers for St. Mary Parish and the State of Louisiana will continue to discuss 



intervals with St. Mary Parish regarding their CIAP projects and will facilitate 


73

C. The St. Mary Parish public participation process including: the dates and 




The public has participated in the development of the St. Mary Parish CIAP plan 

during an open public meeting held April 12, 2006. At this meeting, a resolution 

establishing the program for the parish was approved. The proposed parish 

projects were submitted on May 24, 2006. These meetings were advertised in the 

Franklin Banner Tribune and the Morgan City Daily Review, and meeting notices 

were posted at the governmental offices where the meetings were held. CZM 

Committee meetings are also advertised in the “Breaux Act Newsflash,” an email 

list-serve that has over 1,800 recipients. Except for the advisory committee, no 

comments have been received from the public regarding the parish CIAP Draft 


D. The St. Mary Parish decision-making process for selecting projects. 


and discussed at the St. Mary Parish Council. Once the State made a decision on 

the funding of proposed CIAP projects, the Parish Council reviewed the 

remaining projects and selected those that best achieved the CIAP parish goals 

within the funding available. 

E. How St. Mary Parish plans to ensure compliance with all relevant 



The St. Mary Parish Government will ensure compliance with all relevant laws 





74


St. Mary Parish under the CIAP Program 

St. Mary 

Total 

Hydrologic 

Restoration 



Marsh 

Management 


Shoreline 


Freshwater 

Diversion 

Vegetation 



Nutrient 

Trapping 




Engineering 



Other 

Authorized 

Use 1 

3 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 

Authorized 

Use 2 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 3 

1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 

Authorized 

Use 4 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 5 

2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 

Total 6 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 1 1 

G. An Estimate of Funds, that will be Spent Annually by St. Mary Parish on 


St. Mary 

Parish 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 



Authorized 

Use 1 

Authorized 

Use 2 

Authorized 

Use 3 

Authorized 

Use 4 

Authorized 

Use 5 

$1,447,830.10 0 $10,000.00 0 $422,468.73 

$1,447,830.10 0 $10,000.00 0 $422,468.73 

$1,371,211.41 0 $5,000.00 0 $404,582.60 

$1,357,057.97 0 0 0 $405,354.97 

$5,623,929.58 0 $25,000.00 0 $1,654,875.03 

75

St. Tammany Parish CIAP Implementation Plan 

A. St. Tammany Parish goals and objectives under the CIAP 

St. Tammany Parish Government identified potential targets for protection, 

restoration, and enhancement by utilizing the published CIAP goals and 

objectives, as well as the authorized uses of CIAP funds. Further, the Parish 

Government identified projects that were consistent with Coast 2050 strategies for 

the conservation of the Lake Pontchartrain Basin marshes. 

B. How St. Tammany Parish will manage, implement, and monitor the 

CIAP 

The responsibilities for program management, implementation, and monitoring 

will be coordinated through different departments of the St. Tammany Parish 

Government, including Environmental Services, Engineering, Finance, and 

Grants Management. Environmental Services and Engineering will largely 

coordinate project management and implementation, whereas Finance and Grants 

Management will address monitoring (including the development of progress and 

financial reports, as well as the resolution of any financial issues). Though the 

parish government will coordinate the CIAP through the aforementioned 

departments, the contact person for St. Tammany will remain Greg Gordon, 

Director, Department of Environmental Services, and the departments will route 

questions and issues requiring guidance from the State through him. 



sheets for St. Tammany Parish listed in Appendix D of this plan. A detailed 




The CIAP point of contact for St. Tammany Parish will be responsible for 




contact for St. Tammany Parish, in collaboration with the LDNR CIAP Program 



the CIAP Plan to best achieve the St. Tammany Parish CIAP program goals and 

objectives. The CIAP Program Managers for St. Tammany Parish and the State of 



will communicate at regular intervals with St. Tammany Parish regarding their 

CIAP projects and will facilitate and oversee implementation of the 

comprehensive State and parish program. 

76

C. The St. Tammany Parish public participation process including: the 

dates and periodicals in which notices are placed; the locations, dates and 



The public participated in the development of the St. Tammany CIAP plan during 

open public meetings of the Parish Council Committees (held in Mandeville on 

March 29 and April 26, 2006) when the proposed plan and its projects were 

discussed. There was little public comment; however, representatives from the 

incorporated municipalities located in St. Tammany did come forward and present 

their project ideas for inclusion in the CIAP Plan. The meeting times and 

locations were posted at the St. Tammany Parish Government Complex. 

D. The St. Tammany Parish decision-making process for selecting projects 

Projects that met the goals and objectives of the CIAP were nominated by St. 

Tammany Parish government. All of the projects listed in Tier 1 below were 

nominated for funding through CIAP to the State of Louisiana. Once the State 

made a decision on the funding of proposed CIAP projects, representatives of the 

St. Tammany Parish Government reviewed the remaining projects and selected 

those that best achieved the CIAP parish goals within the funding available. 

These projects were reviewed and presented to the St. Tammany Parish Council 

for approval. 

E. How St. Tammany Parish plans to ensure compliance with all relevant 



The St. Tammany Parish Government will ensure compliance with all relevant 

laws through the submittal of permits according to the regular permit process for 




77


St. Tammany Parish under the CIAP Program 

St. 

Tammany 

Total 

Hydrologic 

Restoration 



Marsh 

Management 


Shoreline 


Freshwater 

Diversion 

Vegetation 



Nutrient 

Trapping 




Engineering 



Other 

Authorized 

Use 1 

4 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 2 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 3 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 4 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 5 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Total 4 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 

G. An Estimate of Funds, that will be Spent Annually by St. Tammany 

Parish on each Authorized Use 

St. Tammany 

Parish 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 



Authorized 

Use 1 

Authorized 

Use 2 

Authorized 

Use 3 

Authorized 

Use 4 

Authorized 

Use 5 

$2,217,097.81 0 0 0 0 

$2,217,097.81 0 0 0 0 

$2,123,153.11 0 0 0 0 

$2,101,238.36 0 0 0 0 

$8,658,587.09 0 0 0 0 

78

Tangipahoa Parish CIAP Implementation Program 

A. Tangipahoa Parish goals and objectives under the CIAP 

Tangipahoa Parish has identified priority physical features to target for protection 

and restoration through the CIAP. These areas include degraded shorelines and 

wetlands in close proximity to existing infrastructure. The parish is emphasizing 

the construction of shoreline protection and restoration structures in the form of 

rip rap rock dikes to maintain the shoreline integrity of Lake Pontchartrain. 

B. How Tangipahoa Parish will manage, implement, and monitor the CIAP 


departments of Tangipahoa Parish government, including Engineering, Public 

Works, and Finance. Monitoring and reporting for the CIAP will be coordinated 

through the Parish Engineer, who is listed as the contact person for Tangipahoa 

Parish. 

A detailed implementation schedule for the Tangipahoa CIAP project will be 

submitted in conjunction with the grant for the project and will be updated once 


The CIAP point of contact for Tangipahoa Parish will be responsible for 

conducting periodic site visits to the projects, and will monitor progress through 

annual reports, financial reports and will be responsible for the performance of 

other monitoring analysis. The CIAP point of contact for Tangipahoa Parish in 



implementation schedule and revise the CIAP Plan to best achieve Tangipahoa 

Parish CIAP program goals and objectives. The CIAP Program Managers for 

Tangipahoa Parish and the State of Louisiana will continue to discuss program 


Program Manager from LDNR will communicate at regular intervals with 

Tangipahoa Parish regarding their CIAP project and will facilitate and oversee 


C. The Tangipahoa Parish public participation process including: the dates 

and periodicals in which notices are placed; the locations, dates and times 

of meetings and the number of attendees; and a summary of public 


A public meeting was called and conducted on February 20, 2006, at the 

Tangipahoa Parish Council Chambers in Amite, Louisiana, 215 Mulberry Street; 

approximately 100 people attended this meeting. A steering committee was 

appointed, consisting of five community leaders, the Lake Pontchartrain Basin 

Foundation Executive Director (Carlton Dufrechou) and State Wildlife Biologist 

for the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (Marty Floyd). There 

were no public comments since this meeting. CZM meetings are also advertised 

in the “Breaux Act Newsflash,” an e-mail list which has over 1,800 recipients. 

79

D. The Tangipahoa Parish decision-making process for selecting projects 

The selected project, which met the parish goals and objectives for the CIAP, was 

nominated at the Coastal Zone Advisory Committee. This project was nominated 

for funding through CIAP to the State of Louisiana. Once the State made a 

decision on the funding of the proposed CIAP project, the Tangipahoa Parish 

Coastal Zone Advisory Committee reviewed the project in light of funding 

available. This project was reviewed and eventually recommended to the 

Tangipahoa Parish Council for approval. 

E. How Tangipahoa Parish plans to ensure compliance with all relevant 



The Tangipahoa Parish Government will ensure compliance with all relevant laws 


coastal zone activities in Louisiana. In addition, Tangipahoa Parish will 

coordinate CIAP project activities with all parish departments to ensure that they 

are compatible with other parish activities. 


Tangipahoa Parish under the CIAP Program 

Tangipahoa 

Total 

Hydrologic 

Restoration 



Marsh 

Management 


Shoreline 


Freshwater 

Diversion 

Vegetation 



Nutrient 

Trapping 




Engineering 



Other 

Authorized 

Use 1 

1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 2 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 3 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 4 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 5 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Total 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

80

G. An Estimate of Funds, that will be Spent Annually by Tangipahoa Parish 


Tangipahoa 

Parish 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 



Authorized 

Use 1 

Authorized 

Use 2 

Authorized 

Use 3 

Authorized 

Use 4 

Authorized 

Use 5 

$1,675,530.05 0 0 0 0 

$1,675,530.05 0 0 0 0 

$1,623,908.84 0 0 0 0 

$1,607,147.30 0 0 0 0 

$6,582,116.24 0 0 0 0 

Terrebonne Parish CIAP Plan Implementation Program 

A. Terrebonne Parish goals and objectives under the CIAP 

Terrebonne Parish identified priority physical features to target for protection and 

restoration through the CIAP. These areas include: construction of the multipurpose 

Houma Navigation Canal (HNC) Lock; barrier island renourishment; 

degraded natural ridges and marshes in close proximity to existing infrastructure; 

shoreline stabilization and hydrologic restoration; freshwater enhancements; and 

dedicated delivery of sediment via pipeline. 

B. How Terrebonne Parish will manage, implement, and monitor the CIAP 


departments of Terrebonne Parish government, including Coastal Zone 

Management, Public Works, Engineering, and Finance, and with the Terrebonne 

Levee and Conservation District. Monitoring and reporting for the CIAP will be 

coordinated through the Public Works Director, who is listed as the CIAP point of 

contact for Terrebonne Parish. In addition to support from Terrebonne Parish 

departments, the CIAP program coordinator for Terrebonne Parish may be 



Since one of the Terrebonne Parish CIAP projects is being implemented in 

conjunction with the state, Terrebonne Parish and the State of Louisiana will enter 





81



sheets for Terrebonne Parish listed in Appendix D of this plan. A detailed 

implementation schedule for the Terrebonne Parish CIAP projects will be 



The CIAP point of contact for Terrebonne Parish, or his agent, will be responsible 




Terrebonne Parish in collaboration with the LDNR CIAP Program Manager, will 



achieve Terrebonne Parish CIAP program goals and objectives. The CIAP 

Program Managers for Terrebonne Parish and the State of Louisiana will continue 

to discuss program details and to collaborate on the oversight of the program at 

regular intervals. The Program Manager from LDNR will communicate at regular 

intervals with Terrebonne Parish regarding their CIAP projects and will facilitate 


C. The Terrebonne Parish public participation process including: the dates 




The public participated in the development of the Terrebonne Parish CIAP plan 

during open public meetings of the Coastal Zone Management and Restoration 

Advisory Committee (CZM & RAC), on September 19, 2005, and the Terrebonne 

Parish Council on October 11, 2005. The plan was discussed again at the CZM & 

RAC meeting on April 3, 2006, and at the Parish Council meeting on April 10, 

2006. All meetings were held at the Terrebonne Parish Government Tower, 8026 

Main Street, Houma, Louisiana. These meetings were published in the Houma 

Courier, and meeting notices were posted throughout the Government Tower, 

where the meetings were held. CZM Committee meetings are also advertised in 

the “Breaux Act Newsflash,” an email list-serve that has over 1,800 recipients. In 

addition, the main CIAP priority for Terrebonne Parish was discussed openly by 

other public entities as well as area business groups. The following groups have 

provided resolutions of support, which were submitted with the CIAP application: 

Bayou Lafourche Fresh Water District, 11/21/2005 

North Lafourche Conservation, Levee & Drainage District, 10/26/2005 

Terrebonne Port Commission, 10/18/2005 

Terrebonne Consolidated Waterworks District No. 1, 10/17/2005 

The Houma Terrebonne Chamber of Commerce, 10/11/2005 

Terrebonne Levee and Conservation District, 10/3/2005 

Except for the advisory committee, no other comments were received directly 

from the public regarding the parish CIAP Draft Plan. 

82

D 

The Terrebonne Parish decision-making process for selecting projects 

Projects that met the parish goals and objectives for the CIAP were nominated at 





the CIAP Parish goals within the funding available. These projects were 

reviewed and eventually recommended to the Terrebonne Parish Council for 

approval. 

E. How Terrebonne Parish plans to ensure compliance with all relevant 



The Terrebonne Parish Government will ensure compliance with all relevant laws 


coastal zone activities in Louisiana. In addition, the Parish will coordinate CIAP 




Terrebonne Parish under the CIAP Program 

Terrebonne 

Total 

Hydrologic 

Restoration 



Marsh 

Management 


Shoreline 


Freshwater 

Diversion 

Vegetation 



Nutrient 

Trapping 




Engineering 



Other 

Authorized 

Use 1 

2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 2 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 3 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 4 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 5 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Total 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 

83

G. An Estimate of Funds, that will be Spent Annually by Terrebonne Parish 


Terrebonne 

Parish 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 


by Authorized 

Use 



Authorized 

Use 1 

Authorized 

Use 2 

Authorized 

Use 3 

Authorized 

Use 4 

Authorized 

Use 5 

$3,364,675.17 0 0 0 $0 

$3,364,675.17 0 0 0 $0 

$3,177,259.50 0 0 0 $0 

$3,144,464.16 0 0 0 $0 

$13,051,074.00 0 0 0 $0 

Vermilion Parish CIAP Plan Implementation Program 

A. Vermilion Parish goals and objectives under the CIAP 

Vermilion Parish identified several high-priority coastal restoration projects 

involving construction and repair of depleted onshore infrastructure. These 

projects included replenishing spoil banks along channels, preventing further 

erosion of shorelines along marshes, marsh creation, reef construction, and 

repairing of roads and bridges that are impacted by traffic serving the oil and gas 

industry. Vermilion Parish is utilizing the CIAP to benefit the areas of the parish 

that have been affected by the oil and gas industry. 

B. How Vermilion Parish will manage, implement, and monitor the CIAP 

Responsibilities for the CIAP will be coordinated through the Vermilion Parish 

Police Jury. Monitoring and reporting for the CIAP Program will be coordinated 

through the Secretary/Treasurer of the Vermilion Parish Police Jury, who is the 

CIAP point of contact for Vermilion Parish. In addition to support from 

Vermilion Parish departments, the CIAP program coordinator for Vermilion 

Parish will be supported on project specific duties by consultants who will be 

responsible for the management or supervision of individual projects. 

USDA/NRCS will provide assistance to the parish on the coastal restoration 

projects, and the inshore infrastructure efforts will be coordinated by the 

Administrative Office of the Vermilion Parish Police Jury. 

84

Since one of the Vermilion Parish CIAP projects is being implemented in 

conjunction with the state, Vermilion Parish and the State of Louisiana will enter 







sheets for Vermilion Parish listed in Appendix D of this plan. A detailed 

implementation schedule for the Vermilion Parish CIAP projects will be 



The CIAP point of contact for Vermilion Parish, or his agent, will be responsible 




Vermilion in collaboration with the LDNR CIAP Program Manager, will conduct 

an annual review of CIAP funding and project implementation priorities and will 

adjust the implementation schedule and revise the CIAP Plan to best achieve 

Vermilion Parish CIAP program goals and objectives. The CIAP Program 

Managers for Vermilion Parish and the State of Louisiana will continue to discuss 



intervals with Vermilion Parish regarding their CIAP projects and will facilitate 


C. The Vermilion Parish public participation process including: the dates 




The Vermilion Parish Police Jury authorized the Vermilion Parish Coastal 

Restoration Advisory Committee and Louisiana Wetlands Association to work 

jointly on the project selection for the CIAP program at a special meeting held on 

December 29, 2005. The Vermilion Parish Coastal Restoration Advisory 

Committee and Louisiana Wetlands Association held a public meeting on May 

17, 2006, at the Vermilion Parish Courthouse and selected 10 projects for the 

CIAP program to be funded by the State and parish. The Vermilion Parish CIAP 

plan was accepted by the Vermilion Parish Police Jury during an open public 

meeting on June 5, 2006, when the proposed plan was presented. At that meeting, 

the Vermilion Parish Police Jury amended their initial CIAP plan to add inshore 

infrastructure at the July 5, 2006, meeting. A meeting was held on August 1, 

2006, with LDNR/CRD and parish representatives to discuss the inshore 

infrastructure projects that the parish submitted. The public meetings were 

advertised in the Abbeville Meridional, and meeting notices were posted at the 

Vermilion Parish Courthouse, where the meetings were held. 

85

D. The Vermilion Parish decision-making process for selecting projects 

The Vermilion Parish Police Jury nominated projects that met the parish goals and 

objectives for the CIAP. The Vermilion Parish Police Jury projects that were 

nominated are to be funded by parish CIAP funds, State CIAP funds, and cost 

sharing of parish and State CIAP funds. 

E. How Vermilion Parish plans to ensure compliance with all relevant 

Federal, State, and local laws, including each State’s Coastal Zone 


The Vermilion Parish Police Jury will ensure compliance with all relevant laws 


coastal zone activities in Louisiana. 


Vermilion Parish under the CIAP Program 

Vermilion 

Total 

Hydrologic 

Restoration 



Marsh 

Management 


Shoreline 


Freshwater 

Diversion 

Vegetation 



Nutrient 

Trapping 




Engineering 



Other 

Authorized 

Use 1 

6 0 0 0 0 5 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 2 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 3 

1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 

Authorized 

Use 4 

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 

Authorized 

Use 5 

4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 0 0 

Total 11 0 0 0 0 5 0 0 0 0 0 1 4 1 0 

86

G. An Estimate of Funds, that will be Spent Annually by Vermilion Parish 

on Each Authorized Use 

Vermilion 

Parish 

FY 2007 Vermilion 

Parish Funding by 












Authorized Use for 

Vermilion Parish 

Authorized 

Use 1 

Authorized 

Use 2 

Authorized 

Use 3 

Authorized 

Use 4 

Authorized 

Use 5 

$1,653,383.21 0 $25,000.00 0 $468,867.71 

$1,653,383.21 0 $25,000.00 0 $468,867.71 

$1,535,117.20 0 $25,000.00 0 $433,541.50 

$1,519,271.63 0 $25,000.00 0 $428,808.41 

$6,361,155.25 0 $100,000.00 0 $1,800,085.33 

87

VII. PROPOSED PROJECT LISTS 

The following is a list of Tier One and Tier Two projects, to be implemented with 

CIAP funds by the State of Louisiana and each of the 19 coastal parishes. Tier 

One projects as defined by CIAP State Plan and Plan Amendment Guidelines are 

projects which are submitted by states and their coastal political subdivisions for 

grant funding that are expected to use 100% of their CIAP funding allocation. 

Tier Two projects are for backup purposes such that if a Tier One project is 

cancelled, scaled back, or deferred, the State of Louisiana or one of its parishes 

could submit a Tier Two project for grant funding without having to amend the 

State CIAP plan. 

State Tier One Projects 

o $ 18,000,000.00 Barataria Land Bridge Dedicated Dredging 

o $ 1,500,000.00 Bayou Lamoque Floodgate Removal 

o $ 6,740,195.00 Marsh Creation Via Beneficial Use 

o $ 10,000,000.00 Central Wetlands Assimilation Project (Phase I) 

o $ 20,167,035.62 Coastal Forest Conservation Initiative 

o $ 9,913,344.81 Grand Lake Shoreline Protection 

o $ 7,230,258.05 Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW) Bank 

Restoration of Critical Areas of Terrebonne Parish 

o $ 11,350,000.00 Mississippi River Delta Management Strategic 

Planning 

o $ 3,000,000.00 Performance Evaluation and Science Monitoring 

o $ 6,053,672.65 Rockefeller Refuge Shoreline Protection 

Demonstration Project 

o $ 6,000,000.00 State of Louisiana – Administration of CIAP 

o $ 8,000,000.00 Shoreline Protection Emergency Restoration 

o $ 20,000,000.00 Mississippi River Water Introduction into Bayou 

Lafourche 

o $ 26,500,000.00 Living Shoreline Protection Demonstration Project 

o $ 750,000.00 Atchafalaya Long Distance Sediment Pipeline 

State/Parish Cost Shared Tier One Projects 

o $ 1,063,244.00 Acadiana Regional Airport Street Improvements – 

Admiral Doyle Drive 

o $ 6,482,475.94 Blind River Freshwater Diversion 

o $ 27,000,000.00 East Grand Terre Island Restoration 

o $ 13,568,804.00 Freshwater Bayou Bank Stabilization 

o $ 8,756,605.62 Fringe Marsh Repair 

o $ 35,115,289.62 

LA 1 Improvements-Fourchon to Leeville Bridge 

(Phase IA) 

o $ 3,459,726.44 Lake Salvador Shoreline Protection (Phase III) 

o $ 33,609,973.53 Mississippi River Long Distance Sediment Pipeline 

o $ 837,114.00 Morgan City Industrial Road 

o $ 34,730,941.70 Orleans Land Bridge Shoreline Protection 

88

o $ 1,020,000.00 Port of Iberia Bridge Replacement – David Duboin 

Road over Commercial Canal 

o $ 780,745.00 Port of Iberia Bridge Replacement – Port Road over 

Commercial Canal 

o $ 2,039,592.21 Trosclair Road Repairs 

o $ 3,524,498.89 Violet Diversion 

o $ 40,000,000.00 

West Caminada Headland Beach/Dune Restoration 

and Marsh Creation 

o $ 9,351,074.00 Falgout Canal Freshwater Enhancement 

Parish Tier One Projects 

Assumption Parish 

o $ 1,025,000.00 Attakapas Canal Hydrologic Restoration 

o $ 4,749,145.53 Lake Verret Swamp and Lake Rim Restoration 

Calcasieu Parish 

o $ 1,500,000.00 Rabbit Island 

o $ 2,000,000.00 Clear Marais Bank Protection 

o $ 2,000,000.48 Horseshoe Lake Marsh Restoration 

o $ 1,000,000.00 Shoreline Protection at Intracoastal Park 

o $ 1,339,805.00 Marsh Creation Via Beneficial Use-Marcantel 

Supplemental Beneficial Use Disposal Area 

(MSBUDA) Project 

o $ 628,532.14 South GIWW Restoration 

Cameron Parish 

o $ 580,000.00 Bank Stabilization – Dugas Cut to Kelso Bayou 

o $ 675,640.70 East Little Pecan Bayou Restoration 

o $ 279,381.18 Little Chenier Road 

o $ 3,217,773.53 North Mermentau Restoration 

o $ 500,000.00 Rabbit Island 

o $ 1,868,761.69 South Little Pecan Bayou Restoration 

o $ 1,022,710.48 West Big Burn Bridge Restoration 

o $ 562,850.00 Dreary Island Restoration 

o $ 672,700.00 South Johnson’s Bayou Restoration 

Iberia Parish 

o $ 1,160,630.00 Lake Sand Terracing 

o $ 712,054.00 Lake Tom Terracing 

o $ 4,992,195.96 Vermilion Bay Shoreline Restoration 

o $ 100,000.00 Weeks Bay/Commercial Canal Marsh Creation and 

Shoreline Protection 

o $ 570,000.00 Port of Iberia Bridge Replacement – Port Road over 

Rodere Lateral 

89

Jefferson Parish 

o $ 3,297,361.35 Bayside Segmented Breakwaters at Grand Isle 

o $ 2,546,856.59 Fifi Island Restoration Extension 

o $ 165,934.67 Goose Bayou Ridge Creation and Shoreline 


o $ 8,030,370.45 Lower Lafitte Shoreline Stabilization at Bayou 

Rigolettes 

Lafourche Parish 

o $ 700,000.00 Maritime Forest Ridge Restoration 

o $ 2,432,340.55 Northwest Little Lake Marsh Creation and 

Enhancement 

o $ 2,949,281.25 Small Dredge Program 

Livingston Parish 

o $ 3,130,854.40 Acquisition of Bald Cypress/Tupelo Coastal Forest 

in Ponchartrain Basin 

o $ 3,186,743.11 Hydrologic Restoration in Swamps West of Lake 

Maurepas 

o $ 175,000.00 Livingston Parish Debris Recovery Vessel 

Orleans Parish 

o No Parish-Funded Tier One Projects 

Plaquemines Parish 

o $ 800,000.00 Jump Basin Dredging and Marsh Creation 

o $ 3,364,309.62 Tidewater Road Flood Protection 

o $ 300,000.00 Update of the Plaquemines Parish Coastal 

Management Plan 

St. Bernard Parish 

o $ 6,561,211.10 Lake Lery Rim Reestablishment and Marsh 

Creation 

o $ 200,000.00 Update of the St. Bernard Parish Coastal 

Management Plan 

St. Charles Parish 

o $ 2,409,744.81 East LaBranche Shoreline Protection 

o $ 2,121,172.18 West LaBranche Shoreline Protection 

St. James Parish 

o $ 460,174.00 Baytree Freshwater Diversion Property Purchase 

o $ 495,700.00 Blind River Freshwater Diversion Property 

Purchase 

o $ 1,003,077.80 East Bank Wastewater Assimilation Plant 

o $ 1,488,760.84 West Bank Wastewater Assimilation Plant 

o $ 265,100.00 Waterline Booster Pump Station, East Bank 

o $ 256,700.00 Waterline Booster Pump Station, West Bank 

o $ 718,620.00 West Bank Wetland Conservation and Protection 

o $ 50,000.00 Wetland Wastewater Assimilation Process Planning 

90

St. John the Baptist Parish 

o $ 2,013,057.08 Reserve Relief Canal Shoreline Protection 

o $ 3,820,552.01 West Lac Des Allemands Shoreline Protection 

St. Martin Parish 

o $ 390,000.00 Bayou Amy Trail and Educational Pavilion 

o $ 3,701,421.03 Beau Bayou Swamp Hydrologic Restoration 

o $ 2,200,001.60 Stephensville Sanitation System and Wastewater 

Assimilation 

St. Mary Parish 

o $ 1,010,000.00 Burns Point Recreation Park Improvements 

o $ 2,753,764.58 Deer Island Pass Realignment 

o $ 25,000.00 Planning Assistance and Administration 

o $ 1,860,165.00 Point Chevreuil Shoreline Protection 

o $ 1,152,761.03 Thorguson Road Improvements 

St. Tammany Parish 

o $ 1,718,150.00 French Property Preservation Project 

o $ 1,345,000.00 Green Property Preservation Project 

o $ 3,734,878.92 Mandeville Aquatic Ecosystem Restoration Project 

o $ 1,860,558.17 Northshore Beach Marsh Creation/Restoration 

Tangipahoa Parish 

o $ 6,582,116.24 

Terrebonne Parish 

o No Parish-Funded Tier One Projects 

Lake Pontchartrain Shoreline Protection 


o $ 474,999.42 Henry Hub Access Improvements – Charlie Field 

Road Bridge Replacement 

o $ 529,269.50 Henry Hub Access Improvements – Charlie Field 

Road Improvements 

o $ 275,000.00 Henry Hub Access Improvements – LA 331 

Realignment 

o $ 520,816.41 Intracoastal City Street Improvements 

o $ 1,650,000.00 North Prong Schooner Bayou 

o $ 1,438,984.42 Oyster Reef Parallel to the Coastline at Chenier Au 

Tigre 

o $ 1,385,584.83 Shoreline Protection and Marsh Creation at Tiger 

Point 

o $ 100,000.00 Vermilion Parish CIAP Planning Assistance and 

o $ 

Administration 

100,000.00 Weeks Bay/Commercial Canal Marsh Creation and 

Shoreline Protection 

o $ 217,782.00 Shoreline Protection on Southwest Point at 

Southwest Pass 

91

. 

State Tier Two Projects 

o $ 30,000,000.00 Central Wetlands Assimilation Project (Phase II) 

o $ 20,000,000.00 Coastal Wetlands Restoration Through the 

Assimilation of Treated Sanitary Effluent 

o $ 10,000,000.00 Lake Borgne Shoreline Protection 

o $ 14,000,000.00 Lake Pontchartrain Shoreline Protection 

o $ 3,400,000.00 Marsh Island Terracing 

o $ 10,000,000.00 Point Au Fer/Lake Chapeau Marsh Creation 

o $ 53,044,992.00 Rockefeller Refuge Gulf Shoreline Restoration 

o $ 1,600,000.00 Sand Search – Evaluation of Sand Resources off 

Terrebonne Bay/Basin 

o $ 875,000.00 Sand Search – Evaluation of Sand Resources in 

Trinity and Tiger Shoals 

o $ 45,000,000.00 Ship Shoal: Whiskey Island West Flank 

State/Parish Cost Shared Tier Two Projects 

o No Tier Two Cost Shared Projects 

Parish Tier Two Projects 


o $ 388,000.00 Bayou Crab and Cancienne Canal Hydrologic 

Restoration 

o $ 348,000.00 Brule Canal Hydrologic Restoration 

o $ 348,000.00 Elm Hall Canal Hydrologic Restoration 

o $ 380,000.00 Himalaya Canal Hydrologic Restoration 

o $ 1,547,001.00 Shell Beach Restoration 

o $ 353,000.00 Whitmel Canal, Bayou St. Vincent, and Company 

Canal Hydrologic Restoration 


o $ 20,000.00 Calcasieu Parish Administrative Assistance 


o $ 2,600,000.00 Little Florida to Martin Beach Coastal Erosion 

o $ 770,000.00 Reclamation of Sand Mines on Cameron Parish 

Cheniers 

o $ 270,000.00 South Oak Grove Restoration 

o $ 1,387,688.00 Mermentau Ship Channel Sediment By-Pass 

Iberia Parish 

o $ 30,000.00 Acadiana Regional Airport Street Improvements – 

Ember Road 

o $ 925,000.00 Artificial Reef in Bird Island Bayou 

o $ 440,277.00 Oyster Lake Terracing 

o $ 100,000.00 Shark Island Shoreline Restoration Demo 

o $ 250,617.00 Iberia Parish Administration of CIAP Plan 

o $ 40,000.00 Port of Iberia Street Improvements - Unifab Road 

o $ 235,073.73 Vegetative Plantings 

92


o $ 4,000,000.00 Bayou Dupont Natural Ridge Restoration 

o $ 10,000,000.00 Lake Salvador Shoreline Protection and Marsh 

Creation at Jean Lafitte National Park 

o $ 17,500,000.00 South Shore of the Pen Shoreline Protection and 

Marsh Restoration 

o $ 700,000.00 Marsh Restoration via Management of Rosethorne 

Municipal Effluent 

o $ 11,000,000.00 Tidal Restrictions at Barataria Bay Waterway, 

Harvey Cut, and Little Lake 


o $ 20,000,000.00 

o $ 78,858,895.00 

o $ 15,000,000.00 


o No Tier Two Projects 

East Timbalier Island Restoration 

East Caminada Headland Beach/Dune Restoration 

and Marsh Creation 

Hydrologic Restoration of Bayou L’Eau Bleu 


o $ 900,000.00 Lake Pontchartrain Shoreline Protection – Hospital 

Wall 

o $ 13,252,000.00 Lake Pontchartrain Shoreline Protection and Marsh 

Creation – Irish Bayou to Chef Menteur Pass 

o $ 7,400,000.00 The Rigolets Shoreline Protection and Marsh 

Creation - Grand Coin Pocket 


o $ 28,000,000.00 Bayou Grand Liard Ridge Restoration 

o $ 5,000,000.00 Beneficial Use of Dredged Material 

o $ 36,000,000.00 Grand Bayou Ridge Restoration 




o $ 3,000,000.00 

St. Charles Parish Wetlands Education Center 


o $ 185,000.00 Culvert Installation Through Existing Berms and 

Board Roads 

o $ 5,304,000.00 Mini-Siphon into St. James Canal at Baytree Site 

o $ 558,693.00 West Bank Wetlands Conservation and Protection 

(Phase III) 


(Phase IV) 


(Phase II) 

93


o $ 3,835,460.00 Manchac Shoreline Protection 


o $ 3,600,000.00 Bayou Sorrel Hydrologic Restoration 

o $ 2,700,000.00 Bayou Pigeon Hydrologic Restoration 

o $ 6,900,000.00 Lake Henderson Acquisition 

o $ 1,000,000.00 Lake Henderson Exotic-Invasive Species Control 




o $ 2,300,000.00 Fritchie Marsh Creation 

o $ 14,350,000.00 Fritchie Marsh Stormwater Diversion Pilot Project 

o $ 5,200,000.00 Guste Island Aquatic Ecosystem Restoration 

o $ 3,000,000.00 West St. Tammany Parish Coastal Wetland Habitat 

Acquisition 




o $ 20,000,000.00 

o $ 31,000,000.00 

o $ 3,830,480.00 

o $ 5,932,575.00 

o $ 5,800,000.00 

o $ 21,800,000.00 

o $ 2,625,172.00 

Beach and Back Barrier Marsh Restoration, East 

and Trinity Islands 

Mississippi River Long Distance Sediment Pipeline 

North Lost Lake Marsh Creation/Enhancement 

Shoreline Protection on the Houma Navigation 

Canal 

South Lake DeCade Shoreline Protection 

Whiskey Island Back Barrier Marsh Creation 

Houma Navigation Canal (HNC) Lock 


o $ 132,218.00 Bird Island 

o $ 1,000,000.00 LA 167 Extension Environmental Assessment and 

Line and Engineering Grade Report 

o $ 3,250,000.00 LA 3147 (Freshwater City Road) Improvements 

o $ 100,000.00 Northeast White Lake Shoreline Protection and 


o $ 400,000.00 State Wildlife Refuge Weir Replacement 

o $ 200,000.00 Chenier au Tigre Cement Bag Extension 

o $ 301,430.40 Four Mile Canal Hydrologic Restoration 

o $ 500,000.00 Hydrologic Restoration of Little Bayou Chene 

o $ 100,000.00 Prien Point Reef Extension 

94

VIII. PROPOSED PROJECT DESCRIPTIONS 

This section provides descriptions of the projects selected and identifies the 

associated funding amounts included in the Plan for their implementation. 

State-Funded Tier One Projects 

1) Project Title: Barataria Land Bridge Dedicated Dredging 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: Jefferson Parish, Louisiana 

Contact Information: 

Robert Routon 

Office of Coastal Protection and Restoration 

450 Laurel Street, Suite 1200 

Baton Rouge, LA 70801 

Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 

robert.routon@la.gov 

Total CIAP Funds Proposed: $18,000,000.00 

Parish CIAP Funds Proposed: $0 

State CIAP Funds Proposed: $18,000,000.00 

Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $18,000,000.00 (FY2007) 

Infrastructure Funds Proposed: $0 

Description and Location of Project: The project entails marsh creation and 

nourishment in a 752-acre area, the majority of which is shallow, open water with 

some existing, broken marsh. It is located along the southeastern side of Bayou 

Rigolettes between the Harvey Cut and Bayou Perot in Jefferson Parish. This project 

was initially engineered, designed, permitted and has received the necessary land 

rights for construction through the CWPPRA Program, in partnership with the U.S. 

Fish and Wildlife Service and LDNR. The CIAP will fund construction of 

approximately 60% of this project, and the CWPPRA Task Force authorized funding 

in February 2007 for the remaining 40% of the project, as well as long term 

operations, maintenance, and monitoring of the project. 

The portion of the project funded through CIAP will restore 752 acres of emergent 

marsh by hydraulically dredging sediment from Bayou Rigolettes and depositing that 

material in shallow open water. Existing marsh will be nourished by the addition of a 

thin layer of sediment. Where necessary, vegetation will be planted to ensure rapid 

colonization. This project's objectives are to fill open water areas in order to create 

new marsh, and to nourish existing marsh, using hydraulic dredges. Existing rock 

dike and concrete sheet pile shoreline protection features associated with the 

95

Barataria Basin Land Bridge Shoreline Protection Project (BBLSPP) will be used as 

containment. In some larger, open water areas, containment dikes will be necessary. 

In more isolated areas, the existing marsh can be used for containment, augmented 

with small containment dikes as necessary to close breaches into bayous, canals, and 

other channels. The borrow site would most likely be Bayou Rigolettes. Vegetation 

such as brown top millet (Panicum ramosum) and Japanese millet (Echinochloa 

frumentacea) will be aerially seeded on the large marsh creation sites, which 

comprise approximately 55% of the created marsh area. The remaining marsh, which 

consists of smaller isolated areas, will vegetate by natural colonization from the 

surrounding marsh. 

Project Type: Authorized Use 1 

Project Justification: The project area has been experiencing annual land loss rates 

of roughly 2.5% in recent years (1978-1990), mostly due to interior marsh 

deterioration and wind and wave induced erosion. 

The existing BBLSPP will protect the project area from high wave energy from 

Bayous Perot and Rigolettes, but the interior wetlands will continue to deteriorate 

from subsidence, sea-level rise, and excessive tidal exchange without the proposed 

project. The Davis Pond Freshwater Diversion Project will freshen this area, possibly 

converting it from brackish to intermediate marsh. However, that project will not add 

land building sediments to this area, and marsh deterioration will continue there even 

under the freshened conditions. 

The project is consistent with the following coastal restoration initiatives: 

COAST 2050: TOWARD A SUSTAINABLE COASTAL LOUISIANA: 

Coastwide Strategies: 

Dedicated Dredging for Wetland Creation 

Maintenance of Bay and Lake Shoreline Integrity 

Vegetative Planting 

Maintain or Restore Ridge Function 

Regional Strategies: 

#24. Build entire Breaux Act land bridge shore protection project 

#25. Preserve bay and lake shoreline integrity on the land bridge 

#26. Dedicated dredging to create marsh on land bridge 

Mapping Unit Strategies: 

# 12. Maintain ridge function 

Project Cost Share: None 

Duration: Two years 

96

2) Project Title: Bayou Lamoque Floodgate Removal 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: Andrew MacInnes, Plaquemines Parish 

Coastal Zone Administrator; Plaquemines Parish Coastal Zone Advisory Committee 


Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 







Description and Location of Project: The proposed project is located on the east 

bank of Plaquemines Parish across the Mississippi River from the Nairn community. 

The goal of this project is to remove the existing floodgates from a freshwater 

introduction structure to allow for the unimpeded flow of river water into Bayou 

Lamoque and the surrounding marshes. 

The Bayou Lamoque structure is the largest freshwater diversion structure in coastal 

Louisiana (maximum flow of ~ 13,000 cfs). One of the floodgates is occasionally 

operated (though at a significantly reduced capacity) by local fishermen. This project 

was approved for Phase I engineering and design funding through the CWPPRA 

program. 

It is estimated that the Bayou Lamoque project will send an average of 2,500 cfs of 

Mississippi River water into Bayou Lamoque. This effect, in combination with 

improved distribution of diverted water in the benefit area by strategically gapping 

spoil banks along Bayou Lamoque, is expected to generate the following benefits: 1) 

create approximately 620 acres of new marsh over 20 years; 2) increase the percent 

cover of aquatic vegetation in interior marsh ponds and channels by 4% over 20 

years; 3) increase the area of shallow open water habitat in the brackish marsh zone 

of the project area by 10% following 10 years of operation; and 4) decrease mean 

salinity in the brackish marsh zone of the project area by 4 ppt. 


97

Project Justification: Hydrologic modification of the Mississippi River in its Deltaic 

Plain has accelerated wetland loss and reduced the productivity and sustainability of 

existing wetlands. Enhanced management of river inflows is needed to address those 

problems. The increased river inflows and associated nutrients will enhance the 

productivity and sustainability of the adjacent marshes in a very cost-effective 

manner. Recent land loss rates for the project area, from 2000 to 2005, are relatively 

low at approximately 0.08% annually. 


Duration: Three years 

3) Project Title: Marsh Creation Via Beneficial Use 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: Louisiana Department of Natural 

Resources/Greg Grandy 


Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 






Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $4,000,000.00 (FY2007); $187,732.00 (FY2008); 

$2,424,545.00 (FY2009); $127,918.00 (FY2010). 

Description and Location of Project: This proposed project will involve the 

beneficial use of dredged material to restore coastal wetlands. The project will pay 

the incremental cost above the Federal standard (if necessary) to beneficially place 

sediment dredged by the USACE to maintain navigation channels in coastal 

Louisiana. It is estimated that marsh will be restored at four sites, each approximately 

200 acres, through this program in areas near federal navigation channels. Some of 

this work is anticipated to take place in conjunction with maintenance dredging of the 

Calcasieu Ship Channel. Additional such projects along other federally maintained 

navigation channels (such as the Houma Navigation Canal) are also under 

consideration. 


98

Project Justification: Addressing the rapid ongoing conversion of Louisiana coastal 

wetlands to open water requires a variety of restoration methods. The scientific 

community has increasingly recognized and advocated the increased use of external 

sediment sources. The USACE annually dredges millions of cubic yards of sediment 

from navigation channels in Louisiana. This project will take increased advantage of 

opportunities to use a major portion of that sediment for ecosystem restoration. 

LDNR will coordinate with the USACE, various port entities, the U.S. Fish and 

Wildlife Service, the National Marine Fisheries Service, the Louisiana Department of 

Wildlife and Fisheries, and others to facilitate implementation of collaboratively 

developed marsh restoration plans using material dredged from various federally 

maintained waterways. The increased use of those sediments for marsh creation is a 

key strategy for sustaining coastal Louisiana. 


Duration: Four years 

4) Project Title: Central Wetlands Assimilation Project (Phase I) 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: Marcia St. Martin, Executive Director, 

Sewerage and Water Board of New Orleans. Henry J. Rodriguez, Jr., Parish 

President, St. Bernard Parish Government. 


Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 






Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $600,000.00 (FY2007); $7,900,000.00 (FY2008); 

$1,500,000.00 (FY2009) 

99

Description and Location of Project: The Sewerage and Water Board of New 

Orleans in partnership with St. Bernard Parish jointly propose that the first phase of a 

regional wetland restoration project be funded to restore critically important wetlands 

using wetland assimilation of treated wastewater effluent. The project is projected to 

establish 2,300 acres of cypress swamp and low-salinity marsh where open water 

currently exists. Based on research involving previous wetland assimilation projects 

in Louisiana, we anticipate an increase in annual plant productivity of approximately 

20% and a 25% increase in annual sediment accretion due to deposition of organic 

matter in the benefitted project area. Site specific project performance projections 

will be refined during the engineering and design phase of this project. It is 

anticipated that cypress seedlings will be planted as part of this project. With the 

current population of New Orleans, the Sewerage and Water Board currently 

discharges approximately 2,000,000 gallons per day of treated wastewater into the 

Mississippi River. The proposed wetland restoration project will integrate 

sustainability with mitigation measures. The enhanced wetlands will protect Orleans 

and St. Bernard Parishes from future storm vulnerability, while the associated 

environmental improvement will help to protect the local economy and culture, which 

depend on productive wetlands. 

The Sewerage and Water Board of New Orleans’ East Bank Sewage Treatment Plant 

(EBSTP) is located in the Lower Ninth Ward near Bayou Bienvenue. That plant 

provides wastewater treatment for the entire east bank of Orleans Parish and treats 

biosolids for both the east and west banks of Orleans Parish. The treatment facility 

received approximately $70 million in damages as a result of the 17-foot storm surge 

created by Hurricane Katrina. St. Bernard Parish received catastrophic damage to all 

seven of its wastewater treatment plants. To mitigate the damage, the St. Bernard 

Department of Public Works is planning to implement a consolidation plan that 

would allow one discharge line to help restore the surrounding wetlands. The 

Sewerage and Water Boards of New Orleans and St. Bernard Parish are jointly 

seeking funding to implement a phased project that will begin with distribution of 

partial flow to wetlands while final design and plant modifications are completed. 

Phase I would include engineering design and installation of a distribution system for 

each plant to the wetlands that could utilize existing effluent pumps. 


Project Justification: The Central Wetlands area was heavily impacted in 1940 

when a hurricane breached the protection levee on the north side of Chalmette. When 

the levee was relocated southward, over 1,000 acres of wetlands that were under 

pump then became tidally influenced. The construction of the Mississippi River Gulf 

Outlet (MRGO) and its connection to Bayou Bienvenue allowed saline water to flow 

into what was formerly classified as a freshwater cypress swamp. This altered the 

habitat type to that of a more salt tolerant marsh. Land loss in the project area has 

been documented at approximately 3% annually since the late 1940s. 

100

The Bayou Bienvenue-Central Wetland’s Unit to be restored is located between the 

40-Arpent Levee and the MRGO in Orleans and St. Bernard Parishes. This area is 

critical for levee protection against storm surge and storm-generated waves. Wetland 

loss in this area accelerated after the construction of the MRGO due to the resulting 

saltwater intrusion. Hurricane Katrina exacerbated the damage to the onceproductive 

cypress swamp. Fresh water and nutrients will be required to restore and 

maintain the cypress swamps that would help to protect both parishes. Currently, 

nutrient-rich sewage effluent from both parishes is discharged to the Mississippi 

River, where it contributes to the hypoxia problem in the northern Gulf of Mexico. 

Rerouting the effluent will allow the problem nutrients to be used to replenish the 

wetlands, rather than adversely affecting coastal and offshore Gulf waters. 

Research has confirmed that the benefits of wetland wastewater treatment include 

improved water quality, increased accretion rates to balance a high relative water 

level rise due mainly to subsidence, improved plant productivity and habitat quality, 

protection against storm surge and storm generated waves, and decreased capital 

outlays for engineered treatment systems. Wetland treatment systems have been 

successfully designed and operated throughout Louisiana to restore deteriorating 

wetlands. 

Wetland wastewater treatment would replace critical infrastructure that was damaged 

during Hurricane Katrina with sustainable, more economical wastewater treatment. 

Wetland treatment facility capital is roughly one-third the cost of capital for 

conventional wastewater treatment. Furthermore, wetland discharge permits allow 

discharge of higher levels of solids to increase accretion rates. For example, rerouting 

effluent from the Mississippi River to wetlands for the East Bank Sewage 

Treatment Plant would result in an annual operation savings of almost $2 million. 

More economical wastewater treatment will allow for the hurricane affected parishes 

to continue providing sewer service after suffering from severe decreases in revenue. 

Wetland assimilation of wastewater effluent would restore destroyed and rapidly 

disappearing coastal wetlands, which, in addition to their ecological value, protect 

Orleans and St. Bernard Parishes from tropical storm events. Many levees, including 

the 40-Arpent Canal Levee, did not suffer damage where surrounding wetlands acted 

as a buffer against storm surge and storm generated waves. More recently it has been 

determined that the restoration of the swamps adjacent to the East Bank Sewage 

Treatment Plant, the Bayou Bienvenue-Central Wetland’s Unit surrounding the MR- 

GO and the wetlands near Lake Borgne are essential for protecting Orleans and St. 

Bernard Parishes from future hurricanes. This project would address restoration of all 

of these deteriorating wetlands. Furthermore, the Louisiana Department of 

Environmental Quality confirmed after Katrina that Louisiana municipalities that 

used wetland treatment sustained less hurricane damage than municipalities that did 

not use this method. 



101

5) Project Title: Coastal Forest Conservation Initiative 




Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 


Total CIAP Funds Requested: $20,167,035.62 


State CIAP Funds Requested: $20,167,035.62 


Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $1,700,269.01 (FY2007); $2,093,544.94 (FY2008); 

$5,349,999.74 (FY2009); $11,023,221.93 (FY2010). 

Description and Location of Project: The conservation, restoration, and 

sustainability of coastal Louisiana’s swamps, wooded cheniers, and natural levee 

forests are increasingly recognized as key to the sustainability and ecological 

diversity of southern Louisiana. This Plan component includes several conservation 

measures that are consistent with strategies identified by the Governor’s Coastal 

Wetland Forest Conservation and Use Science Working Group and Advisory Panel. 

Those measures include acquiring land rights on coastal forest tracts from willing 

landowners to facilitate conservation; restoring and enhancing forest sustainability by 

implementing small-scale projects; and facilitating wetland assimilation projects that 

would contribute to coastal forest sustainability. 

This initiative is part of an overall strategy for restoring, protecting, and conserving 

Louisiana’s coastal forest system, which includes barrier live oak forests, salt dome 

hardwood forests, coastal live oak-hackberry forests, bottomland hardwood forests, 

natural levee and chenier forests, mixed hardwood-pine forests, and bald cypresstupelo 

forests. Implementation primarily focuses on purchasing land rights on an 

estimated 30,000 acres of coastal forest from several different hydrologic classes that 

serve significant ecological and storm-surge reduction functions. Additional action 

will include small scale restoration projects, such as reforestation of coastal cheniers 

and natural levee forests and small scale projects to reduce excessive ponding. 

As part of the initial implementation of this initiative, site selection criteria will be 

developed to help maximize the benefits of the land acquisition component. Those 

criteria will encompass ecological importance, storm surge reduction benefits, and the 

degree of threat to candidate acquisition tracts. 

102

For land acquired in fee title through this program, the coastal forest will be 

conserved in perpetuity. Conservation easements acquired through this program will 

be worded and administered to prohibit activities that would reduce the key 

ecological functions and values of coastal forests. It is not the intention of this 

program to acquire mineral rights on these properties. Conservation easements will 

also be used to take advantage of opportunities to restore and enhance ecological and 

storm surge reduction values on degraded or former coastal forest sites. 


Project Justification: Much of Louisiana’s coastal forest faces threats from factors 

such as levees, navigation and oil and gas canals, roads, highway and railway 

embankments, and other human activities. In addition to these factors, southern 

Louisiana has experienced a renewed interest in harvesting many wetland forest 

species, especially bald cypress. Many of these factors, over time, have led to 

degradation of the State’s coastal forests. Alterations to hydrology have led to 

saltwater intrusion, prevention of river inflow (thereby accelerating subsidence and 

reducing nutrient input), and holding of water on the forest floor for greater periods of 

time, rendering second-growth forests less productive or unproductive and unable to 

serve the functions and associated values that they once did. 



6) Project Title: Grand Lake Shoreline Protection 




Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 



Parish CIAP Funds Proposed: $ 0 



Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $9,913,344.81 (FY2007). 

103

Description and Location of Project: The project will protect approximately 

37,800 linear feet on the south shore of Grand Lake, located in the Mermentau Basin 

in Cameron Parish, Louisiana. The project will involve placing a rock dike to prevent 

shoreline erosion between the mouth of Superior Canal on the east and Tebo Point on 

the west. The rock dike will be placed at or near the minus 2 ft. NAVD 88 contour. 

Construction access will be via flotation channels excavated to minus 6 NAVD 88. 

The material removed during flotation channel access dredging will be placed on the 

protected side of the proposed rock dike for marsh restoration purposes. 

This project was initially engineered, designed, and permitted and has received the 

necessary land rights for construction through the CWPPRA Program (CWPPRA 

project ME-21; project information available at www.lacoast.gov/projects/list.asp), in 

partnership with the USACE and LDNR. The CIAP will fund construction of the 

portion of this project from Superior Canal to Tebo Point. In February 2007, 

CWPPRA funds were authorized to construct the remainder of the project (i.e., 

shoreline protection for Tebo Point westward) and to perform long-term maintenance 

and monitoring of the project. 

Project Type (from CIAP fund uses): Authorized Use 1 

Project Justification: A comparison of 1978-1979 and 1977-1998 aerial 

photography indicates that shoreline erosion rates in this area vary from 11 to 32 feet 

per year all at the expense of the adjacent fresh marsh. Implementation of the above 

project features will halt the existing shoreline retreat and its adverse effects on the 

adjacent marshes. 



7) Project Title: Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW) Bank Restoration of Critical 

Areas in Terrebonne Parish 


Resources/Will Norman 


Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 


104





Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $1,000,000.00 (FY2007); $6,230,258.05 (FY2008) 

Description and Location of Project: This proposed CIAP project encompasses a 

portion of the unconstructed CWPPRA Project TE-43 in the Terrebonne Basin, along 

the south bank line of the GIWW from the Gulf South Pipeline to the St. Paul Bayou 

Oilfield. The project will close four breaches along the south bank of the GIWW 

totaling 14,500 linear feet. From west to east along the GIWW the proposed closures 

are numbered: Segment 1 - 1,500 feet (center located at approximately at latitude 29º 

36’ 57” N and longitude 90º 59’ 25” W), Segment 2a - 500 feet (center located at 

approximately at latitude 29º 36’ 37” N and longitude 90º 58’ 53” W), Segment 2b - 

4,500 feet (center located at approximately at latitude 29º 35’ 31” N and longitude 90º 

58’ 14” W), and Segment 6 - 8,000 feet (center located at approximately at latitude 

29º 33’ 1” N and longitude 90º 54’ 22” W). The breach closures engineered for this 

bank line (lightweight aggregate core capped with rock) will provide immediate 

benefits to the adjacent thin-mat floating marshes by stopping water movement 

through these large breaches where water exchange now occurs. 



project TE-43; project information available at www.lacoast.gov/projects/list.asp), in 

partnership with the Natural Resources Conservation Service and LDNR. The CIAP 

program is not building the entire CWPPRA designed Gulf Intracoastal Waterway 

(GIWW) Bank Restoration of Critical Areas in Terrebonne Parish (TE-43) project 

but, only the portion that includes the most critical four breaches of the project as 

described above. 


Project Justification: Between 1932 and 1990 approximately 39,600 acres of the 

145,910 acres of emergent wetlands within the Penchant mapping unit were lost 

(Coast 2050). Wetlands losses during that same period in the Terrebonne, South and 

North Bully Camp, Montegut, and Boudreaux mapping units ranged from 25.5% to 

59.2%. It is anticipated that the proposed project will stop shoreline erosion and 

reduce projected interior wetland loss in the adjacent marshes by 15% (based on the 

CWPPRA Wetland Value Assessment analysis in 2004). 

105

The width of the GIWW adjacent to the four proposed breach closures ranges from 

700 feet to almost 2,000 feet. This large area of open water allows for wave fetch 

from wind, currents, and boat traffic. These four critical breaches are allowing water 

flow from the GIWW into and out of the fragile floating fresh marsh south of the 

GIWW. These direct hydrologic connections have destroyed adjacent floating marsh 

and are accelerating the breakup of thin-mat floats located south of these breaches 

and extending at least 6 miles to the south. This area of thin-mat floating fresh marsh 

is quite unique and extremely productive, supporting a wide variety of fish and 

wildlife species. The thin-mat floats in this area are 2 to 8 inches thick and float on 

unconsolidated organic muck. When protected from high-velocity turbid water, the 

floats are usually surrounded by submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) beds that 

provide additional protection from wind and waves. When water is funneled through 

these breaches with increased velocity, the floats eventually break into pieces and are 

exported from the marsh. This converts floating fresh marsh into open turbid water, 

which is then subject to the increased export of unconsolidated organic soil and 

increased water depths. 

This proposed project is fully engineered and free of implementation issues. 

Elimination of these hydrologic connections will result in an immediate benefit for 

approximately 30,000 acres of floating fresh marsh. Maintaining this area as floating 

fresh marsh rather than allowing it to convert to open turbid water will also provide 

added protection to the Bayou Black Ridge located 5 miles north. The size of this 

proposed project has been restricted to closing the four existing breaches (14,500 

linear feet) with an estimated cost of 28% of the cost for the entire TE-43 project. 

Although the extent of shoreline protection is reduced, the area of floating marsh 

protected is greater than the project size originally calculated. The sole landowner in 

the project area is Continental Land and Fur Company (CL&F). Their land 

management experience indicates that floating marshes are more intact when adjacent 

to a solid bank line than when subjected to water movement through breaches and 

washouts. This has been monitored and demonstrated for many years on CL&F 

property. 

Closure of these breaches will reduce the high rate of breakup of the adjacent thinmat 

floating marshes while other sources of funds are sought for long-term shoreline 

protection in between these structures. Status reports from the CWPPRA Mandalay 

Bank Protection Demonstration Project (TE-41) may result in a more economical 

method for protecting the remaining banks. 

If these breaches along the GIWW are not closed with this proposed CIAP project, 

the adjacent area of fragile thin-mat floating marshes will continue to deteriorate and 

the area will soon be converted from marsh to open turbid water. This project is 

consistent with the Coast 2050 specific regional ecosystem strategies for protecting 

and sustaining the Terrebonne Basin’s coastal resources: restoring swamps, restoring 

and sustaining marshes, and protecting shorelines. 



106

8) Project Title: Mississippi River Delta Management Strategic Planning 


Resources 


Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 







$4,000,000.00 (FY2010) 

Description and Location of Project: LDNR will coordinate the development of a 

strategic framework for feasibility evaluation of improved management of fresh 

water, nutrients, and sediment resources of the Lower Mississippi River, from the Old 

River Control Structure to Head of Passes, to better sustain its Deltaic Plain. 

Preparation of that framework document will involve outside expertise, and will 

identify primary alternatives to be addressed and the appropriate analytical 

approaches to be applied. A central focus of this effort will be to address options for 

greatly increasing the land building capability of the Mississippi River, while 

maintaining deep draft navigation of the river. The envisioned approach to strategic 

plan development will be to: 

a) compile relevant information and findings on all pertinent physical modeling 

of the Lower Mississippi River completed to date; 

b) convene and assign an expert panel with development of alternative 

conceptual approaches to improved river management for addressing needs 

relative to coastal sustainability and continued maintenance of Mississippi River 

deep draft navigation; 

c) identify the critical issues that must be addressed in the feasibility study (e.g., 

navigation-related items, effects on other Mississippi River uses, land building 

capability, potential saltwater intrusion, and habitat impacts); 

d) identify the kinds and scope of technical analyses (e.g., physical and 

mathematical modeling) needed to address the critical issues identified; and 

e) identify the level of effort needed for the various analyses. 

107

This project will also allow for the construction of a new expanded Small Scale 

Physical Model (SSPM) which will be able to model smaller flows and increase the 

area of coverage in comparison to the previous SSPM. The SSPM is a valuable 

research tool to further the understanding of the impacts of major diversions of water 

and sediments into the vanishing coastal wetlands in the lower Mississippi River 

Delta. 


Project Justification: Improved management of the Mississippi River’s sediment, 

nutrients, and fresh water has long been recognized as critically important to 

sustaining the Mississippi Deltaic Plain of coastal Louisiana. The January 2005 

report of the Chief of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) on the Louisiana 

Coastal Area (LCA) Ecosystem Restoration Study recommended approval of funding 

for feasibility studies of several identified large-scale, long-term coastal restoration 

concepts. One such concept is the Mississippi River Delta Management Study, which 

would look at alternative means of providing continued navigation on the Mississippi 

River, from the Old River Control Structure to Head of Passes, while making much 

greater use of the river for coastal restoration. This proposal is intended to be a first 

step, designed to facilitate the scoping of that feasibility study. An international 

science group supported by British Petroleum recently produced a report strongly 

recommending the Mississippi River Delta Management project as the most 

significant approach to stemming coastal land loss in Louisiana. 



9) Project Title: Performance Evaluation and Science Monitoring 




Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 






Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $500,000.00 (FY2007); $500,000.00 (FY2008); 

$1,000,000.00 (FY2009); $1,000,000.00 (FY2010). 

108

Description and Location of Project: This project will evaluate the effectiveness of 

restoration project features constructed with either parish or State funds through the 

CIAP. The restoration projects evaluated will be located within the 19 coastal 

parishes of Louisiana. It is envisioned that land/water analysis of aerial imagery will 

be conducted on all of the State sponsored restoration projects (14 projects) 

comparing the pre-construction conditions of the project area with the postconstruction 

conditions. In addition, project specific performance evaluations will be 

done on a number of projects to measure the accuracy of project performance 

predictions made during the engineering and design phase. This will allow the State 

to correctly reflect the actual site response to project implementation. Examples of 

these include in-situ site measurements of consolidation and compaction during a 

marsh creation project to evaluate the effectiveness of the predicted results, the actual 

shoreline erosion on a clay shoreline given certain reduction of wave energy through 

the implementation of various project features, use of localized wave monitoring 

devices during the engineering and design phase of a project to more accurately 

characterize the site conditions, and use of wave monitoring devices to measure wave 

energy reduction following implementation of the project features. These and other 

performance evaluation strategies will be developed during the engineering and 

design phase of the various restoration projects. 


Project Justification: The performance evaluation of CIAP projects is needed to 

facilitate adaptive management of future coastal restoration projects. Implementation 

of CIAP project evaluation and science support activities will help to ensure that the 

best available practices are integrated into the design and construction of coastal 

restoration projects in Louisiana. 



10) Project Title: Rockefeller Refuge Shoreline Protection Demonstration Project 


Resources/Beau Tate 


Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 


109





Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $6,053,672.65 (FY2008). 

Description and Location of Project: The proposed project will analyze four 

different test sections of Gulf shoreline protection on Rockefeller Refuge. The 

alternatives include a 700 foot section of beach fill with gravel/crushed stone, a 500 

foot section of reef breakwater with gravel/crushed stone beach fill, a 500 foot section 

of reef breakwater with lightweight aggregate core, and a 500 foot section of concrete 

panel breakwater. Rockefeller Refuge is located in southwestern Louisiana, west of 

Pecan Island and east of Grand Chenier and is operated by the Louisiana Department 

of Wildlife and Fisheries. The project area is along the Rockefeller Refuge Gulf of 

Mexico shoreline from Beach Prong to Joseph Harbor in Cameron Parish, Mermentau 

Basin. 



project ME-18; project information available at www.lacoast.gov/projects/list.asp), in 

partnership with NOAA Fisheries and LDNR. The CIAP will fund the construction 

and performance evaluation of the demonstration project. 


Project Justification: One of the most rapidly eroding portions of the Louisiana 

Gulf shoreline is at Rockefeller Refuge. Estimates of long-term shoreline retreat 

range from 30 to 40 feet/year. Short-term events, such as Tropical Storm Frances in 

1998, can cause more than 50 feet of erosion over a few days. Scientists have 

concluded that modern rates of shoreline recession within Louisiana’s Chenier Plain 

are generally increasing with time. The proposed project will determine the best 

option for combating the erosion in this high energy system. It is not currently 

understood how much the shoreline erosion rate will be reduced through the 

implementation of this project; the project is considered a demonstration due to the 

limited understanding in the engineering and scientific community of the response of 

clay shorelines to the planned shoreline protection features. It is currently understood 

that those different features will reduce wave energy being transferred to the shoreline 

by 80 to 95%, depending on the actual feature being implemented and different storm 

scenarios. 



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11) Project Title: State of Louisiana – Administration of CIAP Program 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: Louisiana Office of Coastal Protection 

and Restoration/Greg Grandy 


Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 







$1,000,000.00 (FY2009); $1,000,000.00 (FY2010). 

Description and Location of Project: The proposed project will be located in Baton 

Rouge, Louisiana, and will provide financial assistance to the State of Louisiana to 

manage and implement the Coastal Impact Assistance Program. The State of 

Louisiana will utilize staff from the Louisiana Office of Coastal Protection and 

Restoration (OCPR) and contract employees to bring an integrated and focused 

systems approach to the implementation of the Costal Impact Assistance Program. 


Project Justification: This is needed by the State of Louisiana to assist in funding 

the CIAP administrative tasks and the costs associated with them such as the 

preparation of necessary amendments to the approved State Plan, coordinating and 

tracking the amendments requested by the parishes, the holding of public meeting and 

issuing notices to inform the public of the meetings, the publication and reproduction 

costs incurred during the formulation of the State Plan, to provide for the 

reimbursement for OCPR staff salaries working in these roles, providing assistance 

and guidance to the Louisiana parishes in the implementation of their portion of the 

Coastal Impact Assistance Program, and representing the state and parishes interest in 

dealings with MMS relating to the extensive requirements and grant process required. 


Duration: Five years 

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12) Project Title: Shoreline Protection Emergency Restoration 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: Coastal Protection and Restoration 

Authority of Louisiana 


Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 







Description and Location of Project: Shoreline Protection Emergency Restoration 

will be performed along shorelines impacted by the Deepwater Horizon (DWH) Spill 

which may include shorelines in Breton Sound, Terrebonne Bay, the Caminada 

Headlands, Barataria Bay, Biloxi Marsh, and Bay Joe Wise. 

Oil from the Deepwater Horizon (DWH) Spill has severely impacted the shoreline 

vegetation in the coastal wetlands and marshes which will significantly increase the 

already high erosion and land loss rates if these shorelines are not stabilized 

immediately. Since being inundated by oil resulting from the DWH Spill, marsh 

vegetation has been killed and in some instances removed resulting in a bare marsh 

platform which will erode at a much higher rate due to the loss of the marsh root 

system that helped stabilize the platform. This project is will protect areas where the 

marsh vegetation was highly impacted by the DWH Spill in order to avoid additional 

irreversible losses by stabilizing the fragile shorelines. 


Project Justification: The Shoreline Protection Emergency Restoration project will 

help protect and stabilize marsh and barrier island systems highly impacted by the 

DWH Spill and its cleanup. The project is needed to avoid additional irreversible 

losses and reduce the continuing threat to the natural resources located in these areas 

of coastal Louisiana inundated by oil from the DWH Spill. This project is 

specifically designed to respond to this spill of national significance to protect the 

areas impacted by the DWH Oil Spill. 


Duration: One Year 

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13) Project Title: Mississippi River Water Reintroduction into Bayou Lafourche 




Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 






Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $101,837.43(FY2008); $15,836,399.00(FY2009); 

$4,061,763.57 (FY2010) 

Description and Location of Project: The headworks structure is located at the 

intersection of Lafourche and the Mississippi River in Donaldsonville, Ascension 

Parish, Louisiana. The project's targeted marshes are located south of Donaldsonville 

in the Fields and Long lakes, Grand Bayou, Bayou Terrebonne, Houma Navigation 

Canal, Delta Farms, and Bayous Perot and Rigoletes areas. 

Bayou Lafourche was cut off from the flow of the Mississippi River in 1903. The 

bayou was partially reconnected to the river in the 1950’s with the installation of a 

pump/siphon station which currently averages less than 200 cubic feet per second 

(cfs). Historically, the river served to counteract subsidence in the area by introducing 

fresh water, sediments, and nutrients. In addition, numerous oil field canals, the Gulf 

Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW), and the Houma Navigation Canal have altered the 

natural hydrology of the area. This alteration affected the freshwater flows to area 

marshes, and saltwater intrusion impacted drinking water quality. This project was 

approved for Phase I engineering and design funding through the CWPPRA program 

in order to help restore coastal wetlands. 

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Project features include a receiving intake structure at the point of diversion in the 

Mississippi River; a pump/siphon system with a combined discharge capacity of 

1,000 cfs; a discharge settling pond/sediment basin in Bayou Lafourche at 

Donaldsonville; modification of weir structures; bank stabilization along Bayou 

Lafourche; monitoring stations; and dredging of Bayou Lafourche. The total project 

has been modeled to benefit approx. 120,000 – 130,000 acres in the Terrebonne and 

Barataria Basins through reductions in the salinities and/or nourishment of wetlands 

with the introduction and distribution of sediment and nutrients from the river. It is 

estimated that CIAP funds will either 1) allow for the continued dredging of a 1,000 

cfs channel for an additional 7 – 12 miles of Bayou Lafourche beginning at Bell Rose 

and continuing downstream towards Napoleonville to the extent allowed by the 

current funding; or 2) finalization of the preliminary design and completion of the 

first phase toward a new $75M, 1,000 cfs pump/siphon/water control structure. 


Project Justification: Hydrologic modification of the Mississippi River in its Deltaic 

Plain has accelerated wetland loss and reduced the productivity and sustainability of 

existing wetlands. Enhanced management of river inflows is needed to address those 

problems. Diverting water from the Mississippi River into hydrologic basins can 1) 

nourish existing marshes to increase their productivity and build wetlands in areas of 

open water, 2) potentially reduce the extent of the hypoxic zone in the gulf, 3) help 

satisfy the need for maintaining salinity gradients that correspond to the diversity of 

vegetative habitat, and 4) reintroduce and distribute sediment and nutrients 

throughout the ecosystem. 

The concept of this project is consistent with the goals and initiatives of the LA 

CPRA as well as those included in the OCPR Master and Annual Plans. Additionally, 

the concept of this project is consistent with the CWPPRA Restoration Plan for at 

least four reasons: 1) diversion projects are considered one of the essential elements 

in coastal restoration; 2) past and future marsh losses in parts of the Terrebonne and 

Barataria Basins appear to be directly related to the loss of freshwater flow in Bayou 

Lafourche; 3) near lower Bayou Lafourche there is a large acreage of marshes that 

require an influx of freshwater to survive; and 4) Bayou Lafourche is unique in being 

a presently functioning conveyance channel that can directly connect the Mississippi 

River to the marshes most in need of freshwater. 

Coast 2050 also identified the management of pump outfall for wetland benefits and 

maintaining and restoring ridge functions as coast-wide strategies; and the use of 

Bayou Lafourche as a freshwater diversion was also identified as a strategy in the 

LCA Ecosystem Restoration Study. 



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14) Project Title: Living Shoreline Protection Demonstration Project 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: CPRA 


Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 






Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $1,000,000.00(FY2008); $5,500,000.00 (FY2009); 

$20,000,000.00(FY2010) 

Description and Location of Project: Bio-engineered oyster reef would be 

constructed along coastal fringe marsh in St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana with the goal 

of reducing wind-wave induced shoreline erosion. Up to 21 miles of bio-engineered 

oyster reef would be installed from Eloi Point to the mouth of Bayou La Loutre 

around Lydia Point and Paulina Point extending around the southern shore of 

Treasure Bay. These living shorelines would function to dissipate wave energy 

before it reaches the shoreline thereby protecting vulnerable shoreline and the 

valuable marsh behind. 

The reef would be constructed in approximately equal sections using four different 

technologies/methods in order to compare the efficiency each method at reducing 

shoreline erosion. These technologies/methods include the use of Reefblk© 

structures, OysterBreak© structures, loose oyster shells, and Reefballs© structures 

which are each described in more detail below. 

Reefblk© structures are interlocking triangular structures constructed from welded 

steel containing bags of oyster shell which promote establishment of new oyster 

growth and eventually resulting in self sustaining capacity. In Louisiana, this 

technology has been used by The Nature Conservancy (TNC) to construct 1.25 miles 

of reef at Grand Isle/Fifi Island in Jefferson Parish. TNC is also in the process of 

constructing 2.15 miles of reef at two sites St. Bernard Parish around portions of Lake 

Eloi and Lake Fortuna. Reefblk© was installed at Mad Island Marsh Preserve near 

Corpus Christi, Texas by TNC in 2005 and 2006. Since that time, it has been noted 

that the reef has functioned to attenuate waves reaching the shoreline, is growing 

oysters, and that a significant amount of sediment has begun to accrete between the 

reefs and shoreline. 

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OysterBreak© structures are interlocking concrete rings that use the same concept as 

the Reefblk©. The OysterBreak© rings are made of patent-pending OysterKrete. 

OysterKrete attracts oysters and provides habitat for new oysters. Over one to two 

years oyster formations cement the OysterBreak components into a continuous reef. 

This technology has been used by The Nature Conservancy to protect the shoreline of 

the National Audubon Paul J. Rainey Wildlife Refuge within Southwest Pass Bay and 

along the Gulf shoreline at Rockefeller Wildlife Refuge. The project at the Paul J. 

Rainey Wildlife Refuge was completed in October 2010 and preliminary monitoring 

show that oysters are actively growing on the rings along with a wide variety of 

complementary wildlife. The project at Rockefeller Wildlife Refuge began with 

installation in 2007. First generation oysters cemented the rings increasing the 

stability and integrity of the entire OysterBreak© reef. Second generation oysters in 

2009 further cemented the rings unifying the artificial habitat structure which has 

most importantly, functioned to stabilize the shoreline. 

Loose oyster shells would be used to create reef in order to mimic the natural process 

of oyster production. Shells can be mixed with rip rap on contained in mesh bags. 

Reefballs© are individual concrete semi-spherical units designed to emulate and 

create oyster reef. Anchoring is built into each individual unit and consists of 

fiberglass rods that penetrate into the underlying sediment. 


Project Justification: Since Breton barrier islands are so far offshore, they provide 

little protection to the estuary behind them. Shoreline erosion by wind-wave action is 

the dominant cause of wetland loss in the project area. Establishing bio-engineered 

oyster reef along coastal fringe marsh will help prevent shoreline erosion. These 

reefs would serve as an important first line of defense for coastal marshes in the 

project area functioning to help sustain the lower Biloxi Marsh, an important land 

bridge separating the Gulf of Mexico from Lake Borgne by helping to prevent and/or 

reduce the rate of erosion of the marshes and shorelines along the shores of Eloi Bay 

and Treasure Bay. 

Along with providing shoreline and marsh protection, bio-engineered oyster reef 

would become a self-sustaining and valuable habitat for many estuarine species and 

benefit the water quality in the area. Unlike hardened structures such as bulkheads, 

revetments, or breakwaters which require significant financial investment for longterm 

maintenance, bio-engineered oyster reef would become self-sustaining features 

requiring little maintenance costs. Bio-engineered oyster reef can naturally re-build 

vertically and respond to sea level rise, whereas hardened structures would continue 

to sink and require additional rock to retain function. 

This project would be consistent with Louisiana’s Comprehensive Master Plan for a 

Sustainable Coast goals of shoreline stabilization and would function synergistically 

with other bio-engineered oyster reefs currently being constructed and those that are 

planned to be constructed in Lake Eloi and Lake Fortuna. 



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15) Project Title: Atchafalaya Long Distance Sediment Pipeline 




Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 


Total CIAP Funds Proposed: $750,000.00 


State CIAP Funds Proposed: $750,000.00 


Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $750,000.00 (FY2009) 

Description and Location of Project: CIAP funds allocated to this project will 

advance the design of a sediment pipeline which will be used to transport sediments 

dredged from the Port of Morgan City's Channel Maintenance Program (from the 

Berwick Bay Area of the Atchafalaya River to the Atchafalaya River Bar Channel 

Area), and other available sources in the Atchafalaya Basin that will be identified 

during the design process, eastward into the critical sediment deficient marshes of 

central and eastern Terrebonne. The alignment of the pipeline will be selected in 

order to provide the optimum route for the installation of a permanent or temporary 

pipeline to maximize the multi-purpose benefits associated with moving sediments 

from the Atchafalaya Basin. Potential sites for marsh creation projects utilizing the 

pipeline will also be identified and prioritized during the design process. 


Project Justification: Due to the construction of levees and changes to the historic 

hydrology, critical marshes in central and eastern Terrebonne Parish have become 

sediment and nutrient deficient. This prevents the natural process to counteract 

subsidence in the area by introducing fresh water, sediments, and nutrient and making 

them susceptible to the increasing saltwater intrusion. This project will take the first 

steps to begin designing a project to help restore these critical marshes. 



117

State-Parish Cost Shared Tier One Projects 

1) Project Title: Acadiana Regional Airport Street Improvements – Admiral Doyle 

Drive 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: Iberia Parish Government 


Sally Angers 





Phone: (337) 365-8246 

Fax: (337) 369-4470 



Parish CIAP Funds Proposed: $460,744.00 


Infrastructure Funds Proposed: $1,063,244.00 

Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $460,744.00 (FY2010 Iberia); $602,500.00 (FY2007 

Louisiana) 

Description and Location of Project: The purpose of the proposed project is to 

overlay and realign Admiral Doyle Drive, which provides access to Acadiana 

Regional Airport, which is immediately northwest of New Iberia. Approximately 

1.75-miles of roadway is proposed to be repaired, with the improvements beginning 

about one mile northwest of the intersection of Admiral Doyle and LA 3212 and 

ending at LA 88. The existing 24-ft. wide roadway is in poor condition and needs to 

be patched and overlayed along the entire length in order to repair the damage that 

has been caused by many years of heavy use from traffic accessing OCS related 

facilities. Additionally, there are two areas of the roadway along this route which are 

in serious need of realignment. The sharp curves which currently exist pose a major 

hazard to the motoring public using this road. The realignment proposed in this 

project will eliminate the dangerous curves in the road, creating much safer driving 

conditions for the numerous motorists who travel this route on a daily basis. The 

improvements proposed in this project will improve access to OCS related facilities 

by mitigating the damages caused by heavy traffic usage on this road, as well as by 

providing safer driving conditions along this route. 


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Project Justification: The involved roadway segment supports a substantial amount 

of vehicle use related to support of OCS exploration and production activities. That 

use is a significant factor in the wear and tear of that roadway segment and the need 

for the proposed repairs and resurfacing. 



2) Project Title: Blind River Freshwater Diversion 


Resources/Whitney Thompson 


Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 




State CIAP Funds proposed: $5,800,000.00 


Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $5,800,000.00 (FY2010 Louisiana); $682,475.94 

(FY2010 St. James) 

Description and Location of Project: The project consists of installing and 

operating a Mississippi River siphon, near Romeville, to divert pulsed flows into the 

coastal forests of the upper Maurepas Swamp. The swamp surrounding the 

origination of the Blind River in St. James Parish is stagnant, nutrient depleted, and in 

declining quality due to the prevention of Mississippi River inflow. A small 

diversion of the Mississippi River will provide supplemental fresh water and 

associated nutrients to improve approximately 2,000 acres of swamp and increase the 

flow of the Blind River. A siphon with a maximum capacity of 1,500 cubic feet per 

second will be constructed in the Mississippi River near Romeville, approximately 

2.5 miles upstream from Convent. A report evaluating the feasibility and projected 

benefits of a freshwater diversion into the Maurepas Swamp demonstrated that 

augmenting nutrients enhanced biomass production of the herbaceous vegetation by 

up to 300%. It is anticipated that implementation of this project will have a similar 

effect on the herbaceous cover in the coastal forest in the project area. The exact 

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location, size, configuration, and operational protocol as well as updated site specific 

biological goals of the Blind River Diversion will be more accurately determined 

during the engineering and design phase of this project. 

With the passage of the Water Resources Development Act of 2007 (WRDA), the 

state of Louisiana is now exercising its option to utilize the requested CIAP funding 

as the State’s required cost-share as allowed under the WRDA authorization to 

proceed with the development and implementation of the Blind River Diversion 

Project in partnership with the Corps of Engineers. At this time, the Blind River 

Diversion Project area and goals have not changed. 

Due to CIAP deadlines for the completion and closeout of all projects, CIAP funds 

will only be used for the required cost share for the feasibility design of this project. 

The siphon will consist of six pipes, each 72 inches in diameter, extracting fresh 

water from the river. The pipes will be placed over the Mississippi River eastern 

levee. A section of existing road at the toe of the levee will be excavated to facilitate 

the installation of the pipes. The road will be rebuilt on top of the buried pipes. The 

pipes will also have to cross a railroad approximately one-half of a mile to the east. 

Up to this point, the pipes would be buried. Beyond the railroad, the flow can be 

discharged into a field drainage canal where the landowner has granted preliminary 

approval. Approximately 1.5 miles of the channel will need to be dredged to 

facilitate the increased flow volume. Concrete box culverts will be installed under 

LA 3125 to facilitate the channel flow under the highway. Beyond the highway, the 

flow will be released into the swamp, initiating sheet flow, and eventually the fresh 

water will flow into the Blind River. 

Extensive topographic modeling will be required to evaluate the desired sheet flow 

effect. That modeling will help facilitate project design and associated optimization 

of benefits resulting from implementation. 

The actual flow of a siphon depends on the elevation of the river. Based on existing 

data for Mississippi River siphons, siphons only flow well a few months out of the 

year, when the water level is high. For a 1500-cfs-capacity siphon, it is estimated that 

the best average flow achievable is approximately 900 cfs, but this would not be 

constant. Several months out of the year, the water level would be too low for the 

siphon to flow at all. 

Siphon intake areas must be close to the levee to prevent navigational hazards. To 

obtain a significant volume of sediment, the intake must be in a deeper part of the 

river than that which is close to the levee. Therefore, siphons do not discharge much 

sediment. The proposed siphon could provide fresh water and associated nutrients 

into the swamp. 

Any projects affecting Mississippi River levees must include extensive levee stability 

analyses as well as compliance with USACE regulations. 

River siphons must be regularly operated and maintained. An outfall management 

plan is envisioned to help achieve full benefits. 

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Project Justification: Since the construction of the Mississippi River flood control 

levees, the Maurepas Swamp has been virtually cut off from riverine fresh water, 

sediment, or nutrient input. Thus, the only soil building has come from organic 

production within the wetlands. Subsidence in this area is classified as intermediate, 

but when coupled with minimal soil building, it has produced a net lowering of 

ground surface elevation. This in turn, has led to a doubling of in flood frequency 

over the last four decades that leaves the swamps persistently inundated. Without 

restoration, the factors and processes that are contributing to stress and deterioration 

of the south Maurepas Swamp will continue. The result would be the loss of the 

swamp, eventually followed by a succession to open water. 

Project Cost Share: In accordance with the Water Resources Development Act of 

2007, the federal share of the Blind River Diversion project shall be 65 percent, and 

the state of Louisiana share of the Blind River Diversion project shall be 35 percent. 

The current Corps of Engineers total budget outlook for this project is $88,000,000. 


3) Project Title: East Grand Terre Island Restoration 




Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 



Parish CIAP Funds Proposed: $6,000,000.00 



Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $21,000,000.00 (FY2007 Louisiana); $2,493,224.00 

(FY2007 Plaquemines); $3,506,776.00 (FY2008 Plaquemines) 

Description and Location of Project: The project area is located in the lower 

Barataria Basin and is part of that basin’s barrier shoreline complex. East Grand 

Terre Island lies between Pass Abel and West Grand Terre Island to the west and 

Quatre Bayou Pass and Pointe Chenier Ronquille to the east, in southwestern 

121

Plaquemines Parish. The project will implement the restoration measures designed 

and engineered through the CWPPRA Program (CWPPRA project BA-30; project 

information available at www.lacoast.gov/projects/list.asp). This project was 

engineered, designed, and permitted and has received the necessary land rights for 

construction, through the CWPPRA program, in partnership with the NOAA 

Fisheries and LDNR. 

Summary of Project Benefits: 

• Restore 2.8 miles of barrier shoreline through construction of a 6 foot high dune 

with advanced nourishment. 

• Construct a 450 acre marsh platform north of and contiguous to the beach and 

dune fill to provide the foundation for continued shoreline rollover and retreat. 

• Create and restore 620 acres of barrier island immediately post-construction. 

• Provide 335 net acres at 20 years following project construction. 

Project Goals and Objectives: 

The goals of this project are to repair breaches and tidal inlets in the shoreline, and to 

reinforce the existing shoreline with sand. The design approach is to maximize 

surface area per unit volume for island stabilization and for dune, supratidal (i.e., 

swale), and intertidal marsh creation by preventing a breach (i.e., tidal inlet) with a 

20-year or lesser storm event. 

Project objectives are: 1) to construct 71 acres of dune platform to +6 feet North 

American Vertical Datum (NAVD-88), 82 acres of beach, and 450 acres of back 

barrier marsh on East Grand Terre; 2) to place marsh creation material at an elevation 

of +2.3 feet NAVD-88 and allow it to settle and dewater down to the intertidal range; 

3) to utilize effective planting schemes and sand fencing to maximize vegetative 

coverage and survival while providing increased dune stabilization; 4) to create tidal 

ponds and creeks and ensure tidal exchange by degrading retention dikes that do not 

naturally degrade. 


Project Justification: The high frequency of tropical storms, high bay and gulf 

shoreline erosion rates, subsidence of back barrier marshes, and lack of sand in an 

already sediment deprived system have caused the breakup of Grand Terre into two 

islands. In addition, these processes have resulted in the loss of terrestrial and marine 

barrier island habitats. 

After the creation of Pass Abel, the west end of East Grand Terre Island eroded until 

Bay Melville was open to the Gulf of Mexico. Since 1988 a spit has been extending 

in a west-northwesterly direction, enclosing Bay Melville once again. The angle 

between the shoreline of the recently formed spit and the 1884 shoreline is almost 45 

degrees. Given the 45 degree change in shoreline orientation between 1884 and 

2002, and reformation of the west half of the island rather than true shoreline 

recession, shoreline changes along East Grand Terre have been separated into two 

time periods. Shoreline changes between 1884 and 1988 have been calculated to be 

approximately 16 feet annually. Shoreline changes between 1988 and 2002 have 

been calculated at approximately 45 feet annually. 

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The proposed project is very important within the context of barrier shoreline 

restoration. As identified through the Coast 2050 and CWPPRA programs, barrier 

islands are among the highest ranked features to be restored, regarding area of need. 

Multiple other sections of the Plaquemines Parish barrier shoreline are being designed 

or constructed in a concerted effort to methodically and efficiently rebuild the 

degrading island segments. Also, millions of dollars and years of effort have already 

been dedicated to the project as it has progressed through the CWPPRA program. 



4) Project Title: Freshwater Bayou Bank Stabilization 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: Vermilion Parish/Clay Menard 


Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 


Linda Duhon 




Phone: (337) 898-4300 

Fax: (337) 898-4310 







(FY2008 Louisiana); $113,952.00 (FY2009 Vermilion); $1,454,852.00 (FY2010 

Vermilion) 

Description and Location of Project: This project consists of approximately 7 

miles of rock revetment shoreline protection along four critical areas of the 

Freshwater Bayou navigation canal. The project will focus primarily on the western 

bank reaches that have recently breached or are likely to breach in the near term. 

Critical areas on the eastern bank will also be targeted. 

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The four critical areas that this project is addressing start just south of where the 

Intracoastal Waterway intersects Freshwater Bayou and extend south to 

approximately a mile north of the Gulf of Mexico shoreline (center point of area 1 

West bank of Freshwater Bayou - 29º 45’ 56” N, 92º 11’ 14” W; center point of area 

2 East bank of Freshwater Bayou - 29º 45’ 44” N, 92º 10’ 53” W; center point of area 

3 West bank of Freshwater Bayou - 29º 34’ 17” N, 92º 18’ 6” W; and center point of 

area 3 East bank of Freshwater Bayou - 29º 36’ 6” N, 92º 17’ 6” W). If sufficient 

funds remain, the project may extend into the CWPPRA Freshwater Bayou Bank 

Stabilization (TV-11B) project area. 


Project Justification: Recent shoreline erosion rates along Freshwater Bayou range 

from 5-12 feet per year (1995-2003). Implementation of similar shoreline protection 

projects along Freshwater Bayou has halted the shoreline erosion along those reaches 

receiving such protection. At this time, the shoreline in the proposed project area has 

not breached. Armoring of the shoreline in these locations is intended to keep the 

shoreline from breaching so that salt water does not negatively impact the freshwater 

marshes and lakes in the Mermentau Basin. The western shoreline and associated 

spoil banks of Freshwater Bayou navigation canal provide an important barrier to 

saltwater intrusion into the freshwater marshes and lakes of the lower Mermentau 

Basin. The primary problem is that oil and gas support vessel traffic causes erosion 

of the banks, and the erosion and saltwater intrusion are a serious threat to the 

adjacent marshes and to the supply of fresh water. These resources are used to 

support rice and crawfish farming that are so important to the local economy. The 

effects of shoreline erosion are direct conversion of marsh to open water and the 

introduction of higher salinity waters to formerly fresh and intermediate marshes. 

Continued erosion and potential saltwater intrusion of those marshes is also 

considered a significant threat to LA Highway 82 and LA Highway 3147. Erosion 

along the waterway’s east bank is also a threat to adjacent marshes, including the 

National Audubon Society’s Paul J. Rainey Wildlife Refuge. This project will address 

the above wetland erosion and saltwater intrusion threat and has strong support from 

local residents and land owners. 



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5) Project Title: Fringe Marsh Repair 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: P. J. Hahn, Plaquemines Parish Coastal 

Zone Administrator; Plaquemines Parish Coastal Zone Advisory Committee 


P. J. Hahn 

Director of Coastal Restoration 




Phone: (504) 297-5629 

Fax: (504) 274-2463 






Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 



(FY2007 Plaquemines); $2,596,526.81 (FY2009 Plaquemines); $2,546,526.81 

(FY2010 Plaquemines). 

Description and Location of Project: This programmatic restoration effort in 

Plaquemines Parish is aimed at restoring approximately 300 acres of wetland area 

seaward of the back levee toe. There are several fringe marsh locations in need of 

restoration due to the breakup and fragmentation of those fringe marshes adjacent to 

the back levees’ bases. The areas currently identified for target dredging, which 

range in size from 10 to 50 acres, occur in the following locations: Port Sulphur – 

north of Martin Lane, Port Sulphur – north/south of Hi-Ridge Marina, Port Sulphur – 

Civic Drive boat launch, Port Sulphur – southeast of Swift Energy harbor, Homeplace 

– west of Gainard Woods pump station, Buras – southeast of Buras Boat Harbor, 

Pointe a la Hache – southeast of Beshel’s Marina, and Wills Point – southeast of 

Belair pump station. During the engineering and design phase of this program, the 

project sites and borrow areas will be located, designed and permitted. The program 

will target use of sediment from canals that require maintenance dredging. 


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Project Justification: If that fragmentation is allowed to continue, the integrity of the 

levees may be compromised. Lower Plaquemines Parish is part of the Mississippi 

River Basin which has an annual land loss rate of 1.3 square miles. Restoring the 

marshes through deposition of dredged material and the subsequent reestablishment 

of emergent wetland vegetation will help to protect the back levees from accumulated 

damage due to elevated water levels and storm surge forces. The back levees provide 

critical protection for businesses and residents. Restoring the fringe marshes will 

help protect the adjacent back levee reaches. 



6) Project Title: LA 1 Improvements - Fourchon to Leeville Bridge (Phase IA) 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: Louisiana Department of 

Transportation and Development 


Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 







(FY2008 Louisiana); $8,300,000.00 (FY2009 Louisiana); $540,269.48 (FY2007 

Lafourche); $540,269.48 (FY2008 Lafourche); $520,059.27 (FY2009 Lafourche); 

$514,691.39 (FY2010 Lafourche). 

Description and Location of Project: This project is located 60 miles south of New 

Orleans in lower Lafourche Parish between Leeville and Port Fourchon. It will 

construct a 5 mile long, two lane elevated highway (two, 12 ft lanes and two, 8 ft 

shoulders). The Phase IA project connects to the Phase IB and Phase IC projects (in 

Leeville) by relocating LA 1 on a new alignment. 

126

The CIAP funding for this project from the State for the LA1 project is 

$33,000,000.00 and from Lafourche Parish it is $2,230,000.00. In addition, there are 

three non-CIAP funding sources for this project: $24,000,000.00 of Federal Formula 

(advanced construction) funds, $25,872,000.00 of Federal earmark (SAFETEA-LU) 

funds, and $4,000,000.00 of State match funds. 


Project Justification: This new project will help address the transportation related 

effects of flooding and erosion caused by hurricanes and tropical storms by allowing 

immediate access to Port Fourchon and Grand Isle. Subsidence has also contributed 

to the flooding of existing LA 1, rendering the highway impassable even during 

minor storm events. Because of the port’s ties to the Gulf of Mexico, the percentage 

of truck traffic is unusually high (36.9%). The existing winding highway, coupled 

with the high percentage of trucks, has caused LA 1 to have an abnormally high 

accident rate. 

Many unique design features have been incorporated into this project, giving it a 100 

year life cycle. The new highway is elevated above the 500 year storm event (22.5 ft) 

and is designed to withstand extreme wind and wave forces. It has also been 

designed to withstand scour and collisions from marine vessels. Equally important is 

the implementation of current highway and safety standards on this Federal high 

priority corridor. 

This project had its Record of Decision on an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) 

completed in February 2003. Plans, proposals, utility agreements, permits and all 

rights-of-way have been completed since January 2006. This project is complete and 

ready to be let to bid. 

A Federal Highway Administration EIS explored the alternative of the retrofitting 

(raising) the existing highway and in a May 2004 Record of Decision deemed the 

elevated highway alternative the only cost-effective and safe solution. Many 

alternatives were studied and the most cost-effective alternatives were included in the 

plans and proposals. 

The LA 1 Improvement Project will secure connectivity between U.S. Highway 90 

and Port Fourchon, the busiest U.S. intermodal energy port, located in Lafourche 

Parish. In December of 2001 LA 1 was identified as a High Priority Corridor by the 

U.S. Congress for its role as critical energy infrastructure. Current OCS oil and gas 

activity has had a negative impact on LA 1, including congestion and deterioration, 

which has adversely affected the quality of life for the community. This significant 

impact warrants an appropriate, substantial mitigation measure, such as the Louisiana 

DOTD-designed LA 1 Improvement Project. 

127

The U.S. Minerals Management Service (MMS) clearly identified LA 1 as a “focal 

point of stress” in the Final Environmental Impact Statement for Gulf of Mexico Oil 

and Gas Lease Sales 169, 172, 175, 178, and 182 (MMS 97-0033). An additional 

MMS funded study published in 2001, Lafourche Parish and Port Fourchon, 

Louisiana: Effects of the Outer Continental Shelf Petroleum Industry on the Economy 

and Public Services, Part 1 (MMS 2001-019), further documents the strain LA 1 will 

experience as offshore oil and gas activities expand. The study also suggests that 

deterioration of LA 1 will also be exacerbated as oil and gas activities expand. The 

stress on this highway system was compounded by the hurricanes of 2005. Ports to 

the east and west were devastated by these storms and much of their workloads have 

moved to Port Fourchon. Already more than twice as deadly as the average road in 

its class, LA 1 south of Golden Meadow has experienced double-digit increases in 

traffic since the storms, and in March 2006 alone experienced three fatalities from 

two accidents that involved passenger vehicles colliding into trucks carrying goods to 

support OCS activities. 

Supporting the LA 1 Improvement Project with CIAP funds is sound, progressive 

national energy policy. With a design life of more than 100 years, the project will 

provide sustainable, dependable access to the deepwater Gulf of Mexico, the only 

expanding area of domestic production in this country. Critical to the nation, it will 

reduce U.S. vulnerability to potentially catastrophic energy shortages that would 

result from tropical systems washing out the existing road. Port Fourchon’s role in 

offshore oil and gas industries’ ability to resume energy production after the 

hurricanes of 2005 in unquestioned. In fact, Congress designated LA 1 as a highway 

of national significance immediately after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The road 

provides access to service facilities that support 16 to 18% of the U.S. total oil supply, 

both domestic and foreign. The nation’s only offshore oil port, LOOP (Louisiana 

Offshore Oil Port), situated just 18 miles south of Port Fourchon, is also dependent 

upon LA 1 for support services. LOOP offloads and stores about 1.2 million barrels 

per day of imported crude oil – approximately 14% of the nation’s imported 

waterborne crude oil. LOOP also handles about 300,000 barrels per day of domestic 

OCS crude oil and is expected to continue increasing its role in accommodating 

domestic production. A testament to LOOP’s ability to play an even larger role in 

future OCS production is the recent completion of six 500,000 barrel tanks in 

Galliano and a planned $300 million addition of another pipeline from Fourchon to 

Galliano. LA 1 is a vital link to LOOP’s Fourchon Booster Pump Station and to 

LOOP’s Harbor at Port Fourchon, which is a support and staging area for LOOP’s 

offshore facilities. It is the only U.S. deepwater port capable of offloading VLCCs 

(Very Large Crude Carriers) and ULCCs (Ultra Large Crude Carriers). LOOP is 

connected via pipeline to approximately 50% of the nation’s refining capacity. 

128

Positive environmental benefits to the region would be realized through the 

implementation of the LA 1 Improvement Project. LA 1 is the sole emergency 

environmental response route for Port Fourchon and Grand Isle, which, in addition to 

holding tremendous energy significance, are extremely important for access to and 

support of commercial and recreational fishing as well as to a growing eco-tourism 

industry. The Louisiana Oil Spill Coordinator has identified LA 1 as the most critical 

highway for oil spill response in the State. Another tremendous benefit that the LA 1 

project will provide to the State is its long-term effort to rebuild wetlands and reliable 

access to the coast. Port Fourchon and Grand Isle will play a major role in supporting 

Louisiana’s future coastal restoration efforts and will most likely be the support bases 

for barrier island restoration as well as offshore pipeline transfer of sediment for both 

the Eastern Terrebonne and Barataria Basins. 

In addition to these life safety, ecological/restoration, and commercial benefits to be 

gained by funding the LA 1 Improvement Project, the road also serves as the sole 

evacuation route for upwards of 30,000 people, including 8,000 offshore workers 

flown in from OCS facilities. An elevated dependable evacuation route will be 

invaluable as it would save lives and lower losses of personal property. The road is 

designed to clear high water storm surges (Category 5 Hurricane), and will provide 

immediate post-storm access to Port Fourchon and Grand Isle. This will allow 

emergency response services such as law enforcement, fire responders, public health 

officials, and debris clearance personnel to gain immediate access. As an added 

regional economic benefit, an elevated LA 1 will continue to serve as the only land 

route between two of this nation’s most productive estuaries; the Barataria and 

Terrebonne Basins. It is estimated that 70% of the state’s total value for commercial 

seafood landings is derived from the Barataria and Terrebonne systems. 

MMS is today planning a substantial expansion of lease programs in the Central and 

Western Areas of the Gulf of Mexico and it is predicted that the Deepwater Gulf of 

Mexico will produce 80% of the gulf’s oil by 2010. Port Fourchon’s unique position 

on the gulf will continue to provide the greatest efficiency for the oil and gas industry 

to service these new OCS developments. There is reasonable certainty that the 

benefits resulting from the implementation of the LA 1 Improvement Project will be 

substantial, very diverse, and sustainable over the long term, to both the State and the 

nation. 



129

7) Project Title: Lake Salvador Shoreline Protection (Phase III) 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: LDNR/Maury Chatellier 


Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 







(FY2007 St. Charles); $128,097.72 (FY2008 St. Charles) 

Description and Location of Project: This project is a continuation of shoreline 

protection project along the northwestern portion of Lake Salvador in St. Charles 

Parish. The project will consist of installing approximately 7,300 linear feet of rock 

dike at or near the minus 1.0 NAVD 88 contour. Openings will be installed in the 

rock dike at 1,000 foot intervals, to provide boat access and “fish dips” (access for 

aquatic organisms). Construction access will be via flotation channels excavated to 

minus 6.0 NAVD 88 or by direct placement (no flotation) in areas with sensitive 

cultural resources. 


Project Justification: The Lake Salvador shoreline is susceptible to erosion because 

of the long fetch across the lake, the vulnerable shoreline configuration, and the highly 

unconsolidated sediment base. These factors are responsible for the high shoreline 

erosion rate of approximately 13 feet/year, primarily at the expense of the adjacent fresh 

marsh. As with the other phases of shoreline protection along Lake Salvador, 

implementation of the project features are anticipated to reduce the shoreline erosion rate 

in the project area by approximately 50%. This chronic erosion has breached the lake 

shoreline in several locations, exposing fragile, highly organic marsh substrates to 

increased wave and tidal energy, resulting in large, shallow pond formation in the 

interior marsh. The existing shoreline protection project (CWPPRA, BA-15) 

completed construction in 2005. Numerous delays in project scheduling and financial 

limitations caused approximately 7,300 linear feet of rock dike to be eliminated from 

the previous phase of this project. This proposed CIAP-funded project would extend 

the current project to the limits of the original design. 



130

8) Project Title: Mississippi River Long Distance Sediment Pipeline 




Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 







(FY2008 Louisiana); $10,050,000.00 (FY2009 Louisiana); $904,163.91 (FY2010 

Jefferson); $1,000,000.00 (FY2010 Lafourche); $705,809.62 (FY2010 Plaquemines) 

Description and Location of Project: The primary goal of this project is to 

establish a long-distance pipeline capability for conveying Mississippi River 

sediments for land building (marsh and ridge) to strategic areas of the central 

Barataria Basin. The secondary goal of this project is to restore marsh, the amount of 

which will be defined during the engineering and design process. The currently 

envisioned 12 to 20 mile pipeline route/corridor would begin in the Myrtle Grove- 

Alliance area (Plaquemines Parish) and extend across Jefferson Parish to the west and 

northwest of Little Lake (in Lafourche Parish) and would be sufficient to support a 30 

inch slurry pipeline. The proposed project is expected to initially create 

approximately 200 acres of marsh and ridge habitat (including an area within the 

outflow plume of the proposed Myrtle Grove Diversion Project). The primary project 

purpose, however, is to identify and apply appropriate alignment, construction 

techniques and materials, and (as feasible) to reuse strategies and infrastructure for 

future, larger-scale, systemic-benefit marsh and ridge restoration and creation projects 

in the central Barataria Basin portions of the above parishes. Optimum 

implementation methods and alignment will be determined through careful evaluation 

of alternative pipeline engineering, design, construction, and re-use strategies, as well 

as investigations of alternative routes, land building sites, and associated land rights 

needs and availability. Adverse impacts to existing wetlands will be minimized by 

placing as much of the pipeline as feasible in open water areas. Extensive 

consultation with dredging and pipeline experts will be part of the planning and 

design process. 

131

Each of the above parishes will provide financial assistance for project construction, 

and the State will provide the primary technical and financial (CIAP) support. The 

State will involve the parishes throughout planning and design, and during project 

implementation, to ensure full consideration of their views. The project will also 

include an evaluation of existing sediment delivery projects in the general area (e.g., 

the Bayou Dupont and Lake Hermitage CWPPRA projects) to assess the potential for 

consolidation of similar efforts as well as application of lessons learned. 


Project Justification: Land loss rates in the central Barataria Basin are extremely 

high. It is projected that the West Point a la Hache mapping unit alone will experience 

a 28% loss of marsh between 1990 and 2050. Sediment delivery is the most effective 

way to restore marsh. Mississippi River sediment is a renewable and consistently 

available resource. The project is part of a larger, regional strategy to address coastal 

land loss. The State of Louisiana and three coastal parishes are willing to work 

cooperatively to publicly and financially support the project. 



9) Project Title: Morgan City Industrial Road 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: St. Mary Parish, Louisiana 


Henry “Bo” Lagrange 


St. Mary Parish Government 

500 Main Street, Fifth Floor Courthouse 

Franklin, LA 70538 

Phone: (337) 828-4100 

Fax: (337) 828-4092 


Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 


132




Infrastructure Funds Proposed: $837,114.00 

Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $335,000.00 (FY2007 Louisiana); $96,759.03 

(FY2009 St. Mary); $405,354.97 (FY2010 St. Mary). 

Description and Location of the Project: The project is located in Morgan City, St. 

Mary Parish, and Louisiana 

The area in Morgan City along the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW) / Bayou 

Boeuf and the Atchafalaya River south of Adams Street serves three large industrial 

facilities and a museum, namely Newpark Environmental Services, Baker Hughes 

Inteq, Central Boat Rentals, and the Mr. Charlie Rig Museum. The Morgan City 

Floodwall protects and separates the adjacent residential neighborhoods, but it limits 

road access to the industrial facilities and the museum. Although this area is a heavy 

industrialized zone, the current truck route connecting to U.S. Highway 90 must pass 

through residential neighborhoods along First, Second, and Third Streets, Federal 

Avenue, Barrow Street, and Union Street. An estimated 75 to 100 trucks use this 

route daily, affecting 65 residences. Local residents have expressed a need to reroute 

the truck traffic away from their neighborhoods. 

The proposed project feature is a road alignment that begins at the First Street 

floodgate but on the unprotected side of the floodwall on the Baker Hughes Inteq 

lease. The alignment will proceed along the unprotected side of the floodwall a 

distance of 1857 feet through property leased by Newpark Environmental. This 

alignment ends at the Port of Morgan City’s north gate. 

The project goal is to reduce the truck traffic through the residential neighborhoods 

by rerouting the traffic through the proposed realigned road. 

The preliminary project benefit is to provide more road access to the industrial 

facilities and the museum through the proposed new road, and decrease the traffic in 

the residential area. The CIAP funds with be partnered with $335,000 from the 

State’s Capital Outlay Program to complete this project. 


Project Justification: The traffic improvement proposed here will be utilized for 

trucks that carry oil and gas industry service goods, including those needed for OCS 

operations. The new bypass will provide much-needed relief to the residential areas 

by reducing the truck traffic by an estimated 90%. 

133

The proposed alignment crosses a wetland area and requires the extension of the 

discharge pipes from the Federal Avenue drainage pump station. A USACE 404 

wetland permit with mitigation may be required as well as a bulkhead across an 

existing slip, a portion of which will be filled to facilitate construction of the new 

road. The minimum roadway elevation is equal to the Second Street Floodgate (6.85 

feet) to allow access during periods of high water in the GIWW/ Bayou Boeuf. A 28- 

foot-wide pavement with aggregate shoulders and swale ditches will be required. A 

required right of way will be needed from eight property owners, and the Newpark 

Environmental facility may need to move to another location since much of the 

useable workspace in their facility is needed for the road’s right-of-way. 



10) Project Title: Orleans Land Bridge Shoreline Protection 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: City of New Orleans Mayor’s Office of 

Environmental Affairs 



Advisor and Director, Coastal and Environmental Affairs 



Phone: (504) 658-4074; Fax: (504) 658-4938 



Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 






(FY2007 Orleans); $1,400,000.00 (FY2008 Louisiana); $3,773,991.48 (FY2008 

Orleans); $17,150,000.00 (FY2009 Louisiana); $3,610,110.69 (FY2009 Orleans); 

$3,572,848.05 (FY2010 Orleans). 

134

Description and Location of Project: The project is located in the Pontchartrain 

Basin, in eastern Orleans Parish along the Lake Borgne shoreline between Bayou 

Bienvenue and Alligator Point. The project will build approximately 41,000 feet of 

rock breakwater. 


Project Justification: High wave energy, sea level rise, and subsidence are 

impacting wetland shorelines and interior marshes adjacent to Lakes Pontchartrain, 

Borgne, and St. Catherine. These effects threaten to connect the waterways of the 

Chef Menteur Pass and the Rigolets. Those water bodies all outline the East Orleans 

Land Bridge and are located in the Pontchartrain Basin. As noted in both the Coast 

2050 and the Louisiana Coastal Area (LCA) plans, this critical land bridge forms a 

barrier between Lake Pontchartrain and Lake Borgne; those lakes are hydrologically 

connected to the Gulf of Mexico. Along Lake Borgne between Bayou Bienvenue and 

Alligator Point, there has been continued loss of shoreline and inland ponds have 

widened. 

The shoreline erosion rate of the adjacent CWPPRA Alligator Bend Marsh 

Restoration and Shoreline Protection PO-34 (extending easterly from Alligator Bend 

for approximately 38,140 feet) averages about 5 feet annually. This proposed CIAP 

project would effectively halt a similar rate of shoreline erosion rate for the 50,000 

feet of shoreline to be protected from erosion, which (due to the impact of the MRGO 

and the GIWW) is believed to be much higher than the documented 1988-2005 rate of 

1.92% in the proposed CWPPRA project area to the east. 

The proposed project will protect 1,400 acres of marsh by reducing the shoreline 

erosion rate by 100%. The project would maintain part of the East Orleans Land 

Bridge shoreline and protect Orleans and St. Bernard parish infrastructure and 

communities. Shoreline protection features would maintain structural components of 

the coastal ecosystem in the Pontchartrain Basin. Loss of this marshland threatens 

not only wetland habitat, but also the safety of some of the most densely developed 

portions of New Orleans. 



135

11) Project Title: Port of Iberia Bridge Replacement – David Duboin Road over 

Commercial Canal 



Sally Angers 





Phone: (337) 365-8246 

Fax: (337) 369-4470 






Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $449,999.86 (FY2007 Iberia); $0.14 (FY2008 Iberia); 

$570,000.00 (FY2007 Louisiana). 

Description and Location of Project: The project is located in Iberia Parish, and 

will aid the Port of Iberia in its day to day operations. This project will replace the 

bridge on David Duboin Road over Commercial Canal. The existing bridge is 

approximately 24 feet wide by 70 feet long. 


Project Justification: The Port of Iberia handles a substantial amount of OCS 

produced products and the large equipment used in transporting these products takes a 

major toll on the port’s bridges and roadways. 


Duration: 30 Months 

136

12) Project Title: Port of Iberia Bridge Replacement – Port Road over Commercial 

Canal 



Sally Angers 





Phone: (337) 365-8246 

Fax: (337) 369-4470 






Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $40,000.00 (FY2007 Iberia); $500,000.00 (FY2007 

Louisiana); $130,745.00 (FY2008 Iberia); $110,000.00 (FY2009 Iberia) 


will aid the Port of Iberia in its day to day operations. This project will replace the 

bridge on Port Road over Commercial Canal. The existing bridge is approximately 

24 feet wide and 76 feet long. 



produced products and the large equipment used in transporting these products take a 

major toll on the ports’ bridges and roadways. 


Duration: 42 Months 

137

13) Project Title: Trosclair Road Repairs 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: Cameron Parish Police Jury 


Earnestine T. Horn 

P.O. Box 1280 

Cameron, LA 70631 

Phone: (337) 905-1189 

Fax: (337) 905-1191 





Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 



Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $400,000.00 (FY2007 Louisiana); $675,986.65 

(FY2007 Cameron); $675,986.65 (FY2008 Cameron); $287,618.91 (FY2009 

Cameron) 

Description and Location of Project: Trosclair Road is a parish road that is heavily 

used by oilfield traffic. The proposed project will overlay this road, which is 

approximately 8 miles long and connects State Highway 27/82 from Cameron to State 

Highway 82 to Oak Grove. 


Project Justification: The development of the OCS and the oil and gas industry in 

Louisiana has caused rapid deterioration of Cameron Parish roads. Many truckers 

carrying OCS-support materials think this road is a part of the State highway system 

and use it in en route from Texas through Cameron to Vermilion Parish. The road is 

in dire need of an overlay. 



138

14) Project Title: Project Name: Violet Diversion 




Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 







(FY2010 St. Bernard) 

Description and Location of Project: Louisiana’s Comprehensive Coastal 

Protection Master Plan includes implementation of a freshwater diversion structure at 

Violet that will eventually provide substantial benefit to the Biloxi Marshes. The 

scope of that project is beyond the financial capability of the CIAP. The project will 

be designed and adaptively managed so that the introduced, controlled river flows and 

associated fresh water, sediments and nutrients will achieve the following goals: 

1. Enhance the sustainability and productivity of coastal wetlands, including but 

not limited to, those in the Central Wetlands and Biloxi Marsh complexes; 

2. Optimize salinity in western Mississippi Sound sufficient to meet, or maximize 

the ability to meet the salinity levels identified in the 1984 Corps of Engineers 

feasibility report on the Mississippi and Louisiana Estuarine Areas: Freshwater 

Diversion to Lake Pontchartrain Basin and Mississippi Sound; 

3. Enhance production of fish and wildlife, including oysters, in Mississippi 

Sound, consistent with the coastal wetlands goal above; and 

4. Avoid detrimental impacts to adjacent communities as a result of operations of 

the Violet Diversion project. 

The adaptive management of the diversion structure and associated inflows will be 

guided by the above project goals, analysis of operations, management and 

monitoring data collected during operation; and assessment of changing project-area 

and river conditions. 

139

Due to CIAP deadlines for the completion and closeout of all projects, CIAP funds 

will only be used for the required cost share for the feasibility design of this project. 


Project Justification: The Central Wetlands formerly contained extensive cypress 

swamp and fresh to low salinity marshes. Those wetlands were severely impacted by 

the hydrologic changes (including elevated salinity levels) primarily attributed to the 

MRGO. Those changes have been aggravated by a lack of fresh water, nutrient, and 

sediment inflow. Lack of riverine inflow lowers productivity and allows salt stress. 

The larger estuary, including the adjacent Biloxi Marshes, continues to convert to 

more-saline habitat due to saltwater intrusion. Historical habitats that thrived when 

the estuary was more sustainable have shifted substantially. Oyster productivity 

declined dramatically after construction of the MRGO, and the healthy cypress 

swamp was transformed into open water and deteriorating brackish marsh. Similar 

issues have also been identified along the Mississippi coastline and Mississippi 

Sound. Wetland loss is expected to accelerate unless freshwater reintroduction 

projects are constructed to increase productivity. 

Project Cost Share: In accordance with the Water Resources Development 

Act of 2007, the federal share of the project shall be 75 percent, and in accordance 

with the Mississippi and Louisiana Estuarine Areas: Freshwater Diversion to Lake 

Pontchartrain Basin and Mississippi Sound feasibility study agreement of 1984, the 

state of Louisiana shall be responsible for a 20 percent share of the project and the 

state of Mississippi shall be responsible for a 5 percent share of the project. The 2007 

WRDA further specifies non-federal financing requirements, escrow, deposits by 

Louisiana, and the issue of credit for non-federal work on the Violet Diversion 

Project. The current Corps of Engineers total budget outlook for this project is 

$260,000,000. 


140

15) Project Title: West Caminada Headland Beach/Dune Restoration and Marsh Creation 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: Fourchon Region Restoration Initiative/ 

Cathy Norman 


Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 






Mr. Al Levron 


8026 Main Street 

Houma, LA 70361 

Phone: (985) 873-6407 

Fax: (985)-873-6409 


Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $773,875.00(FY2007 Terrebonne); $2,496,778.00 

(FY2008 Terrebonne); $3,177,259.50(FY2009 Terrebonne); $552,087.50(FY2010 

Terrebonne); $5,200,000.00(FY2008 Louisiana); $8,731,589.00(FY2009 Louisiana); 

$19,068,411.00(FY2010 Louisiana). 

Description and Location of Project: The proposed project will restore and protect 

approximately 73 acres of marsh and 183 acres of beach and dune habitat across the 

western 2.3 miles of Caminada Headland through the direct placement of sediment 

(sandy material for the beach and dune habitat and mixed finer sediment for the 

marsh habitat) from near shore and potentially offshore borrow areas. In addition 

sand fence will be placed and native beach and marsh vegetation will be planted to 

stabilize and conserve the newly placed sediment. The proposed project site is 

located in Lafourche Parish along Caminada Headland, extending from the Belle Pass 

jetties on the western terminus of the Headland at the entrance of Port Fourchon, to 

the South Pass Fourchon area just east of the Chevron Fourchon Facility. The center 

of the project area is located at the approximate coordinates 29° 06 '3.29" N latitude 

and 90° 12' 17.04" W longitude. The proposed project comprises the westernmost 

end of the Caminada Headland component of the Barataria Basin Barrier Shoreline 

Restoration. This project was identified as a critical near-term restoration project in 

the LCA Ecosystem Restoration Study. 

141


Project Justification: Over the last 100 years, the Caminada Headland has 

experienced an average shoreline erosion rate of 45 feet/year. The overall goal of this 

project is to maintain the headland reach of the Barataria Shoreline, help sustain 

significant and unique coastal habitats (e.g., back-barrier marshes, chenier ridges, and 

mangroves), protect threatened and endangered species, and provide a sediment 

source for areas east and west of the headland. Incidental benefits from this ecologic 

restoration will protect Port Fourchon, local and State highways and the only 

hurricane evacuation route available to the region. This project helps to address 

critical ecological needs and will restore and protect essential geomorphic features to 

help create a sustainable ecosystem in the Barataria Basin. The project is synergistic 

with future restoration by maintaining or restoring the integrity of Louisiana’s 

coastline. The draft feasibility study and environmental impact statement for the 

Barataria Basin Barrier Shoreline Project, of which this proposed project is a part, is 

scheduled for fall 2007. 



16) Project Title: Falgout Canal Freshwater Enhancement 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: Terrebonne Parish Consolidated 

Government 


Al Levron 


P.O. Box 2768 


Phone: (985) 873-6407 

Fax: (985) 873- 6409 


Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 


142





Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $2,590,800.17 (FY2007 Terrebonne); $867,897.17 

(FY2008 Terrebonne); $2,592,376.66 (FY2010 Terrebonne); $1,000,000.00 (FY2009 

Louisiana); $2,300,000.00 (FY2010 Louisiana) 

Description and Location of Project: The proposed project area is located in the 

Terrebonne Basin of CWPPRA Region 3, Terrebonne Parish, in the marshes adjacent 

to Falgout Canal, between Bayou Dularge and the Houma Navigation Canal. This 

project would include construction/modification of an inlet structure at a site located 

on the HNC north of Falgout Canal, modeling of the basin, along with channel 

improvements, as necessary, to improve efficiency of freshwater flow within the 

basin area. In addition, existing structures along Falgout Canal would be improved 

and/or replaced to facilitate operation and maintenance concerns, and the possible 

placement of shoreline protection along unprotected areas of the HNC. If sufficient 

funding exists, the project could be expanded to facilitate movement of freshwater, 

nutrients, and sediment to the hydrologic unit south of Falgout Canal. Project 

benefits include freshwater flow enhancements to approximately 5,000 acres of 

existing marsh. The goal of this project is to restore project-area salinities to levels 

that are favorable for fresh and intermediate marshes. 


Project Justification: The marshes located in the project area have been 

hydrologically isolated from historical flow patterns by construction of various 

navigation channels, including the Houma Navigation Canal (HNC) and the Falgout 

Canal. Because of these barriers, the prevailing hydrologic influence is confined to 

southern tidal flows, which has resulted in elevated salinity and land loss in 

historically fresh and intermediate marshes. By reestablishing the historical northsouth 

flow, the project will expand the zone of beneficial Atchafalaya River 

influence. This will be done by modifying water flow patterns to include those 

marsh areas that have suffered catastrophic loss due to hydrologic isolation and 

salinity intrusion. The marshes are expected to benefit from reduced salinity and 

enhanced distribution of fresh water and associated nutrients. 

143

This project meets the Coast 2050, Region 3, Strategy 4 to enhance Atchafalaya 

River influence to Terrebonne marshes, excluding the upper Penchant Basin. In 

addition, the project meets the restoration goals identified by the Strategic Plan for 

Coastal Restoration adopted by the Terrebonne Parish Coastal Zone Management 

and Restoration Advisory Committee and supported by the Terrebonne Parish 

Council, as well as the goals and objectives of the specified action plans of the 

Barataria- Terrebonne National Estuary Program. This project concept was 

developed as part of a project for the CWPPRA Priority Planning List 16, but was 

not selected for continued investigation. No engineering or design funds have been 

spent on this project. 



144

Parish-Funded Tier One Projects 


1) Project Title: Attakapas Canal Hydrologic Restoration 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: Assumption Parish Police Jury 



P.O. Box 520 

Napoleonville, LA 70390 

Phone: (985) 369-7386 

Fax: (985) 369-7341 




State CIAP Funds Proposed: $0 

Infrastructure Funds Proposed: None 


Description and Location of Project: Lake Verret is located in west-central 

Assumption Parish. Many of the lake’s tributaries carry excessive amounts of 

sediment, nutrients, and pesticides that are having an adverse effect on water quality, 

both within the canals and in Lake Verret itself. Historically, Attakapas Canal 

extended up to Napoleonville and heavy loads of sediment and nutrients have flowed 

downstream from the sugarcane fields into Lake Verret. Today, Attakapas Canal is 

little more than a small watercourse feeding into Lake Verret. With a total length of 

roughly 2,400 feet, and accretion reducing the flows both into and out of Attakapas 

Canal, the canal is fast becoming extremely poor in terms of aquatic habitat. The 

proposed project will remove (via hydraulic dredge) accumulated sediment from 

shallow areas of Lake Verret, and beneficially use that material. Additional on-site 

bathymetric survey, sediment, and dissolved oxygen data and related analysis will be 

required during the engineering and design phase of this project to accurately depict 

baseline conditions in the project area and to provide the basis for evaluating the 

effectiveness of the implemented project features. Pre-implementation data collection 

and analysis will facilitate development and refinement of measurable project goals 

for the project. 

145

The project objective is to remove accumulated sediment from Attakapas Canal at its 

intersection with Lake Verret for a distance of approximately 2,000 feet inland 

(including adjacent to a public boat launch) and beneficially use the sediment to 

restore approximately 12 acres of bald cypress habitat along the shoreline of Lake 

Verret. Bald cypress will be planted, at a rate of 302 trees per acre, to reestablish the 

cypress swamp habitat that once existed in this area along the Lake Verret shoreline. 

The sediment deposited to reestablish bald cypress swamp habitat along the lake 

shoreline will be placed at an elevation and in such a way as to not impede the sheet 

flow of water into and out of the swamp once the project is completed. 


Project Justification: In general, degradation of aquatic habitat via excessive 

sediment inflow is typical in a basin where agricultural runoff has historically 

dominated the inputs to the system. In a freshwater lake system such as Lake Verret, 

high levels of agricultural runoff means that degradation of water quality (low 

dissolved oxygen) is to be expected. Impaired ecosystem function can occur when 

drainage routes become blocked by sediment deposition. There have been numerous 

reports of water quality problems, fish kills, and accelerated sediment accretion, 

within the Lake Verret system. The USGS has documented very high rates of 

sediment accretion in the lake. Restoring the hydrologic connection between 

Attakapas Canal and Lake Verret will improve water quality, fisheries habitat, and 

sport fishing access within the canal itself. Furthermore, the anticipated water quality 

improvement in that canal, as well as the restoration of cypress swamp along the lake 

shoreline, will benefit the overall health of the Lake Verret aquatic ecosystem. 

Project Cost Share (Non-CIAP Funds): None 


2) Project Title: Lake Verret Swamp and Lake Rim Restoration 




P.O. Box 520 


Phone: (985) 369-7386 

Fax: (985) 369-7341 





146


Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $1,464,263.20 (FY2007); $439,263.20 (FY2008); 

$1,430,190.39 (FY2009); $1,415,428.74 (FY2010). 

Description and Location of Project: Lake Verret is located in west-central 

Assumption Parish. The proposed project will use a hydraulic dredge to remove 

accumulated sediment from shallow areas of Lake Verret, and beneficially use that 

material. The project objective is to remove accumulated sediment from Lake Verret 

and beneficially place the sediment on the deteriorating lake rim and adjacent swamp 

habitat, or in abandoned oil field access channels along the shoreline of Lake Verret. 

An estimate of the acreage that the dredged material will benefit will be better 

determined once the surveys of the surrounding areas are completed which will yield 

the depths of the areas to be filled. The acreage that will be benefited will also depend 

on the volume of solids that will remain after dewatering in the dredged material 

which will be determined by the sampling of the material present in the areas to be 

dredged. The project will target areas of high sedimentation in Lake Verret and will 

remove and beneficially re-use approximately 180,000 cubic yards of accumulated 

sediment from Lake Verret. Cypress seedlings and vegetation will also be planted in 

the areas where the dredged materials are deposited to assist in stabilizing the soil and 

to replenish the lost shoreline. 


Project Justification: The USGS has documented very high rates sediment accretion 

in Lake Verret. One approach to addressing the excessive sedimentation of Lake 

Verret’s shallow waters and the water quality of Lake Verret and adjacent swamp 

habitats is the careful dredging of accumulated sediment from those waters and the 

establishment of desirable native plants on the deposited dredged material. 




1) Project Title: Rabbit Island 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: Calcasieu Parish Police Jury and 

Stream Wetland Services, LLC 


Pam Mattingly, Assistant Director of Planning 


P.O. Drawer 3287 

Lake Charles, LA 70602 

Phone: (337) 721-3600 

Fax: (337) 437-3586 


147


Total Parish Funds Proposed: $1,500,000.00 

Total State Funds Proposed: $0 


Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $1,500,000.00 (FY2010 Calcasieu); $500,000.00 

(FY2010 Cameron). 

Description and Location of Project: The project is located in the Calcasieu-Sabine 

Basin, in the West Cove of Calcasieu Lake. The goal of the project is to restore 

approximately 200 acres of pelican nesting (final construction elevation between 2.0 

and 2.9 NAVD 1988) and marsh habitat (final construction elevation between 0.00 

and 1.9 NAVD 1988) to Rabbit Island by adding sediment, through the beneficial use 

of sediment dredged from the Calcasieu Ship Channel, and 2,500 linear feet of small 

limestone shoreline protection to the west corner of Rabbit Island. Calcasieu Parish is 

partnering with Cameron Parish to fund this project through CIAP ($1,500,000 

Calcasieu Parish CIAP Funding and $500,000 Cameron Parish CIAP Funding). 


Project Justification: Rabbit Island has subsided over time, partially due to 

increased tidal amplitudes from the Calcasieu Ship Channel. It is a vital waterbird 

nesting colony. Nesting attempts are often destroyed due to the increased flooding of 

the island. The first brown pelicans were seen there in 2001 or 2002 and they are 

now nesting annually. 

Rabbit Island is a natural habitat for the Louisiana State bird, the brown pelican. 

Storm surge inundated the island during Hurricane Rita and some land loss occurred. 


Duration: This project will likely take 18 months. The timing of this project will 

have to be in conjunction with the dredging cycles near the Island, which occur 

approximately every three years. 

2) Project Title: Clear Marais Bank Protection 







Phone: (337) 721-3600 

Fax: (337) 437-3586 


148





Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $80,097.00 (FY2008); $1,919,903.00 (FY2009) 

Description and Location of Project: The project is located north of the Gulf 

Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW) approximately 10 miles northwest of Hackberry in 

Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana. The goal of this project is to extend the rock armored 

shoreline stabilization by approximately one mile along the GIWW to prevent 

continued erosion of the GIWW levee and to prevent the encroachment of the GIWW 

into the marshes north. 


Project Justification: The goal of this project is to extend the shoreline stabilization 

project features of the adjacent CWPPRA Clear Marais Bank Protection project (CS- 

22; project information available at www.lacoast.gov/projects/list.asp). The shoreline 

erosion in this area is approximately 16 feet annually and the implementation of the 

project is projected to halt the erosion. A 35,000-foot limestone breakwater was 

constructed in 1997 to prevent continued erosion of the levee and to prevent 

encroachment of the GIWW into the project area. Vegetation plantings were used to 

enhance the bank protection and promote sediment trapping. A continuation of this 

project is needed to further protect and conserve the area. Breaches in the GIWW 

have led to marsh loss in the Clear Marais area because of its increased exposure to 

saltwater intrusion, boat wakes, and tidal scour. As a result, erosion of the north bank 

of the GIWW threatens not only the water management levees to its north but also the 

marshes protected by the levees. The water management area protected by this 

project includes 500 acres of fresh marsh and 25 acres of open water. 


Duration: 18 to 24 months 

3) Project Title: Horseshoe Lake Marsh Restoration 








Phone: (337) 721-3600 

Fax: (337) 437-3586 


149

Total CIAP Funds Proposed $2,000,000.48 




Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $660,195.24 (FY2007); $1,339,805.24 (FY2008) 

Description and Location of Project: The project is a 1,200 acre marsh 

restoration/protection project located in Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana, approximately 

3.0 miles northwest of Hackberry. The entire area is almost completely enclosed by 

an existing levee system. The entire system of levees was severely degraded and in 

some places on adjoining property, was completely breached by Hurricane Rita’s 

storm surge. This project area contained a freshwater marsh that has been managed 

as such for many years. 

This project proposes four different components: 

1. Two water control structures (the structures will be at least a 48” 

structure and will be accurately sized during the engineering and 

design phase of this project) on the GIWW; 

2. 3.5 miles of new levee construction; 

3. Repair of 4100 feet of existing levee on the eastern and western 

boundaries; and 

4. Placement of approximately one mile of rip rap rock dike along the 

GIWW. In addition, the landowner will plant native vegetation, at his 

own cost, behind the rip rap rock dike following installation of the 

dike. 

This area has been maintained as a managed freshwater marsh area for many years 

and has sustained significant populations of freshwater fish (largemouth bass, perch, 

gar, etc.) and wildlife species. The emergent marsh vegetation was a mixture of 

Spartina patens, cattail, bulrush, and other species. Most of the open water areas 

contained extensive populations of aquatic vegetation such as coontail, milfoil, pond 

weed, water lily, and lotus. 

Hurricane Rita’s storm surge flooded over this entire area, causing levee erosion and 

breaches. Therefore, this project proposes repair of the existing levees, which make 

up the western and eastern boundaries; establishing new levees along the southern 

side; installing a freshwater/sediment introduction structure; and installing a rock dike 

along the banks of the GIWW from the salt ditch to the western property line. The 

freshwater introduction structure will allow for better water level management, 

introduction of fresh water/sediment from the GIWW, and reestablishment of 

freshwater vegetative and wildlife species. The new levee will divide the marsh into 

an independent management unit that will allow for greater ease in water level 

150

management and will reduce the amount of wind fetch across the open water areas. 

Most of the existing open water areas is very shallow and has a filmy bottom; 

therefore, these water management tools will help the areas become emergent marsh. 

Finally, the rock dike along the G1WW will protect the existing northern levee from 

erosion. 


Project Justification: Implementation of the project features is anticipated to reduce 

salinity levels in this historically fresh and intermediate marsh to below 5 ppt. Since 

Hurricane Rita affected the area, salinities have been as high as 19 to 20 ppt in that 

portion of the project area adjacent to the GIWW. This project area is very important 

to the entire Black Lake basin. This area has been severely impacted by oil and gas 

exploration and contains few areas of healthy marsh. Managed units are the only 

healthy areas. This project will play a vital role in protecting the Black Lake oil 

fields and the Hackberry Strategic Oil Reserve from becoming a part of the GIWW or 

Calcasieu Lake. The GIWW is continuously eroding the areas along the southern 

banks and at times conveys salt water from the Calcasieu Ship Channel to these areas. 

Without protection from the dynamic effects of ship traffic on the GIWW, these 

marshes will degrade quickly and expose the entire basin to the effects of storm 

surge, wind fetch, and saltwater intrusion. 

This project is vital to the adjacent marsh impoundments to the south, west, and 

southwest of this area. This marsh unit is helping to protect over 3000 acres of 

fresh/intermediate marsh from intrusion by the Calcasieu Ship Channel via the salt 

ditch and GIWW. 



4) Project Title: Shoreline Protection at Intracoastal Park 








Phone: (337) 721-3600 

Fax: (337) 437-3586 


151





Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $209,951.00 (FY2007); $790,049.00 (FY2008) 

Description and Location of Project: This project is located on the south side of the 

Gulf Intracoastal Waterway at LA Highway 27 at Ellender Bridge, which is also the 

northern property boundary of the Intracoastal Park of Calcasieu Parish. The goal of 

the project is to restore the existing shoreline protection and stabilization for 

approximately 760 feet and to restore and revegetate the land that was eroded behind 

the failed existing rock structure. The project will consist of placing cellular concrete 

block revetment along the failed existing rock structure. 


Project Justification: The shoreline on the south side of the Gulf Intracoastal 

Waterway (GIWW) is eroding at Intracoastal Park. The shoreline along other 

portions of the GIWW has been documented to have erosion rates as high as 16 feet 

per year. The Calcasieu Parish Police Jury previously installed a rock shoreline 

protection project at this location in an attempt to ameliorate the erosion problem. 

Unfortunately, that project has not proven effective for the long term. Calcasieu 

Parish would like to replace the approximately 760 feet of existing rock shoreline 

protection with a cellular concrete block revetment along the existing shoreline in an 

effort to halt the shoreline erosion. It is anticipated that approximately 3 acres of 

eroded land will be restored at Intracoastal Park on the protected side of the proposed 

revetment. Intracoastal Park is open to the public. The park provides public access to 

adjacent coastal waters located within the Calcasieu River estuary. 


Duration: Two to Three years 

5) Project Title: Marsh Creation Via Beneficial Use-Marcantel Supplemental 

Beneficial Use Disposal Area (MSBUDA) Project 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: Calcasieu Parish Police Jury and the 

Lake Charles Harbor & Terminal District (Port) 






(337) 721-3600 

(337) 437-3586 


152






Description and Location of Project: The project focuses on marsh building by 

beneficially utilizing dredged material from the Calcasieu Ship Channel in the 

northwest corner of the Black Lake area just south and adjacent to the GIWW, 

restoring approximately 650 acres of subsided marsh at an estimated cost of $4.7 

million, of which the parish would fund $1,339,805. This project will provide 

additional barrier protection to the GIWW during storm events. The location of this 

site is such that it will utilize the newly created marsh as a protection barrier filling a 

narrowing strip of land. 


Project Justification: Regional subsidence has caused approximately 30,000 acres to 

be lost in the Calcasieu Lake area. The bay bottom substrate has dropped such that 

water column heights no longer support marsh plant species. Prior to the loss of 

marsh habitat, wave energy was attenuated by marsh vegetation, thus protecting 

nearby shorelines from erosion. Although subsidence rates have decreased to near 

background rates, exposed shorelines continue to experience some subsidence. 



have to be in conjunction with the dredging cycles near the site, which occur 


6) Project Title: South GIWW Restoration 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: Cameron Parish 


Pam Mattingly 




Phone: (337)721-3600 

Fax: (337) 437-3586 


153


Total Parish Funds Proposed: $628,532.14 




Description and Location of Project: This proposal refers to the Chenier Plain 

portion of Coast 2050, Region 4, West Black Lake and Black Lake mapping units. 

The project features are located south of the GIWW in the north central portion of 

Cameron Parish (the center of the project feature is located approximately at latitude 

30º 3’ 23” N and longitude 93º 25’ 29” W). Project features include the installation 

of a new water control structure (two 36 inch culverts); and the refurbishment of three 

miles of adjacent levees damaged by Hurricane Rita. The objective of the proposed 

project is to restore pre-Hurricane Rita salinity and water levels to approximately 

2,500 acres of marsh. 


Project Justification: The new structures will reduce saltwater intrusion into the 

project area and restore historic salinity and hydrologic regimes. Without this project 

the 2,500-acre freshwater marsh area will experience extensive loss. Implementation 

of the project is anticipated to reduce salinity levels in this historically fresh and 

intermediate marsh. Current salinities in that area can be as high as 20 ppt. 

As stated in Coast 2050, in the past, major navigation/ship channels and exploration 

canals altered the hydrology and were responsible for most of the marsh loss in 

Regions 3 and 4. The majority of the coastal acres in Regions 3 and 4 are within 

management units that were established due to the impacts of man made channels, 

and it is clear that restoration and maintenance of those sites is critical to prevent 

future loss of interior marsh. The need for long term sustainability of the Chenier 

Plain has been well identified in Region 4 under local and common strategies. 

Hydrologic restoration is a local strategy recommended for nearly all Region 4 

mapping units. This proposal describes the measures that will achieve those goals. It 

has been well identified that there are limited opportunities in the Chenier Plain to use 

sediment laden water to increase marsh elevation. The restoration features in this 

proposal will ensure that the Chenier Plain maintains the features to sustain vertical 

accumulation through organic matter production and retention. 


Duration: 18 months 

154


1) Project Title: Bank Stabilization - Dugas Cut to Kelso Bayou 




P.O. Box 1280 


(337) 905-1189 (phone) 

(337) 905-1191 (fax) 







Description and Location of Project: This project will be designed to continue 

construction of approximately two miles of rip-rap dike from Dugas Landing to Kelso 

Bayou and reclaim eroded channel bank utilizing spoil material from dredging 

activities when additional sources of funding become availabe. The project features 

will be located in the west central portion of Cameron Parish (the center of the project 

feature is located approximately at latitude 29º 49’ 18” N and longitude 93º 44’ 

58”W). 


Project Justification: This project will result in the design of a project that will 

provide for the protection and reclamation of property along the Calcasieu Ship 

Channel. This channel is used for OCS activities that directly contribute to the 

erosion along the channel. The shoreline erosion rate in this area is estimated at 0.6 

meters annually from 1998-2005 based on analysis of aerial photography. 

Implementation of the project features will halt the shoreline erosion rate in the 

project area. 



155

2) Project Title: East Little Pecan Bayou Restoration 




P.O. Box 1280 


Phone: (337) 905-1189 

Fax: (337) 905-1191 







$83,470.70 (FY2009) 


portion of Coast 2050, Region 4, Little Pecan mapping unit. The project features are 

located along Little Pecan Bayou in the south central portion of Cameron Parish (the 

center of the project feature is located approximately at latitude 29º 47’ 18” N and 

longitude 92º 47’ 518”W). Project features include the installation of one bulkhead 

with four 48 inch water control structures at the location of an existing plug. The 

objective of the proposed project is to repair the water control structures so that pre- 

Hurricane Rita salinity and water levels can be restored to approximately 1,500 acres 

of marsh. 


Project Justification: The purpose of the structures is to restore flow into Little 

Pecan Bayou and reestablish historic hydrologic regimes to the Little Pecan Bayou 

system which affects approximately 1,500 acres of marsh. Implementation of the 

project is expected to reduce salinity in this historically fresh and intermediate marsh 

from levels which can be as high as 20 ppt, to below 5 ppt. 








156








Duration: One Year 

3) Project Title: Little Chenier Road 




P.O. Box 1280 


Phone: (337) 905-1189 

Fax: (337) 905-1191 







Description and Location of Project: This project is located on the east end of 

Little Chenier Road (the approximate center of the project is at latitude 29º 49’ 21” N 

and longitude 92º 53’ 31” W) and south of the Big Burn Marsh, commonly referred to 

as the “Horseshoe”. Approximately 2,700 linear feet of roadway need to be raised 

approximately two feet to an elevation of +4 feet NAVD, to prevent excessive 

flooding south of the Little Chenier Road by stopping water from overtopping the 

road during abnormally heavy rain events and flooding the marshes south of Little 

Chenier Road. 


157

Project Justification: The marshes south of this dip in Little Chenier Road suffer 

because of the increased flooding during abnormally large rain events. The drainage 

that is in place can handle the regular rainfall events, but they are stressed when the 

water comes over the road. If the drainage were increased south of the road to help 

during flood events, the marshes would dry out during periods of normal rainfall. If 

the road is raised, the Big Burn area of the Mermentau Basin is not expected to 

experience ecologically harmful increases in water levels because that amount of 

water is very small compared to the vastness of the Basin and the other outlets that 

drain the area (Calcasieu Locks, Catfish Locks and the Humble Canal Structure). The 

additional water held in the Big Burn area by raising the road would not affect the 

drainage north of Little Chenier Road, as the additional water would drain through all 

the outlets in the basin with no sufficient increase in drainage time. 

The project area is located in the Middle Marsh Mapping Unit, which is expected to 

lose 1,570 acres of marsh between 1990 and 2050 due to altered hydrology. The 

Coast 2050 plan identifies “improving drainage within the area to relieve the effects 

of impoundment” as a mapping unit strategy for that area. The continued water 

control facilitated by this roadway refurbishment will enable the area’s historical 

wetland diversity to be maintained and improved. These efforts will also stop 

flooding south of the Little Chenier Road. 


Duration: Six months. 

4) Project Title: North Mermentau Restoration 




P.O. Box 1280 


Phone: (337) 905-1189 

Fax: (337) 905-1191 






Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $1,369,085.76 (FY2007); $840,915.76 (FY 2008); 

$1,007,772.01 (FY2009) 

158


portion of Coast 2050, Region 4, Middle Marsh mapping unit. Project features 

include the replacement of 12 existing water control structures (48 inch culverts) that 

are not currently functioning as designed, and the refurbishment of 1.5 miles of 

adjacent levees. Cameron Parish will fund all of the project activities associated with 

the removal and replacement of 12 water control structures (48 inch culverts), the 

restoration of areas disturbed by the construction activities associated with the 

installation of the water control structures and the refurbishment of approx. 1.5 miles 

of adjacent levees. The objective of the proposed project is to repair the water control 

structures so that pre-Hurricane Rita salinity and water levels can be restored to 

approximately 10,000 acres of marsh. 




the 10,000-acre area will experience extensive interior marsh loss. 
















5) Project Title: Rabbit Island 




P.O. Box 1280 


Phone: (337) 905-1189 

Fax: (337) 905-1191 


159





Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $500,000.00 (FY2010 Cameron); $1,500,000.00 

(FY2010 Calcasieu). 

Description and Location of Project: The project is located in the Calcasieu-Sabine 

Basin, in the West Cove of Calcasieu Lake. The goal of the project is to restore 

approximately 200 acres of pelican nesting and marsh habitat to Rabbit Island by 

adding sediment, through the beneficial use of sediment dredged from the Calcasieu 

Ship Channel, and 2,500 linear feet of small limestone shoreline protection to the 

west corner of Rabbit Island. Calcasieu Parish is partnering with Cameron Parish to 

fund this project through CIAP ($1,500,000 Calcasieu Parish CIAP Funding and 

$500,000 Cameron Parish CIAP Funding). 


Project Justification: Rabbit Island has subsided over time, partially due to 

increased tidal amplitudes from the Calcasieu Ship Channel. It is a vital waterbird 

nesting colony. Nesting attempts are often destroyed due to the increased flooding of 

the island. Brown pelicans were first seen there in 2001 or 2002 and are now nesting 

there annually. 



have to be in conjunction with the maintenance dredging cycles in the vicinity, which 

occurs nearby, approximately every three years. 

6) Project Title: South Little Pecan Bayou Restoration 




P.O. Box 1280 


Phone: (337) 905-1189 

Fax: (337) 905-1191 


160







portion of Coast 2050, Region 4, Little Pecan mapping unit. The project features are 

located along Little Pecan Bayou in the south central portion of Cameron Parish (the 

center of the project feature is located approximately at latitude 29º 47’ 49” N and 

longitude 92º 56’ 13” W). Project features include the replacement of three existing 

water control structures (three 4 inch culverts) that are currently not functioning as 

designed, one new water control structure (that includes three 48 inch culverts), and 

the refurbishment of portions of three miles of existing levees (adding in some 

locations 2 feet of material to return the levees to +3 feet NAVD). The objective of 

the proposed project is to repair the water control structures so that pre-Hurricane 

Rita salinity and water levels can be restored to approximately 24,600 acres of marsh. 


Project Justification: The new structures and plugs are part of the larger CWPPRA 

Little Pecan Bayou Hydrologic Restoration Project (ME-17), the goals of which are 

to reduce saltwater intrusion into the project area and restore historic salinity and 

hydrologic regimes. Hydrodynamic modeling study of the proposed project features 

shows that implementation of all of the ME-17 project features would result in 

reductions of salinity levels on the order of 2.5-3.5 parts per thousand, and raise water 

levels on the order of 0.2-0.3 feet in the 24,600-acre fresh to brackish marsh south of 

Highway 82. 
















161

7) Project Title: West Big Burn Bridge Restoration 




P.O. Box 1280 


Phone: (337) 905-1189 

Fax: (337) 905-1191 








portion of Coast 2050, Region 4, Big Burn mapping unit. Project features include the 

replacement of one existing water control structure (three 8-foot bays) that are 

currently not functioning as designed (the center of the project feature is located 

approximately at latitude 29º 52’ 10” N and longitude 93º 4’ 44”W). The objective of 

the proposed project is to repair the water control structures so that pre-Hurricane 

Rita salinity and water levels can be restored to approximately 10,000 acres of marsh. 


Project Justification: The new structure will reduce saltwater intrusion into the 

project area and restore historic salinity and hydrologic regimes. The structure 

regulates flow in the Cameron-Creole watershed and without this project the over 

10,000-acre interior marsh area will experience extensive loss. 
















162

8) Project Title: Dreary Island Restoration 




P.O. Box 1280 


Phone: (337) 905-1189 

Fax: (337) 905-1191 








portion of Coast 2050, Region 4, East St. John’s Bayou mapping unit. Project features 

include: 1) the replacement of one existing 24 inch water control structure that is 

currently not functioning due to storm impacts and 2) the refurbishment of 

approximately 4,000 linear feet of adjacent levees. The project features are located in 

the west central portion of Cameron Parish (the center of the project feature is located 

approximately at latitude 29º 49’ 22” N and longitude 93º 44’ 55”W). 




the 600-acre intermediate and brackish marsh will experience extensive interior 

marsh loss. 















Duration: Six months 

163

9) Project Title: South Johnson’s Bayou Restoration 




P.O. Box 1280 


Phone: (337) 905-1189 

Fax: (337) 905-1191 








portion of Coast 2050, Region 4, Johnson’s Bayou Ridge mapping unit. The project 

features are located south of the Johnson’s Bayou community in the southwest 

portion of Cameron Parish (the center of the project feature is located approximately 

at latitude 29º 44’ 51” N and longitude 93º 44’ 51”W). Project features include the 

replacement of existing water control structures (two 24 inch culverts) that are 

currently not functioning as designed, and the refurbishment of one mile of adjacent 

levees. The objective of the proposed project is to repair the water control structures 

so that pre-Hurricane Rita salinity and water levels can be restored to 500 acres of 

marsh. 




the 500-acre intermediate and brackish marsh area will experience extensive loss. 














164



Iberia Parish 

1) Project Title: Lake Sand Terracing 



Sally Angers 





Phone: (337) 365-8246 

Fax: (337) 369-4470 



Parish CIAP Funds Proposed: 1,160,630.00 




$27,654.00 (FY2009); $27,655.00 (FY2010) 

Description and Location of Project: The project is located in Iberia Parish on the 

Marsh Island State Wildlife Refuge, and will construct approximately 6500 linear feet 

of shallow bay bottom terraces planted with native vegetation over and area of 

approximately 57 acres in Lake Sand. 

Project Type: Authorized use 1 

Project Justification: Lake Sand is a historic pond on Marsh Island that has 

experienced an increase in shoreline erosion over the past couple of decades. Long 

term land loss in this area is 0.29% annually (1974-1990). However, managers of the 

Marsh Island Wildlife Management Area and Game Preserve attribute recent opening 

up of the ponds to the passage of Hurricane Lili in 2002. This area provides an 

excellent opportunity to build terraces to break wave energy and possibly trap loose 

sediment. The construction of the terraces will result in the direct creation of 57 acres 

of marsh and it is anticipated that construction of the terraces will result in a 50% 

reduction in the erosion of the neighboring shoreline. 



165

2) Project Title: Lake Tom Terracing 



Sally Angers 





Phone: (337) 365-8246 

Fax: (337) 369-4470 




State CIAP Funds proposed: $0 




Marsh Island State Wildlife Refuge, and will construct approximately 3500 linear feet 

of shallow bay bottom terraces planted with native vegetation over and area of 

approximately 31 acres in Lake Tom. 


Project Justification: Lake Tom is a historic pond on Marsh Island that has 





excellent opportunity to build terraces to break any wave energy and possibly trap 

loose sediment. The construction of the terraces will result in the direct creation of 31 

acres of marsh and it is anticipated that construction of the terraces will result in a 

50% reduction in the erosion of the neighboring shoreline. 



166

3) Project Title: Vermilion Bay Shoreline Restoration 



Sally Angers 





Phone: (337) 365-8246 

Fax: (337) 369-4470 







$1,635,073.73 (FY2009); $1,613,155.51 (FY2010) 

Description and Location of Project: The project goal is to abate wind driven wave 

erosion along Vermilion Bay by repairing a breach into the interior marsh that 

threatens to undermine a much broader area. 

The project calls for reestablishing a lake rim function by construction 8,300 linear 

feet of wave dampening structure consisting of rock, sheet piles or other method 

determined most feasible through further investigation. The structure will reconnect 

the solid lake rim on either side of the breach south of Tigre Lagoon and, in addition 

to shoreline protection, will allow for trapping and accretion of sediment moving 

through the system. This will facilitate backfilling and new marsh creation. 


Project Justification: The project is needed to maintain shoreline integrity and 

stabilize critical areas of the actively eroding Vermilion Bay System. The proposed 

shoreline protection structure south of Tigre Lagoon is expected to prevent 100% of 

shoreline loss based on similar performance of shoreline protection projects along the 

Vermilion Bay shoreline. Shoreline erosion rates in the area of the breached 

shoreline range from 16 to 56 feet annually. In the area of the vegetative plantings, 

shoreline erosion averages 2 feet annually (based on 1988-2005 erosion rates as 

determined by the USGS National Wetlands Research Center). It is estimated that 

construction of the project will result in the protection of 132 acres of emergent 

vegetation over 20 years. 



167

4) Project Title: Weeks Bay/Commercial Canal Marsh Creation and Shoreline 




Sally Angers 





Phone: (337) 365-8246 

Fax: (337) 369-4470 






Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $100,000 (FY07 Iberia); $100,000 (FY07 Vermilion) 

Description and Location of Project: The Feasibility study will involve performing 

an alternative analysis to restore the eroding shoreline between the Gulf Intracoastal 

Waterway (GIWW) and Weeks Bay. Prior work has been done in this area, and the 

objective of this analysis is to evaluate prior investigations and alternatives as well as 

look into new innovative alternatives to restore and protect the shoreline, build 

landmass, and create vegetated wetlands. The goal of the project is to evaluate 

alternative methods in order to provide a reccomendation for the best method to 

pursue to provide shoreline protection and allow for sediment deposition of sediment 

transported by flows from the GIWW in order to build landmass between Weeks Bay 

and the GIWW restoring the shoreline to its previous size and protecting it in the 

future. The Weeks Bay/Commercial Canal Marsh Creation and Shoreline Protection 

project will be done in partnership with Vermilion Parish which is funding $100,000 

of the project cost. 


Project Justification: The project is needed to analyze which method would be best 

to pursue when developing a project that will maintain shoreline integrity, capture 

sediments, and stabilize critical areas of the actively eroding Vermilion Bay System. 

The land loss rate in this area is 0.32% annually. Since this is a feasibility 

investigation, the project will not reduce the rate of land loss but, the implementation 

of this project will help provide a solution to pursue in order to reverse or at least 

reduce this rate. 



168

5) Project Title: Port of Iberia Bridge Replacement – Port Road over Rodere Lateral 



Sally Angers 





Phone: (337) 365-8246 

Fax: (337) 369-4470 








will aid the Port of Iberia in its day-to-day operations. This project will replace the 

bridge on Port Road over Rodere Lateral. The existing bridge is approximately 28 

feet wide and 60 feet long. 



produced products and the large equipment used in transporting these products take a 




169


1) Project Title: Bayside Segmented Breakwaters at Grand Isle 



Marnie Winter, Director 

Jefferson Parish Department of Environmental Affairs 

1221 Elmwood Park Blvd., Suite 1006 

Jefferson, LA 70123 

Phone: (504) 736-6440 

Fax: (504) 731-4607 







$1,357,367.44 (FY2010). 

Description and Location of Project: The project is located in Jefferson Parish, 

Louisiana, along the bay side of Grand Isle, Louisiana. 

The purpose of this project is to reduce erosion on the bay side of Grand Isle. Five 

300 foot breakwaters will be constructed on the back-bay side of Grand Isle. The 

proposed project will connect to the existing breakwaters to the west and enhance the 

back-bay side protection on the only inhabited barrier island in Louisiana. 


Project Justification: The long term bayside erosion rate on Grand Isle is 

approximately -1.0 meter annually (1887-1998) and the short term bayside erosion 

rate on Grand Isle is approximately -3.8 feet annually (1987-1988). It is estimated 

that the Bayside Segmented Breakwaters at Grand Isle will reduce the erosion by 

60%. The existing breakwaters have been shown successful in eliminating erosion 

and actually benefiting the island by creating sandbars. The area of Grand Isle 

directly behind and east of the proposed breakwaters is approximately 304 acres of 

marsh which migratory birds use during flights. The remaining bayside of Grand Isle 

consists mostly of land combined with infrastructure. The proposed segmented 

breakwaters would protect approximately 1,500 linear feet of Grand Isle. 

170

The back-bay side of Grand Isle is subject to wave action from strong north winds 

during winter cold fronts and when tropical storms and hurricanes make landfall east 

of the island. Breakwaters have been constructed on the north side of the island to the 

east and west of the proposed project site to protect residential and commercial 

development. This project will extend the protection on the north side of the island 

from the Grand Isle Bridge east toward Fifi Island, and provide critical protection for 

the marsh remaining on the back side of the island as well as infrastructure that 

supports the offshore oil and gas industry. 



Coastwide Strategy: 



Regional Strategy: 

#20. Construct wave absorbers at the head of bays 

#22. Restore/maintain barrier headlines, islands, and shorelines 

LOUISIANA COASTAL AREA ECOSYSTEM RESTORATION STUDY (LCA): 

Initial Near-Term Critical Restoration Features: 

3. Barataria Basin Barrier Shoreline Restoration 

COASTAL IMPACT ASSISTANCE PROGRAM (CIAP): 

Protect critical infrastructure 



2) Project Title: Fifi Island Restoration Extension 







Phone: (504) 736-6440 

Fax: (504) 731-4607 


171





Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $68,098.59 (FY2007 AU1); $204,295.76 (FY2007 AU5); 

$160,298.49 (FY2008 AU5); $300,000.00 (FY2009 AU1); $737,842.19 (FY2009 AU5); 

$268,615.56 (FY2010 AU1); and $807,706.00 (FY2010 AU5). 

Description and Location of Project: The project is located at the eastern 

tip of Fifi Island, adjacent to Bayou Rigaud, on the northern side of Grand Isle in 

Jefferson Parish, Louisiana. 

The project would construct a rock breakwater approximately 825 feet in length with 

7:1 side slope on the exterior/Bayou Rigaud side and 3:1side slopes on the interior/Fif 

Island side extending eastward from the existing U shaped rock rip-rap slightly north 

of the USACE-maintained Bayou Rigaud navigation channel. The rock dike is being 

built to U.S. Army Corp of Engineers specifications for dredge material containment 

in the event future funding allows for completion of the northern and eastern sides of 

the containment so the area can be used as a potential beneficial use disposal site for 

material dredged for maintenance of the Bayou Rigaud extension of the Barataria Bay 

Waterway. 

Survey data for the area were not available; therefore an average depth of -10 feet 

was assumed for costing purposes. Estimated cost was derived based on $40 per ton 

for rock, a top dike elevation of 3.5 feet, a crown width of 4.0 feet and a side slope of 

3.0 feet per foot. Additional costs for mobilization and demobilization, dredging a 

flotation channel, and soil reinforcement were added. Site specific surveys would be 

conducted during the engineering and design phase of this project, which could result 

in a reduction in costs if the average depth is less than -10 feet and dredging a 

flotation channel is not necessary. Additionally, the option of constructing this 

project in conjunction with the Bayside Segmented Breakwater at Grand Isle will be 

explored to reduce mobilization and demobilization costs. 

In addition to creating marsh, the rock dike will reduce the wave action/force 

experienced by the bay side of Grand Isle, thus protection of critical infrastructure 

that supports OCS activities. Given the high cost for marsh creation and the dual 

function of the project, project costs have been assigned to two separate authorized 

use categories. 

Project Type: Authorized Use 1 and Authorized Use 5 

172

Project Justification: The project would provide approximately 825 linear feet of 

rock dike to protect the bay side of Grand Isle adding another restoration component 

to the ongoing conservation efforts being implemented on Fifi Island, to protect the 

bay side of Grand Isle (Louisiana’s only inhabited barrier island) from assault from 

northerly winds, and protect infrastructure affected by and important to OCS 

activities, including the Bayou Rigaud navigation channel and the U.S. Coast Guard 

station. This project also helps to reduce erosion caused by OCS-related traffic. 




Beneficial Use of Dredged Material from Maintenance Operations 

Dedicated Dredging for Marsh Creation 

Maintenance of Bay and Lake Shorelines 

Maintain or Restore Ridge Functions 


#17. Dedicated delivery of sediment for marsh building marsh in Caminada Bay 

#22. Restore/Maintain barrier headlands, islands, and shorelines 

LOUISIANA COASTAL AREA ECOSYSTEM RESTORATION STUDY (LCA): 

Initial Near-Term Critical Restoration Features: 

3. Barataria Basin Barrier Shoreline Restoration 

Strategies: 

Create a marsh platform for habitat in areas near existing navigational channels 

through beneficial use of maintenance dredging materials. 




Duration: Eighteen months 

173

3) Project Title: Goose Bayou Ridge Creation and Shoreline Protection 







(504) 736-6440 fax (504) 731-4607 






Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $165,934.67 (FY2007). 

Description and Location of Project: The project is located in Lafitte, Jefferson 

Parish, Louisiana, along the northwestern shore of The Pen, at the outlet of Goose 

Bayou, and northward to its intersection with Cypress Bayou (DD 90.08439, 

29.70569). 

This project would involve the engineering and deign of shoreline protection, 

dedicated dredging, and vegetative planting. Approximately 8,000 linear feet of 

additional shoreline protection would be designed to be added along the west side of 

Goose Bayou to its intersection with Cypress Bayou. It would be designed to allow 

for the dedicated dredging of sediment from the bottom of The Pen (or from the 

Mississippi River) to be placed in the area behind the rock revetment used to 

construct the shoreline protection. The deposited material would be built into a 

topographic ridge approximately 3.5 feet MSL to restore the historical function of 

ridges in the project area. The artificial ridge would be planted with woody 

vegetation to create approximately 50 acres of wooded ridge. The added shoreline 

protection would benefit approximately 1,200 acres of freshwater marsh between 

Goose Bayou and the inhabited area of lower Lafitte. 


174

Project Justification: The project would enhance tidal surge protection to residents 

of the Lafitte area, protect approximately 1,200 acres of freshwater marsh, and create 

much needed woody ridge habitat for native species of flora and fauna. Shoreline 

protection was installed along 1,650 feet of Goose Bayou, which is on the 

northwestern perimeter of The Pen, under a previous restoration project. The 

opportunity now exists to extend this protection northward along the western 

shoreline of Goose Bayou to Cypress Bayou. 




Dedicated dredging for wetland creation 

Maintenance of bay and lake shoreline integrity 

Vegetative planting 

Maintain or restore ridge functions 





4) Project Title: Lower Lafitte Shoreline Stabilization at Bayou Rigolettes 







(504) 736-6440 fax (504) 731-4607 






Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $2,554,261.78 (FY2007 AU1); $515,220.98 (FY2007 

AU5); $3,062,938.73 (FY2008 AU1); $592,283.31 (FY2008 AU5); $898,815.80 

(FY2009 AU1) $106,849.85 (FY2009 AU5); $271,000.00 (FY2010 AU1); 

$29,000.00 (FY2010 AU5) 

175

Description and Location of Project: The project, located in Lafitte, Louisiana, at 

the intersection of Bayou Rigolettes and Bayou Barataria, consists of two (2) 

segments. Segment 1 extends south along Bayou Barataria for approximately 1.5 

miles and west along Bayou Rigolettes approximately 0.25 miles. Segment 2 

includes the area directly adjacent to the water tank that services Grand Isle, 

Louisiana, which is located at the end of Privateer Boulevard, along the north 

shoreline of Bayou Rigolettes at the right descending bank of Bayou Barataria. 

Segment 1: On the west bank of Bayou Barataria and the southern edge of Bayou 

Rigolettes, 10,600 linear feet of foreshore rock dike is to be constructed to protect the 

bank of the Barataria Waterway and adjacent interior marshes. A water control 

structure will be installed to limit saltwater intrusion into the marsh area, optimize 

water levels for wintering waterfowl, and prevent ponding of storm waters. The 

preliminary structure concept/design for the water control feature consists of three, 

48-inch diameter, 30-foot-long, 12-gauge corrugated aluminum pipes, each fitted with 

a 6-foot-high, 10-foot-wide, stop-log riser. 

Segment 2: Erosion from natural causes and man induced causes, particularly wake 

action from vessels engaged in OCS support activity, has severely eroded the banks 

of Bayou Barataria and Bayou Rigolettes and the stability of the Grand Isle water 

tank is at risk. To stabilize the shoreline and protect the water tank, features of the 

north side of Bayou Rigolettes would include furnishing and installation of precast 

concrete barrier wall panels, consisting of vertical pre-stressed concrete sheetpiles, 

approximately 6" thick x 8 feet wide x 20 feet long. These sheetpile slabs would be 

supported along each length by 60-foot-long precast concrete piles having an "H" - 

Pile configuration for the top 20 feet, and driven at 8.5 ft, c.c. along the wall 

alignment. The barrier wall segments would be driven approximately 12 ft. from the 

bank, and the area between the structures and the shore would be back-filled using 

hauled-in or dedicated dredging material. The embankments would then be capped 

off with cement/concrete pavement to eliminate further erosion. 

Additional site specific salinity and bathymetry will be acquired during the 

engineering and design phase of this project to adequately depict the baseline 

conditions of the site and to design the project. In addition, the exact location, size, 

configuration of the project features as well as updated site specific biological goals 

of the project will be more accurately determined during the engineering and design 

phase of this project. 

Project Type: Authorized Use 1 and Authorized Use 5 

(Segment 1 of the project is AU 1; Segment 2 of the project is AU 5) 

176

Project Justification: The water control feature, in conjunction with the shoreline 

stabilization, will limit saltwater intrusion and stabilize water levels in the 324 acre 

marsh area known as the North Prairie. In 1949 O’Neil classified the marshes in the 

project area as fresh marsh. Thirty years later, those remaining marsh areas were 

classified by Chabreck and Linscombe (1978 and 1988) as brackish. The project 

features south of Bayou Rigolettes are expected to reduce salinity and stabilize the 

water levels to allow stable growth of pioneer fresh marsh species. Based upon 

monitoring results from a similar adjacent project (CWPPRA BA-23), salinity levels 

are expected to drop 1 ppt. 

This project will protect the integrity of the western bank of the Barataria Bay 

Waterway and the north shoreline of Bayou Rigolettes at its intersection with Bayou 

Barataria, near Lafitte, Louisiana. The project will also provide protection for the 

foundation and site of an existing water tank facility that provides potable drinking 

water to the coastal community of Grand Isle, Louisiana. In addition, the project will 

eliminate further erosion of the north bank of Bayou Rigolettes directly at its 

intersection with Bayou Barataria, cease the widening of the channel, and reduce 

saltwater intrusion and deterioration of the interior marshes. 

The project area is experiencing extreme degradation, mainly due to wave action 

induced in part by marine industry activity. As a consequence of bankline erosion, 

the foundation for the Grand Isle water tank is in jeopardy. Many ships and barges 

servicing the oil and gas industry utilize the Port of Grand Isle, Louisiana, as a source 

for potable water. This particular water tank facility is considered critical 

infrastructure that directly supports OCS activity. Barriers in the form of concrete 

sheetpile walls would be utilized to stabilize the bankline. The project also reclaims 

some area that has been lost, and provides a concrete apron which may be utilized to 

maximize docking space at the site. 

This project will also protect the shoreline of the Bayou Barataria Waterway, an 

important navigational route for the transportation of offshore oil and gas supplies 

and products. The waterway also protects approximately 670 acres of marsh habitat 

on the Barataria Land Bridge, and enhances storm surge protection for residents of 

lower Lafitte, Louisiana. This project will complement previously constructed 

CWPPRA projects in the area, which include: Barataria Bay Waterway West Side 

Shoreline Protection (BA-23); Barataria Basin Land Bridge Shoreline Protection, 

Phase 4 (BA-27d); and Jonathan Davis Wetland Restoration (BA-20). 

The water control structure will limit saltwater intrusion, prevent impoundment of 

high salinity waters following extreme tidal effects such as occurred with Hurricane 

Rita in 2005, and promote marsh health in this area of the Barataria Land Bridge. 

177




Stabilization of Major Navigational Channels 



# 2. Restore natural drainage patterns 



#26. Dedicated dredging to create marsh on the land bridge 

Previously Proposed Strategies: 

 

 

 

 

 

Preserving the ridge along the Barataria Waterway 

Stabilizing the banks of the Barataria Waterway 

Protecting the shorelines of the large lakes 

Managing hydrology by preventing increase in tidal scour and salinity 

intrusion 






178


1) Project Title: Maritime Forest Ridge Restoration 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary 

Program (BTNEP) 







Phone: (985) 632-4666 

Fax: (985) 632-8653 







Description and Location of Project: The project proposes to shape sediment that 

was pumped onto the project site last year into a 4,000 foot maritime ridge and 

associated fringe marsh. The ridge will have a 100 foot wide fringe marsh built to a 

plus 1.6 feet elevation on both sides of the project. This fringe marsh transitions to a 

200 foot wide ridge in the center shaped to a plus 8 foot elevation. The ridge will 

subsequently be planted with native vegetation, which will result in plants on 2 to 5 

foot centers at approximately 20 rows on both flanking marsh edges, while the woody 

component would include an 8 to 15 foot center with 16 rows on the ridge surface. 

Note that the planting effort will occur at the first available planting window 

following the shaping of the land and will include the new 4,000 foot maritime ridge 

and associated fringe marsh as well as replanting portions of a previously constructed 

2,000 foot maritime ridge and associated fringe marsh. 

Approximately half of the funds requested through the CIAP program will be used to 

shape the maritime ridge and associated fringe marsh. The other half of the requested 

funds will provide for the vegetative components/soil analysis/soil amendments part 

of this project as well as the monitoring of the vegetative/soil components through 

time. 

179

VEGETATIVE TRIALS 

The vegetative/soil analysis/soil amendment components include planting both 

herbaceous and woody plants. The list of plants that will be used/evaluated includes 

but is not limited to: 

1. Live oak (Quercus virginiana) 

2. Hackberry (Celtis laevigata) 

3. Yaupon (Ilex vomitoria) 

4. Black mangrove (Avicennia germinans) 

5. French mulberry (Callicarpa americana) 

6. Wax myrtle (Morella cerifera) 

7. Hercules club (Zanthoxylum clava-herculis) 

8. Smooth cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora) 

9. Marshhay cordgrass (Spartina patens) 

10. Seashore paspalum (Paspalum vaginatum) 

11. Saltgrass (Distichlis spicata) 

12. Salt Matrimony Vine (Lycium carolinianum) 

Several other species of grasses and woody plants that are thought to grow across 

coastal Louisiana will also be evaluated. It is expected that the above list represents 

approximately half of the vegetative species that will be evaluated as part of this 

project. 

Soil amendments will also be utilized in certain vegetative trials and would include 

the use of gypsum or other calcium/magnesium products that are designed to release 

the sodium bound to soil particles. Also, we will evaluate the use of bagasse 

(sugarcane residue) and its effectiveness at promoting vegetative growth. 

Periodically, soil samples will be collected across the site and will be evaluated for a 

number of parameters. 

As mentioned above, many of the aspects of this project will continue to be evaluated 

so that lessons learned can be transferred to other similar projects. The project 

includes many different vegetative trials, soil monitoring, soil amendments, avian use, 

subsidence rates, etc. These efforts will be described in written reports that can be 

provided to both the restoration community and the private sector alike. 

These funds will help in the restoration of over 60 acres of salt marsh and 60 acres of 

maritime forest ridge habitat. 

180

Since 2000, the Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary Program (BTNEP) has 

developed a close partnership with the Greater Lafourche Port Commission in the 

restoration of a maritime forest ridge and marsh habitats north of Fourchon, 

Louisiana. This project is a true restoration project in that it does not serve as 

mitigation for any of the port’s activities. To date, many thousands of cubic yards of 

earthen material have been pumped to the desired location, resulting in an 

approximately +4-foot platform 400 feet wide by 6,000 feet long. Last year, BTNEP 

funded the shaping of 2,000 feet of that platform to the desired geometry of a +8-foot 

ridge and +1.6-foot marsh platform. Additionally, BTNEP developed a partnership 

with the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Plant Materials Center and 

entered into an agreement with them to conduct vegetative trials/demonstrations of 

both herbaceous and woody plants on the 2,000-foot site. 

Additionally, BTNEP has developed a volunteer program in order to engage citizens, 

both State and national, and provide them a “hands on” opportunity to address coastal 

Louisiana’s plight. Within 18 months of its initiation, this program has already 

brought hundreds of people out to the maritime forest ridge/marsh restoration site to 

help with vegetative plantings. Participants have included school children, college 

youth, corporate volunteers, and concerned citizens from all walks of life, many of 

whom have come from beyond Louisiana’s borders. 

The BTNEP Program has developed past agreements with both government and the 

private sector to help fund this effort. These partnerships have provided hundreds of 

thousands of dollars that were used during the initial 2,000 feet of ridge/marsh 

restoration. The BTNEP program has allocated some if its own funds toward this 

effort, and it has provided an enormous amount of personnel time. The BTNEP 

program will continue to develop new partnerships as opportunities arise: 

BTNEP partners and contributions for the initial 2,000 feet of ridge/marsh restoration 

include: 

LDNR $100,000.00 

Gulf of Mexico Program $101,700.00 

Gulf of Mexico Foundation $90,000.00 

NOAA $75,000.00 

Shell $100,000.00 

BTNEP 

$30,000.00 + personnel time 

NRCS Plant Material Center 

personnel time 

Volunteers 

$ thousands in volunteer time 

Greater Lafourche Port Commission $ hundreds of thousands 

181


In particular, this project allows for the implementation of several action plans of the 

BTNEP Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan, including EM-15 

“Protection of Habitat for Migratory and Resident Birds,” which calls for 

“…restoration of important habitats:”; SR-3 “Citizens Involvement Programs and 

Activities,” which calls for ”…development of avenues to help citizens become more 

knowledgeable and committed to protecting the estuary:”; and EG-6 “New 

Technology Research and Development,” which calls for “…research and 

development of new coastal restoration technologies.” 

Project Justification: This project will result in the restoration of 4,000 linear feet of 

maritime ridge and associated fringe marsh in an area of coastal Louisiana that is 

increasingly at risk. Many of Louisiana’s coastal forests that fringe the distributary 

ridges, comprise the chenier ridges, or encompass maritime forests of barrier islands 

have suffered effects from anthropogenic and natural actions. In particular, dredging 

of navigation channels to support onshore and offshore oil and gas exploration has 

caused the direct loss of these habitats as well as coastal wetlands, while the 

construction of infrastructure to support these activities has had similar 

consequences. In addition, the increased subsidence rates associated with the 

subsurface withdrawal of mineral deposits have also taken their toll. And more 

recently, Hurricanes Katrina and Rita had devastating effects on all coastal habitats. 

If Louisiana expects to continue its push for the restoration of its coastal habitats, it is 

imperative that this project continue. The results from this effort will provide 

valuable insight into similar projects that are now being seriously considered, 

especially since Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. 

This project proposes to continue ongoing work to conduct coastal restoration and to 

evaluate how a suite of parameters affect plant growth. While these evaluations are 

not true scientific investigations, they do include an evaluative component of site 

parameters that can help to steer future direction on the next phases of this project. 



182

2) Project Title: Northwest Little Lake Marsh Creation and Enhancement 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: Lafourche Parish Government 







Phone: (985) 632-4666 

Fax: (985) 632-8653 







$264,884.01 (FY2009). 

Description and Location of Project: This project is located in Lafourche Parish, 

northwest shoreline of Little Lake (Clovelly Canal to Tennessee Gas Pipeline Canal). 

The project proposes dedicated dredging to create approximately 30 to 40 acres of 

wetlands in interior open water bodies that are located behind the NW Little Lake 

shoreline, to enhance or nourish 70 to 100 acres of marsh located behind the NW 

Little Lake shoreline, and to plant two rows of smooth cordgrass along 7,500 feet of 

NW Little Lake shoreline. The project goals are to reduce shoreline erosion rates, 

create marsh in interior open water bodies that are threatened by potential Little Lake 

shoreline breaches, and enhance a band of marsh along the Little Lake shoreline to 

maintain shoreline integrity. 


Project Justification: Erosion along the NW Little Lake shoreline causes a direct 

loss of marsh acreage and threatens to breach the thin remnant of marsh which 

separated Little Lake from large interior water bodies. It is estimated that the annual 

shoreline erosion rate along the northwest Little Lake shoreline is currently 5 feet. It 

is estimated that the vegetated planting part of the project will stop the erosion or loss 

of 15 to 20 acres of marsh over a 20 year project life. 



183

3) Project Title: Small Dredge Program 








Phone: (985) 632-4666 

Fax: (985) 632-8653 







$723,097.25 (FY2010). 

Description and Location of Project: This program involves the use of a small 

dredge to hydraulically dredge borrow canals and other open water areas to restore 

approximately 175 acres of marsh apron along levees, cheniers and roadways in 

Lafourche Parish. During the engineering and design phase of this program, the 

project sites and borrow areas will be located, designed and permitted. The program 

will target use of sediment from canals that require maintenance dredging. 


Project Justification: Lafourche Parish has one of the highest land loss rates in the 

United States. The wetlands along the South Lafourche Levee System have 

disappeared at an alarming rate over the past years. Lafourche Parish is a part of the 

Barataria Basin which has an annual land loss rate of approximately 11.1 square miles 

annually. This project is needed to protect that critical infrastructure as well as the 

homes and properties inside the levee system. 



184


1) Project Title: Acquisition of Bald Cypress/Tupelo Coastal Forest in the 

Ponchartrain Basin 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: Livingston Parish Government 


Heather Crain 


P.O. Box 427 


Phone: (225) 686-4415 

Fax: (225) 686-7079 






Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $1,652,927.20 (FY2007); $1,477,927.20 (FY2008). 

Description and Location of Project: The project location is within Livingston 

Parish, in the Maurepas Swamp of southeast Louisiana. The project area includes 

2,590.4 contiguous acres of coastal wetland forest, specifically bald cypress-tupelo 

swamp, with roughly 200 acres fronting the western edge of Lake Maurepas. The 

area is identified as Tract #44 and lies within the Pontchartrain Basin and within the 

Louisiana Coastal Wetlands Conservation Plan area. Lakes Maurepas, Pontchartrain, 

and Borgne are estuarine lakes that together form a receiving basin for the fresh 

waters of the Amite, Tickfaw, Blind, Tangipahoa, Tchefuncte, and Pearl Rivers. 

Project Problem: Louisiana’s coastal forested wetlands are quickly becoming the last 

geographic barrier that helps to protect the coastal communities from the storm surges 

associated with tropical storms and hurricanes. Without this project and preservation 

of the targeted 2,590.4 acres of bald cypress-tupelo, this land will be converted, 

logged, and lost. 

Project Goals: 1) Conserve 2,590.4 acres of pristine wetland habitat while working to 

conserve the natural heritage of the area; 2) manage the coastal resource for the public 

to enjoy and cherish as an aesthetic area for recreation; 3) protect the habitat against 

future logging developments. 

185

Project Solution: Purchase 2,590.4 acres from an interested landowner who is 

committed to this project. Negotiations are underway with the landowner; however, 

no purchase agreement has been signed, nor is there an appraisal or title opinion. By 

purchasing this acreage, this project will preserve the bald cypress/tupelo within this 

coastal area. The potential partners in this project are LDNR, the Louisiana 

Department of Wildlife & Fisheries (responsible for conservation and management of 

land and its intrinsic qualities for the public), The Nature Conservancy, the 

Department of Agriculture and Forestry, and the Office of State Lands. 


Project Justification: This project has also been recommended for inclusion in the 

Louisiana Coastal and Estuarine Land Conservation Plan, and is supported by the 

Livingston Parish Waterway Commission. The owner of this land has timbering 

rights; and if this project is not funded, the owner may consider the many offers to 

sell the timbering rights to timber companies. Managing the area for the public 

would ensure that the natural resources found within this unique ecosystem could be 

shared by all. 



2) Project Title: Hydrologic Restoration in Swamps West of Lake Maurepas 



Heather Crain 


P.O. Box 427 


Phone: (225) 686-4415 

Fax: (225) 686-7079 


Total CIAP Funds Proposed: $3,186.743.11 




Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $1,601,637.38 (FY2009); $1,585,105.73 (FY2010). 

186

Description and Location of Project: The project is to take place in Region 1— 

Lake Pontchartrain Basin, Livingston Parish, in cypress/tupelo swamps west of Lake 

Maurepas, north and south of the Amite River Diversion Canal. 

Project Problem: Swamps north and south of the Amite River Diversion Canal are 

highly stressed by a lack of Mississippi River inflow and the impounding effects of 

the spoil bank along the canal. The Amite River Diversion Canal could compensate 

for the lack of Mississippi River water, but the spoil banks prohibit input of sediment 

laden and nutrient laden water from the canal into the swamps during high water. 

The spoil banks prohibit drainage of the swamps during low water periods. 

Project Goals: Increase productivity and regeneration of cypress and tupelo swamp; 

increase sediment accretion and nutrient loading in the swamp; decrease frequency, 

intensity, and duration of salinity spikes by 50% in the swamp; increase water flows 

through the swamp; increase the frequency and duration of periods when the swamp 

surface is not flooded to promote regeneration; increase frequency and duration of 

periods when water depths in the swamp are

The swamps north and south of the Amite River Diversion Canal are part of the larger 

south Maurepas swamp system, which is a major coastal wetland – one of the larges 

remaining tracts of coastal freshwater swamp in Louisiana. For a combination of 

reasons, including lack of certainty about how swamps might respond to restoration 

efforts classically applied to marshes, and lack of clear-cut opportunities to 

implement large-scale swamp restoration, very few swamp restoration projects have 

been considered or constructed. The existence of the imposing Amite River 

Diversion Canal levees in this swamp represents a unique opportunity for restoration 

of this portion of the south Maurepas. Few other major tracts of coastal swamp (the 

Maurepas Diversion Project area being the exception of course) offer a similar 

opportunity for large-scale restoration and associated evaluation of success. 

The goals of this project are to increase productivity of cypress and tupelo swamp, 

increase regeneration of cypress and tupelo, increase sediment accretion in swamp, 

increase nutrient delivery to the swamp, decrease the frequency, intensity and 

duration of salinity spikes in the swamp, increase water flows through the swamp, 

increase the frequency and duration of periods when the swamp surface is not flooded 

to promote regeneration, increase the frequency and duration of periods when water 

depths in the swamp are less than one foot to support survival of new cypress and 

tupelo recruits, and decrease nutrient loading to Lake Maurepas from the Amite 

River. 

This project is supported by EPA Region 6 and the Livingston Parish Waterway 

Commission. It has been a CWPPRA candidate under PPL12 and PPL16. This 

project is designed to not require land acquisition and has been redesigned so that it 

does not need bridges. This environmental project does have over 11 months of gage 

data in the project area to support the project’s assumptions. The project is expected 

to continue providing wetland benefits 30 to 40 years after construction because 

project features are simple and should be durable over time. 



3) Project Title: Livingston Parish Debris Recovery Vessel 



Heather Crain 


P.O. Box 427 


Phone: (225) 686-4415 

Fax: (225) 686-7079 


188





Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $175,000.00 (FY2008). 

Description and Location of Project: The proposed project is for the purchase of a 

debris recovery vessel that would be located in Livingston Parish. Because 

Livingston Parish is a coastal parish situated on the fresh and brackish waters of Lake 

Maurepas, it is important that the parish have a debris recovery vessel, with oil 

skimming capability, and the capacity to collect floating debris that may be hazardous 

to boats, people and to the environment. The vessel must have the capability to 

operate in shallow waters and in rivers and streams that flow into Lake Maurepas. 

The estimated size of the vessel would be 23 to 27 feet in length. The price is tied to 

the number of features that may be custom designed into the basic recovery vessel, 

but the parish estimates the price of such vehicle to be $175,000. When docked, the 

vessel would be located at the Warsaw Landing, 31803 Tetanne Drive, Springfield, 

LA 70462; Latitude: 30.385 Longitude: -90.553. 


Project Justification: Because Livingston Parish is a coastal Louisiana parish 

situated on the fresh and brackish waters of Lake Maurepas, it is important that the 

Parish have a debris recovery vessel, with oil skimming capability, and the capacity 

to collect floating debris that may be hazardous to boats, people and to the 

environment. 


Duration: One year 


No Parish-Funded Tier One Projects 

189


1) Project Title: Jump Basin Dredging and Marsh Creation 




P.J. Hahn 



Phone: (504) 297-5629 

Fax: (504) 274-2463 






Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $89,836.21 (FY2007); $300,000.00 (FY2008 ); 

$400,000.00 (FY2009); $10,163.79 (FY2010) 

Description and Location of Project: The proposed project is located in the Venice 

area of Plaquemines Parish, and more specifically in the Jump Basin Marina and 

along the west side of Tidewater Road. The Plaquemines Parish Government owns 

and leases the existing marina and also assumes maintenance of Tidewater Road. The 

proposed work involves maintenance dredging of the Jump Basin Marina and 

beneficial use of that material to restore marsh across from Tidewater Road. 

An initial survey was completed and it was predicted that approximately 65,000 cubic 

yards of material could be dredged from the marina. Based on water depths in the 

targeted disposal area, an initially estimated 4 to 7 acres of marsh could be created. 


Project Justification: The Jump Basin supports heavy use by vessels (especially 

crew boats and tugboats) that serve OCS oil and gas exploration and production 

operations. The need to perform maintenance dredging of that harbor area is directly 

associated with the operation of those vessels within and immediately adjacent to that 

area. The marsh in the project area has become sediment starved and is now 

becoming open water. The principal hydrologic changes in the area are due to the 

dredging of canals for the Venice Oil Field, roads and other infrastructure. The 

construction of Tidewater Road, which provides access for land vehicles and 

personnel important to servicing OCS oil and gas exploration and production 

activities in the region, has played a significant role in reducing sediment and 

nutrients from nearby Mississippi River distributaries (including Spanish Pass) into 

190

the adjacent marshes. That reduction has, in turn, contributed to the accelerated 

deterioration and loss of those wetlands. These processes have resulted in the loss of 

more than 3,900 acres of fresh marsh and swamp. There is ample dredged material 

from the Jump Basin to restore marsh. Furthermore, the marsh creation would 

provide the added public service of helping to protect Tidewater Road from tidal 

flooding. 



2) Project Title: Tidewater Road Flood Protection 




P.J. Hahn 



Phone: (504) 297-5629 

Fax: (504) 274-2463 







$984,676.84 (FY2009); $974,513.05 (FY2010) 

Description and Location of Project: The proposed project is located on the west 

bank of Plaquemines Parish in the Venice area. Tidewater Road extends beyond the 

end of Highway 23 and is entirely outside of levee protection. Tidewater Road 

allows access to many of the oil and gas, fishing, industry, government, and private 

developments in Venice. It is the last stretch of road before reaching the Gulf of 

Mexico and it serves as a staging area for the aforementioned industries to prosper. 

Tidewater Road is subject to heavy inundation from directional winds that elevate 

tides over the roadway. Wetland loss in the area is severe, and along much of 

Tidewater Road’s length there is open water in canals and ponds that abut the road 

shoulder. 

191

This project proposes to create flood protection along the entire length of Tidewater 

Road (approximately 3 miles). Several proposals have been suggested, including 

raising the road to a higher elevation, installing earthen berms or sheetpiles along one 

or both sides of the road, and also installing pump stations to drain standing water. 

The method determined to be the most cost effective and efficient at protecting the 

roadway from standing water will be utilized. Since this is an infrastructure project 

and subject to the 23% cap on spending CIAP money, the parish’s allocation will also 

determine which method is utilized. Anticipated spending for this project is 

estimated in the $3 to 4 million range. 


Project Justification: Tidewater Road supports heavy use by vehicles that serve 

OCS oil and gas exploration and production operations located in Venice. The need 

to perform maintenance to Tidewater Road is directly associated with the operation of 

those vehicles. Due to the importance of Tidewater Road as an access point for the 

OCS oil and gas industry and given that mitigation of OCS activities will result if this 

public need is met, Plaquemines Parish feels this project is best handled as an 

infrastructure project. 



3) Project Title: Update of the Plaquemines Parish Coastal Management Plan 




P. J. Hahn 



Phone: (504) 297-5629 

Fax: (504) 274-2463 

pjhahn@plaqueminesparish.com 






192

Description and Location of Project: The project is an update of the Plaquemines 

Parish Coastal Management Plan. The revised report will include verification of 

habitats along with verification of archaeological sites. Ecosystem impacts from 

permitted projects will also be researched in an effort to attain better management 

practices in the future and to maintain a standard of minimized wetland loss. The 

project deliverable will be the updated Plaquemines Parish Coastal Management Plan. 


Project Justification: An update of the Plaquemines Parish Coastal Management 

Plan is necessary given the significant modifications to the landscape following 

decades of land loss and as a result of numerous tropical storms including Hurricane 

Katrina. The coastal management plan will be used as a basis for decision making on 

future coastal restoration efforts by Plaquemines Parish. 




1) Project Title: Lake Lery Marsh Creation 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana 






Phone: (504) 442-2426 

Fax: (504) 278-4484 







$2,146,655.06 (FY2009) 

193

Description and Location of Project: The project is located approximately 4 miles 

northwest of Delacroix, Louisiana, in Lake Lery along the western bank of Lake 

Lery. Hurricane Katrina impacts included extreme scouring in the interior marsh 

areas north and east of the lake. Bayou Terre Aux Boeufs. 

The project proposes to dredge sediment from Lake Lery and use the dredged 

material to create a nearly contiguous strip of marsh platform along the western bank 

of Bayou Terre Aux Boeufs. An earthen containment dike would be constructed 

parallel to the bayou along the entire project length and perpendicular to the bayou at 

seven locations where canals connect to the bayou. The existing Bayou Terre Aux 

Boeufs ridge would serve as the eastern containment. Degraded marsh between the 

ridge and containment dike would be nourished by the hydraulic fill. Based on 

preliminary engineering estimates, the marsh platform would be approximately 5 

miles lng by 350 feet wide, for a total acreage of 212 acres. 

The proposed project features are: 

Utilizing sediment from borrow areas identified in Lake Lery to create and 

nourish marshes north and east of Lake Lery. 

Reestablishing the lake rim by placement of a rock dike along the northern and 

eastern shoreline of Lake Lery. Bayou Terre Aux Boeufs. An earthen containment 

dike would be constructed parallel to the bayou along the entire project length and 

perpendicular to the bayou at seven locations where canals connect to the bayou. 

The existing Bayou Terre Aux Boeufs ridge would serve as the eastern 

containment. Degraded marsh between the ridge and containment dike would be 

nourished by the hydraulic fill. Based on preliminary engineering estimates, the 

marsh platform would be approximately 5 miles lng by 350 feet wide, for a total 

acreage of 212 acres. 


Project Justification: The marshes north of Lake Lery have historically suffered 

from land loss due to hurricanes, herbivory, subsidence, and altered hydrology. 

Management of the Caernarvon Freshwater Diversion is expected to reduce the 

amount of land loss in the project area. However, storms such as Hurricane Katrina 

have caused massive land loss in single events. This project proposes to create a 

marsh buffer between the Bayou Terre Aux Boeufs ridge and the growing open water 

area immediately to the west. Breaching of the Bayou Terre Aux Boeufs western 

ridge would expose the eastern ridge to increased fetch, thus threatening the Delacrois 

Highway, the only evacuation route from Delacrois Island, Louisiana. 

The proposed project would create approximately 212 acres of brackish marsh, 

protect and nourish more than 300 additional acres and protect approximately 5 miles 

of ridge habitat. 

194

Coast 2050: 

Common Coastwide Strategies 




Vegetative Plantings 

Region 1: 

Regional Ecosystem Strategies 

Restore/Sustain Marshes 

#9- Dedicated delivery of sediment for marsh building 

Maintain Critical Landforms- Protect Ridge function of Bayou Terre aux Boeuf 

Ridge 

Region 2: 

Regional Ecosystem Strategies: 

Restore/Sustain Marshes 

#5- Manage outfalls of existing diversions 

#6- Enrich existing diversions with sediment 

Protect Bay and Lake Shorelines 

Maintain Critical Landforms 

Louisiana Comprehensive Master Plan for a Sustainable Coast: 

Planning Unit 1, East of the Mississippi River 

Maintain and restore the Breton Sound Marshes 

This measure will utilize dedicated dredging to restore and sustain marsh at 

critical areas in Breton Sound. The Breton Sound marshes are located between 

the east bank of the Mississippi River and the south bank of the Mississippi 

River Gulf Outlet (MRGO). 



2) Project Title: Update of the St. Bernard Parish Coastal Management Plan 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana 






Phone: (504) 442-2426 

Fax: (504) 278-4484 


195






Description and Location of Project: The project is an update of the St. Bernard 

Parish Coastal Management Plan that was previously done in 1982. The revised 

report will include verification of habitats along with verification of archaeological 

sites. Ecosystem impacts from permitted projects will also be researches in an effort 

to attain better management practices in the future and to maintain a standard of 

minimized wetland loss. The project deliverable will be the updated St. Bernard 

Parish Coastal Management Plan. 


Project Justification: An update of the St. Bernard coastal management plan is 

necessary given the significant modifications to the landscape following decades of 

land loss along the Mississippi River Gulf Outlet and as a result of numerous tropical 

storms including Hurricane Katrina. The coastal management plan will be used as a 

basis for decision making on future coastal restoration efforts by St. Bernard Parish. 




1) Project Title: East LaBranche Shoreline Protection 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: St. Charles Parish (Earl Matherne) 



Coastal Zone Management Section 

Earl Matherne 

P.O. Box 302 

Hahnville, LA 70057 

Phone: (985) 783-5060 

Fax: (985) 783-6447 


196





Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $886,938.00 (FY2009); $1,522,806.81 (FY2010). 

Description and Location of Project: This project involves the continuation of rock 

shoreline protection project on the south shore of Lake Pontchartrain in St. Charles 

Parish. The project will consist of installing approximately 10,500 linear feet of rock 

dike at or near the +1.0 foot NAVD 88 contour on the existing shoreline. 

Construction access will be via flotation channels excavated to -6.0 feet NAVD 88. 


Project Justification: The shoreline erosion rate in the project area is approximately 

9.5 feet per year and, given the performance of similar projects in the vicinity, the 

proposed project is anticipated to stop that shoreline erosion. The Lake Pontchartrain 

shoreline is susceptible to erosion because of the long fetch across the lake, the 

vulnerable shoreline configuration, and the highly unconsolidated sediment base. 

This chronic erosion has breached the lake shoreline in several locations, exposing 

fragile, highly organic marsh substrates to increased wave and tidal energy and 

resulting in large, shallow pond formation in the interior marsh. The existing 

shoreline protection projects, installed in 1987 and 1993, protect approximately 8,700 

feet of the fragile shoreline. The proposed East and West LaBranche CIAP funded 

projects would extend the existing shoreline protection along the Lake Pontchartrain 

shoreline for the LaBranche wetlands, from Bayou LaBranche on the west to the 

Jefferson Parish line on the east. 



2) Project Title: West LaBranche Shoreline Protection 





Earl Matherne 

P.O. Box 302 


Phone: (985) 783-5060 

Fax: (985) 783-6447 


197





Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $20,000.00 (FY2007) $1,449,421.75 (FY2008); 

$651,750.43 (FY2009). 

Description and Location of Project: This project involves the continuation of the 

rock shoreline protection project on the south shore of Lake Pontchartrain in St. 

Charles Parish. The project will consist of installing approximately 2,150 linear feet 

of rock dike at or near the +1.0 foot NAVD 88 contour on the existing shoreline and 

the construction of a 130-foot-long timber pile bridge at the mouth of Bayou 

LaBranche. Construction access will be via flotation channels excavated to -6.0 

NAVD 88 or direct placement using an access bridge from the stabilized shoreline 

south of Bayou LaBranche at the eastern extent of this project. 


Project Justification: The shoreline erosion rate in the project area is approximately 

9.5 feet per year and, given the performance of similar projects in the vicinity, the 

proposed project is anticipated to stop that shoreline erosion. The construction of the 

timber pile bridge will allow onshore construction and long-term maintenance of the 

shoreline protection project. Onshore construction and long-term maintenance of the 

shoreline protection project features will be less costly and have less environmental 

impact than construction from the water. The Lake Pontchartrain shoreline is 

susceptible to erosion because of the long fetch across the lake, the vulnerable 

shoreline configuration, and the highly unconsolidated sediment base. This chronic 

erosion has breached the lake shoreline in several locations, exposing fragile, highly 

organic marsh substrates to increased wave and tidal energy and resulting in large, 

shallow pond formation in the interior marsh. The existing shoreline protection 

projects, installed in 1987 and 1993, protect approximately 8,700 feet of the fragile 

shoreline. The proposed East and West LaBranche CIAP funded projects would 

extend the existing shoreline protection along the Lake Pontchartrain shoreline for the 

LaBranche wetlands, from Bayou LaBranche on the west to the Jefferson Parish line 

on the east. 



198


1) Project Title: Baytree Freshwater Diversion Property Purchase 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: St. James Parish Council 


Mr. Jody Chenier 

St. James Parish Council 

P. O. Box 106 

Convent, LA 70723 

Phone: (225) 562-2262 

Fax: (225) 562-2279 




State CIAP Funds Requested: $0 



Description and Location of Project: The St. James Parish Council intends to 

purchase a tract of land extending from the Mississippi River to the Parish Canal in 

order to secure the required property for a future freshwater diversion. This project is 

proposed to purchase approximately 63 acres of existing agriculture and wetland 

areas in order to accommodate a proposed freshwater siphon project. Land acquired 

in fee title through this project will be conserved in perpetuity; that purchase will 

facilitate implementation of a future freshwater diversion project to benefit forested 

wetlands south and east of the site. 

The tract of land will allow a siphon and depository canal to be built at the 

Mississippi River at Section 47 and continue through Section 49, located in T-11-S, 

R-16-E. The canal will allow a freshwater river siphon to discharge fresh water from 

the Mississippi River to the parish cross-cut canal, then into Bayou Chevreuil and, 

finally, Lac Des Allemands. The purchase of this tract will provide a straight-line 

canal to feed fresh water into the upper Barataria Basin system. The fresh water will 

provide needed nutrients and sediments that would enhance wetland restoration and 

improve water quality. The diversion will take advantage of natural topographic and 

hydrologic features to reestablish input of basic resources and circulation. 

This area will target the upper section of the Barataria Basin, which continues to 

experience wetland destruction due to poor water quality and lack of the fresh 

nutrients needed to sustain an existing wetland area. This area’s freshwater source 

was cut off when the Mississippi River levees were constructed in the 1940s; 

consequently, the existing wetland continued to deteriorate and subside. 

199


Project Justification: The purpose of this project is to purchase the necessary 

property to construct a small freshwater diversion of approximately 200 to 400 cfs 

into the Bayou Chevreuil wetlands area. The project will address the wetland loss 

and poor water quality that plague this area due to its isolation from a continual 

freshwater source. The project will improve habitat for wildlife and fisheries by 

increasing the flow of freshwater into the wetland areas through a managed outfall 

system. Two of the issues that complicate the development of such a system are land 

rights and availability of property. St. James Parish plans to use these funds to 

purchase the tract of land needed to allow the project to be constructed without future 

delays due to land and property issues. The proposed project was part of the Coast 

2050 initiative and was included in the State’s master plan of restoration strategies for 

the Louisiana coast. Once the property is owned by St. James Parish, the parish is 

prepared to team up with the State to proceed with designs and construction for a 

small siphon system for this area. 


Duration: Approximately 100 Days 

2) Project Title: Blind River Freshwater Diversion Property Purchase 





P. O. Box 106 


Phone: (225) 562-2262 

Fax: (225) 562-2279 







Description and Location of Project: The St. James Parish Council intends to 

purchase a tract of land extending from the Mississippi River to the Parish Canal in 

order to secure the required property for a future freshwater diversion. This project 

will purchase approximately 68 acres of existing agricultural and wetland areas in 

order to accommodate a proposed freshwater siphon project. Land acquired in fee 

title through this project will be conserved in perpetuity, to support implementation of 

the Blind River Diversion project. 

200

The tract of land will allow a siphon and depository canal to be built at the 

Mississippi River in Section 11 and continue through Section 31, located in T-11-S, 

R-4-E. The canal will allow a freshwater river siphon to discharge fresh water from 

the Mississippi River to the parish cross-cut canal, then into Blind River, and, finally, 

Lake Maurepas. The purchase of this tract will provide a straight-line canal to feed 

fresh water into the Blind River system. The fresh water will provide needed 

nutrients and sediments that would enhance wetland restoration and improve water 

quality. The diversion will take advantage of natural topographic and hydrologic 

features to re-establish input of basic resources and circulation. 

This area would target the upper section of Blind River, which continues to 

experience wetland destruction due to poor water quality and lack of the fresh 

nutrients needed to sustain an existing wetland area. This area’s freshwater source 

was cut off when the Mississippi River levees were constructed in the 1940s; 

consequently, the existing wetlands began deteriorating and subsiding. 


Project Justification: The purpose of this project is to purchase the necessary 

property needed to construct a small freshwater diversion of approximately 200 to 

400 cfs into the Blind River system. The siphon project seeks to address the wetland 

loss and poor water quality that plague this area due to its isolation from a continual 

freshwater source. The project will improve habitat for wildlife and fisheries by 

increasing the flow of fresh water into the wetland areas through a managed outfall 

system. Two of the issues that complicate the development of such a system are land 

rights and availability of property. St. James Parish plans to use these funds to 

purchase the necessary tract of land needed to allow the project to be constructed 

without future delays due to land and property issues. The proposed project was part 

of the Coast 2050 initiative and was included in the State’s master plan of restoration 

strategies for the Louisiana coast. Once the property is owned by St. James Parish, 

the parish is prepared to team up with the State to proceed with designs and 

construction for a small siphon system for this area. 


Duration: Approximately 90 days 

3) Project Title: East Bank Wastewater Assimilation Plant 





P. O. Box 106 


Phone: (225) 562-2262 

Fax: (225) 562-2279 


201





Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $400,298.90 (FY2007); $602,778.90 (FY2008). 

Description and Location of Project: The St. James Parish Council plans to 

purchase property and construct a wetland assimilation treatment plant in Grand 

Point, La. The plant will collect wastewater from secondary treatment modules and 

pump the wastewater to the pond area. The pond will discharge into seven acres of 

forested wetland areas that will directly affect 2,400 acres of wetlands. The effluent 

discharge will be controlled to maximize sediment discharge and improve water 

quality. The project will use proven scientific research and analysis to promote 

wetland growth and survival. The project will deliver low cost benefits to parish 

residents and businesses and improve water quality and enhance deteriorating wetland 

areas. Unlike conventional tertiary treatment and filterization, the wetland 

assimilation process reduces the need for chemical treatment and reduces 

maintenance cost such as electricity and labor. A wetland treatment process allows 

for a more natural system and provides for value added wetland production and 

absorption. Additionally, the use of a wetland assimilation process will provide a 

wetland fertilization source, as well as the removal of excess nutrients, especially 

nitrogen and phosphorus. The wetland treatment process provides needed sediment 

and nutrients for the protection of wetlands, wildlife habitat, and forest re-generation. 

The parish will match existing sewerage construction funds to develop a sewer line 

system to connect all of the surrounding (Grand Point) area into this wetland 

enhancement project. The project will provide a means to fully integrate the 

sewerage treatment needs of all businesses and residents within the project target 

area. 

The parish will pay for the material and secondary treatment plants needed to treat the 

residential and commercial wastewater. Through the approval of a municipal 

sewerage tax, the parish is proposing to spend $13.2 million to install the needed 

collection and transportation systems. The parish would then require a full treatment 

implementation program towards the elimination of discharges into the Mississippi 

River and other water bodies within the parish. 

The proposed assimilation plant on the east bank will discharge into the Maurepas 

Swamp Wildlife Management Area. The initial targeted population of the project is 

approximately 4,000 persons. The proposed oxidation pond has a design capacity of 

1.6 million gallons per day and would provide beneficial discharge to approximately 

1,100 acres. The Maurepas Swamp Wildlife Management Area is owned and 

managed by the State and the LA Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. This vast 

wetland area of mostly flooded cypress and tupelo swamp will be the target area for 

the nutrient rich secondary treatment effluent. The effluent will promote vertical 

202

accretion through increased organic matter production and deposition. Similar 

wetland assimilation projects within the region have demonstrated increased accretion 

rates by a factor of three. It is anticipated that we will increase mineral matter 

accretion by 30% and organic matter by 50% within the target area. 

In an effort to accurately measure the increased production of vegetation and wetland 

habitat, the Parish will collect initial base line information and undertake bi-annual 

data collection to measure the overall success and wetland benefits achieved through 

the wastewater assimilation process. 


Project Justification: Poor water quality and water stagnation are serious threats to 

wetland habitat. Because swamps in the Pontchartrain Basin have been isolated from 

the Mississippi River, which was their primary source of water, sediments, and 

nutrients, the wetland areas continue to decline. The use of a wetland assimilation 

process will provide for increase productivity and regeneration of cypress and tupelo 

swamps, increase sediment accretion, increase dissolved oxygen, as well as reduce 

concentrations of nutrients in river water. T he proposed project would directly create 

wetland habitat and reduce wetland loss rates in this area. 

Within the target area, there are no treatment ponds or municipal sewerage treatment 

systems. Presently, all residential and commercial structures discharge into open 

ditches from individual sewerage treatment plants. The development of a wastewater 

assimilation plant to collect and properly treat sewerage before discharging it into 

wetland areas will provide a beneficial wetland use. This project will not only 

eliminate neighborhood discharges in waterways, but will provide beneficial use of 

their wastewater to restore and protect wetland areas. Additionally, within the project 

area, there are several industrial fabrication shops that manufacture and repair pumps, 

motors, and steel components that are used in the production of offshore gas and oil. 

The construction of a wastewater facility within the areas of these fabrication 

facilities addresses a direct impact of offshore production activities. 

Residents who live in close proximity to these facilities will also have the benefits of 

this type of wastewater treatment. The project will be designed to maximize the 

amount of influent wastewater that can be discharged into the wetland area to 

enhance wetland productivity and growth. The parish is prepared to construct the 

sewer lines needed to utilize the plant and use the CIAP funds to develop the wetland 

wastewater assimilation process and sediment pond facility. 

Presently, the Grand Point area wastewater and water quality management plan calls 

for all discharges to go into the Mississippi River. The use of CIAP funds to develop 

a wastewater wetland assimilation plant will provide a long-term beneficial use of 

those wastewater discharges. 



203

4) Project Title: West Bank Wastewater Assimilation Plant 





P. O. Box 106 


Phone: (225) 562-2262 

Fax: (225) 562-2279 







$646,300.42 (FY2010) 

Description and Location of Project: The St. James Parish Council plans to 

construct a wetland assimilation treatment plant on property owned by the Parish 

Council in Vacherie, Louisiana. The plant will collect wastewater from secondary 

treatment modules and pump the wastewater to a sediment pond area. The nine acre 

pond will discharge into 2,400 acres of forested wetland areas that will directly affect 

the swampland composition and structure. The effluent discharge will be controlled 

to maximize sediment discharge and improve water quality. The project will use 

proven scientific research and analysis to provide a wetland wastewater strategy to 

promote wetland growth and survival. The project will provide low cost benefits to 

St. James Parish residents and businesses while improving water quality and 

enhancing deteriorating wetland areas. Unlike conventional tertiary treatment and 

filterization, the wetland assimilation process reduces the need for chemical treatment 

and allows for a more natural system, which provides for value added wetland 

production and absorption. Additionally, the use of a wetland assimilation process 

will provide a wetland fertilization source, as well as the removal of excess nutrients, 

especially nitrogen and phosphorus. The wetland treatment process provides needed 

sediment and nutrients for the protection of wetlands, wildlife habitat, and forest 

regeneration. Presently, little or no cypress regeneration occurs, leaving poorly 

developing relics. Additionally, areas where there were once dense stands of cypress 

and tupelo are becoming open areas lacking trees. St. James Parish will match 

existing sewerage construction funds to develop a sewer line system to connect all of 

the surrounding (Vacherie) area into this wetland enhancement project. The project 

will provide a means to fully integrate the sewerage treatment needs of all businesses 

and residents in the surrounding area. 

204

St. James Parish will pay for the material and secondary treatment plants needed to 

treat the residential and commercial wastewater. Through the approval of a 

municipal sewerage tax, the parish is proposing to spend $16.9 million to install the 

needed collection and transportation systems. The parish will then require a full 

treatment implementation program to eliminate discharges into the Mississippi River 

and other water bodies within the parish. 

The proposed assimilation plant on the west bank will discharge into the Coteau 

Chevreuil freshwater forested wetlands. The initial targeted population of the project 

is approximately 5,500 persons. The proposed oxidation pond has a design capacity 

of 2.0 million gallons per day and would provide beneficial discharge to 

approximately 2,300 acres. The property is in the process of being purchased by St. 

James Parish and will, therefore, become publicly owned. The Parish plans to 

discharge the effluent evenly along the northern edge of the receiving wetlands and 

allow the natural hydrological gradient of the basin to sheet flow the discharge into 

the entire target area. This major wetland area of mostly flooded cypress and tupelo 

swamp will be the target area for the nutrient rich secondary treatment effluent. The 

effluent will promote vertical accretion through increased organic matter production 

and deposition. Similar wetland assimilation projects within the region have 

demonstrated increased accretion rates by a factor of three. It is anticipated that we 

will increase mineral matter accretion by 30% and organic matter by 50% within the 

target area. 

In an effort to accurately measure the increased production of vegetation and wetland 

habitat, the Parish will conduct initial base line information and undertake bi-annual 

data collection to measure the overall success and wetland benefits achieved through 

the wastewater assimilation process. 


Project Justification: Poor water quality and water stagnation are serious threats to 

wetland habitat. Because swamps in the Barataria Basin have been isolated from the 

Mississippi River, which was their primary source of water, sediments, and nutrients, 

the wetland areas continue to decline. The use of a wetland assimilation process will 

provide for increased productivity and regeneration of cypress and tupelo swamps, an 

increase in sediment accretion, and an increase in dissolved oxygen, as well as a 

reduction of nutrient concentrations in river water. The proposed project will directly 

create wetland habitat, reduce wetland loss rates in this area, and provide 

sustainability to the swamps in the face of long-term subsidence. 

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Within the target area, there are no treatment ponds or municipal sewerage treatment 

systems. Presently, all residential and commercial structures discharge into open 

ditches from individual sewerage treatment plants. The development of a wastewater 

assimilation plant to collect and properly treat sewerage before discharging into 

wetland areas will provide a beneficial wetland use. This project will not only 

eliminate neighborhood discharges in waterways, but would provide beneficial use of 

their wastewater to restore and protect wetland areas. Additionally, within the project 

area, there are several industrial fabrication shops that manufacture and repair pumps, 

motors, and steel components that are used in the production of offshore gas and oil. 

The construction of a wastewater facility within the areas of these fabrication 

facilities addresses a direct impact of offshore production activities. 

Residents who live in close proximity to these facilities will also have the benefits of 

this type of wastewater treatment. The project will be designed to maximize the 

amount of influent wastewater that can be discharged into the wetland area to 

enhance wetland productivity and growth. St. James Parish is prepared to construct 

the sewer lines needed to utilize the plant and use the CIAP funds to develop the 

wetland wastewater assimilation process and sediment pond facility. Further, as the 

swamps die, the communities lining the Mississippi River are increasingly vulnerable 

to local and storm surge flooding. 

Presently, the Vacherie area wastewater and water quality management plan calls for 

all discharges to go into the Mississippi River. The use of CIAP funds to construct a 

wastewater wetland assimilation plant will provide a long-term beneficial use of those 

wastewater discharges and help restore the wetland areas. 



5) Project Title: Waterline Booster Pump Station, East Bank 





P. O. Box 106 


Phone: (225) 562-2262 

Fax: (225) 562-2279 


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Description and Location of Project: Due to the increased activity in oil and gas 

production, St. James Parish is proposing to construct a waterline booster pump 

station in Convent, Louisiana. The proposed site is located along LA Highway 44 in 

R-3-E, T-11-S. The scope of work for the booster pump station includes housing a 40 

hp motor with a 1,100 gallon/minute high-service pump capable of overcoming an 80 

foot dynamic head condition. The booster pump will tie into the existing 10 inch 

PVC waterline at two locations in order to establish a loop and by-pass system. The 

station will have a metal building with a concrete floor to enclose the pump and 

electrical equipment. The project was designed to maximize the booster pump’s 

ability to meet and exceed peak flow demands from businesses and industries in the 

area. Based on flow reading on the upper end of the east bank, the low flows are 

approximately 400 gpm. Depending on the demand on the discharge side of the 

proposed pump station, it is anticipated the average additional flow would be 600 

gpm. 

St. James Parish has already hired an engineering consultant to develop plans and 

specifications for the waterline booster pump station. The cost for the plans, $7,900, 

was paid by the St. James Parish Council. The parish is prepared to fund any 

additional costs associated with this project above the amount requested from CIAP 

funds. Additionally, the remaining costs of bidding, construction representation, 

surveying, and right-of-way acquisitions are estimated to be $17,100 and will be paid 

by the parish. 


Project Justification: There are a number of pipelines traversing St. James Parish 

that transport OCS-produced petroleum; therefore, high water pressure must be 

maintained to respond to a fire on any of those pipelines. Within the project area, 

there are several industrial fabrication shops that manufacture and repair pumps, 

motors, and steel components that are used in the production of offshore oil and gas. 

These facilities have also created additional demand for water needed in their 

manufacturing processes and fire protection in the event of an accident or fire. The 

booster pump station will also help address water needs at the oil refineries found in 

the area. The use of CIAP funds to construct the booster pump station will thus 

provide long-term beneficial use of the water supply system, and help to address 

those water demands associated with activities that support OCS oil and gas 

production. 

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St. James Parish is prepared to pay for the cost of design, bidding, surveying, right-ofway 

acquisitions, and other miscellaneous costs. Therefore, the CIAP funds will be 

used toward the actual construction cost only. 



6) Project Title: Waterline Booster Pump Station, West Bank 





P. O. Box 106 


Phone: (225) 562-2262 

Fax: (225) 562-2279 







Description and Location of Project: Due to the substantial increase in oil and gas 

activities within St. James Parish, including the storage of OCS-produced oil, it is 

necessary for the parish to construct a waterline booster pump on the west bank of the 

parish. Though a similar system is being proposed on the east bank of the Mississippi 

River, the river divides the parish in half, requiring the parish to have two separate 

waterline systems. The parish is, therefore, proposing to construct a waterline booster 

pump station in Welcome, Louisiana. The proposed site is located near Section 43, 

T-11-S, R-3-E, along LA Highway 18. The proposed construction includes the 

installation of a 40 hp electric motor with a 1,100 gpm high-service pump. The pump 

is designed to be able to overcome a dynamic head pressure condition of 80 feet. The 

booster pump will be built along the existing waterline and be tied in at two places in 

order to establish a loop and by-pass system with 10-inch in-line valves. The station 

will a have metal building with a concrete floor to fully enclose and protect the pump 

and electrical equipment. Based on flow reading on the upper end of the west bank, 

the low flows are approximately 400 gpm. Depending on the demand on the 

discharge side of the proposed pump station, it is anticipated the average additional 

flow would be 600 gpm. 

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St. James Parish has already hired an engineering consultant to develop plans and 

specifications for the waterline booster pump station. The cost for the plans, $7,900, 

was paid by the Parish Council. The parish is prepared to pay any additional costs 

associated with this project above the amount requested from CIAP funds. 

Additionally, the remaining costs of bidding, construction representation, surveying, 

and right-of-way permits are estimated to be $14,100 and will be paid by the parish. 

Therefore, all of the requested CIAP funds will be used toward the actual construction 

cost of the project. 


Project Justification: Because of the increase in oil and gas production activities, 

especially at the oil storage facilities in St. James and the Chevron Phillips facility, an 

increase in water pressure is needed to meet the extra potable water requirements to 

maintain the chemical plant’s and storage facilities’ demands. The west bank of St. 

James Parish has one of the largest aboveground storage tank networks in the country, 

which now exceeds 16 million barrels. The oil stored at those facilities includes 

production from the Gulf of Mexico OCS waters. The additional water demands at 

the above-referenced facilities is such that, in the event of a fire at one of the plants or 

storage facilities, the parish will not have enough water pressure to adequately 

respond to the incident. Therefore, the parish needs to construct this high-pressure 

water booster pump to meet those demands. Also, due to the number of pipelines 

located throughout the parish that carry products from OCS production operations, it 

is vital that high water pressure be maintained in the water supply system in the event 

of a fire or pipeline rupture. Additionally, in the event of a fire at one of the plants or 

storage facilities, the parish will not have enough water pressure to adequately 

respond to the incident. 

Within the project area, there are several industrial fabrication shops that manufacture 

and repair pumps, motors, and steel components that are needed for the production of 

OCS oil and gas. These facilities have also created additional demand for water 

supply and pressure needed in their manufacturing processes and for fire protection in 

the event of an accident or fire. 

The project was designed to maximize the booster pump’s ability to meet and exceed 

peak flow demands from businesses and industries in the area. The use of CIAP 

funds to construct the booster pump station will thus provide a long-term beneficial 

use of the water supply system, and help to address those water demands associated 

with facilities that support OCS oil and gas production and processing. 

St. James Parish has already paid the cost to design and engineer the project and will 

use the CIAP funds to complete the project’s construction. 


Duration: 180 days 

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7) Project Title: West Bank Wetland Conservation and Protection 

Entity Nominating the Project: St. James Parish Council 




P. O. Box 106 


Phone: (225) 562-2262 

Fax: (225) 562-2279 







Description and Location of Project: The St. James Parish Council would like to 

purchase several large tracts of existing wetlands to prohibit the destruction of, and 

aid in the protection of, the parish’s coastal wetland areas. This project proposes to 

purchase approximately 615 acres of existing wetlands from the Bayou Chevreuil 

Land Co., LLC. The areas the parish will purchase and protect adjoin a major State 

highway that links the communities of South Vacherie in St. James Parish to 

Chackbay in Lafourche Parish. The purchase of these tracts will eliminate any future 

development along this 1.8-mile stretch of LA Highway 20. Land acquired in fee title 

through this project will be conserved in perpetuity. 

The purchase of these tracts will provide for the protection of 242 acres of healthy 

cypress swamp and 373 acres of bottomland hardwood forests in St. James Parish. It 

is the intention of the St. James Parish Council to create a Louisiana Conservation 

Servitude on the entire 615 acres. The Bayou Chevreuil Land Co., LLC, is the legal 

owner of the proposed land to be purchased. There are no liens, encumbrances, 

easements, or restrictions on the property proposed under this project. 

The soil survey of the site as depicted in the “Soil Survey of St. James and St. John 

the Baptist Parishes, La.” (1973) shows the soil types to be Barbary association (Ba), 

Barbary-Fausse association (BB) Commerce silt loam (Cm), Commerce silty clay 

loam (Cn), Convent complex (Cr), and Sharkey association, frequently flooded (Sm). 

Elevations on the site range from 0.5 to 5.0 feet above NGVD for mean sea level. 

The majority of the site remains saturated or inundated for most of the year. 

210

The site is dominated primarily by facultative-wetland and obligate-wetland plant 

species. The dominant species include bald cypress, water tupelo, Drummond red 

maple, American elm, alligator weed, and water hyacinth. Some upland species grow 

on the spoil banks of the highway borrow canal and the Dredge Boat Canal. These 

include sweetgum, water oak, overcup oak, Nuttall oak, willow oak, bitter pecan, and 

green ash. The proposed project is located in St. James Parish, in Sections 22 and 27, 

Township-13-South, and Range-17-East, South Vacherie, Louisiana. 


Project Justification: Approximately 615 acres of cypress swamp and bottomland 

hardwoods will be preserved once purchased from this landowner. The property is 

vital to prevent commercial and residential development along this existing State 

highway. The benefits of purchasing this property include hurricane protection, flood 

control, control of wetland impacts due to development, and protection of a critical 

ecological system. The program provides both near-term and long-term benefits and, 

at a cost of less than $1,200 per acre, is considered highly cost effective in addressing 

the protection of coastal and wetland areas. This project addresses the goal of the 

Louisiana Coastal Area (LCA) Ecosystem Restoration Plan towards the reversing the 

degradation of the coastal ecosystem and destruction of critical wetland habitats. The 

purchase of the property coupled with the future work planned including the 

reestablishment of natural hydraulic water flow through the removal of existing 

continuous spoil banks will enhance the entire site when additional funds become 

available and reintroduce natural flood flows along the drainage canals that are now 

cut off from needed nutrients and sediments. The project and future work planned 

not only provides multiple benefits for wetland preservation and enhancement, but 

also allows for flood protection by providing a large natural water reservoir and 

hurricane protection from wind and storm surge. 



8) Project Title: Wetland Wastewater Assimilation Process Planning 





P. O. Box 106 


(225) 562-2262 fax (225) 562-2279 


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Description and Location of Project: The St. James Parish Council will hire a 

consulting company to conduct a preliminary analysis to determine the feasibility of 

funneling wastewater effluent into wetlands. The study will be parish wide and will 

develop a plan to allow wetland assimilation to provide tertiary treatment to 

wastewater while improving wetland quality. The study will analyze potential sites 

and set project goals. The wetland areas will be characterized by their ecological 

conditions and capacities to assimilate wastewater. As part of the study, engineers 

will provide cost estimates for improving existing systems, as well as for constructing 

new systems needed to meet regulatory standards. The final report will provide 

preliminary characterizations of the parish’s wetland systems, their suitability for 

wastewater assimilation, an analysis of the wetlands’ loading and assimilation 

capacities, and capabilities of the wetlands and preliminary engineering and cost 

analyses. 

The use of wetlands provides a dual benefit for wastewater treatment. Using a 

wetland treatment approach allows for the development of a system than can function 

for long periods of time; and because of the natural processes, the wetlands will 

achieve water quality improvements and greater health. The added nutrients have 

been shown to significantly increase net productivity, litter fall, and wood production. 

St. James Parish will develop and provide digitized maps of the site areas. All 

mapping and photography needed for the development and implementation of this 

project will be undertaken by the St. James Parish Council. The estimated value of 

this task is approximately $10,000, which will be provided by the parish through inkind 

labor and materials. 


Project Justification: Several studies and reports have been completed that explain 

and demonstrate the improved wetland quality that can result from similar wastewater 

projects. St. James Parish will use an experienced environmental consultant to 

evaluate and make recommendations for beneficial use through wetland assimilation. 

The project will help in the design of wastewater treatment systems that will meet 

regulatory requirements, improve water quality, enhance wetland areas, and reduce 

maintenance and operational costs of traditional systems. Past studies have shown 

the quick response and revegetation of forested wetlands resulting from the addition 

of secondarily treated wastewater. By inducing accretion through the deposition of 

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suspended solids, wastewater applications have produced positive wetland habitat 

increases. The addition of discharges into forested wetland areas have positively 

affected forest species composition, density, and structure by causing changes in 

hydrology, sediment deposition, and nutrient status. The implementation of these 

types of systems throughout the parish will provide a cost effective and beneficial use 

of wastewater, and it will help to enhance and maintain the parish’s wetland areas. 




1) Project Title: Reserve Relief Canal Shoreline Protection 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: St. John the Baptist Parish 






Phone: (985) 651-5565 

Fax: (985) 653-9808 






Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $1,479,903.09 (FY2007); $533,153.99 (FY2008) 

Description and Location of Project: The proposed project will consist of 

approximately 1,400 linear feet of shoreline protection extending in an easterly and 

westerly direction in St. John the Baptist Parish, where the Reserve Relieve Canal 

enters Lake Maurepas. This will also include entrance protection lining. The 

proposed feature consists of a foreshore rock dike with gaps for fish and public access 

to the lake shoreline. 


Project Justification: The subject shoreline erosion has resulted in the loss of 

approximately 15 acres of land to date and is continuing at an increasing rate. 

Construction of the project features are expected to stop the shoreline erosion. 

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2) Project Title: West Lac des Allemands Shoreline Protection 







Phone: (985) 651-5565 

Fax: (985) 653-9808 






Fiscal Year Allocation: $946,749.10 (FY2008); $1,444,355.45 (FY2009); 

$1,429,447.46 (FY2010) 

Description and Location of Project: The proposed project will consist of 11,000 

feet of shoreline protection, extending from “Pleasure Bend” westward to Pointe Aux 

Herbes, along the western shore of Lac des Allemands, St. John the Baptist Parish, 

Louisiana. The proposed feature consists of foreshore rock dike with gaps for fish 

and public access to the lake shoreline. 


Project Justification: USGS has determined that the subject shoreline is eroding at 

an average rate of 17 feet per year or approximately 2.9 acres per year. Construction 

of the project feature is expected to stop the shoreline erosion. 



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1) Project Title: Bayou Amy Trail and Educational Pavilion 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: St. Martin Parish, Louisiana 


Guy Cormier 


301 West Port Street, P.O. Box 9 

St. Martinville, LA 70582 

Phone: (337) 394-2200 

Fax: (337) 394-5580 

gcormier@stmartinparish.net 



State Funds Proposed: $0 



Description and Location of Project: Bayou Amy is located along the toe of the 

West Guideline Levee for the Atchafalaya Basin Floodway System, in St. Martin 

Parish. Bayou Amy provides a hydrologic connection between Bayou Berard and 

Lake Catahoula, which flow into Lakes Dauterive and Fausse Point, and ultimately 

into the bays of Louisiana’s central coast. The proposed project is to be implemented 

along the eastern shoreline of Bayou Amy, in Henderson, Louisiana, and includes: 

a. The donation of 2.5 acres of land along Bayou Amy. 

b. Construction of a 20 foot x 40 foot open air pavilion, which will 

accommodate a group of approximately 50 adults, for public used dedicated to 

outreach and education on natural resources conservation. The pavilion will 

include a self-contained concrete restroom. 

c. Construction of a 1,235-foot-long nature trail that will allow interpretive 

programs to access the edge of a bottomland hardwood/cypress-tupelo swamp. 

d. Construction of a boat launching facility for public use. Construction 

features would include a bulkhead and parking area for 25-30 vehicles for 

public access to the Atchafalaya Basin Program wilderness canoe trail. The 

boat launch, bulkhead and parking area would be funded separately through 

the State of Louisiana Capitol Outlay Program. 


215

Project Justification: In 1986, Congress authorized $250 million to preserve and 

enhance the Atchafalaya Basin through the USACE by expanding public access, 

environmental easements, water management, and recreation. In 1999, the Louisiana 

Legislature voted unanimously for the State Master Plan of the Atchafalaya Basin 

(Act 920), authorizing $85 million to be spent over a 15-year period, to complement 

the federal Atchafalaya Basin program. 

The objective of this project is to create a conservation outreach and educational 

center and to facilitate canoe and other public boating access into a unique 

bottomland hardwood/cypress-tupelo swamp setting in which a canoe trail has 

already been established. A small pavilion will be constructed for use as an 

environmental education center to teach visitors about conservation of the ecology of 

the area. Henderson, Louisiana, has been named “The Gateway to the Atchafalaya 

Basin” and, as such, should have public access to surrounding waterways. It is 

estimated that approximately 10,400 visitor’s would utilize the Bayou Amy Trail and 

Education Pavilion annually. 

Construction of the planned facilities will provide public access from the northern 

reaches of the Henderson and Lakes Catahoula, Dauterive, and Fausse Pointe. This 

project will ultimately tie into Lake Fausse Point State Park, a premier 5,000-acre 

State park, thereby increasing the public’s opportunity to learn about conservation, 

protection, and enjoyment of the natural resources associated with the area lakes, 

bayous, swamps, and streams. The center will also provide information and 

education opportunities regarding the fish, wildlife and associated natural resources 

of the area. 



2) Project Title: Beau Bayou Swamp Hydrologic Restoration 



Guy Cormier 




Phone: (337) 394-2200 

Fax: (337) 394-5580 


216






$1,545,724.99 (FY2009); $1,529,770.44 (FY2010). 

Description and Location of Project: Beau Bayou Swamp is located in the west 

central region of the Atchafalaya Basin, in St. Martin Parish. Once known as a highly 

productive fisheries area, hydrologic manipulation within the Atchafalaya Basin from 

levee construction, pipeline canal spoil banks, sediment diversions, and 

channelization of the Atchafalaya River led to hypoxic conditions within Beau Bayou 

Swamp, and many of the basin’s other interior swamps. Most of the natural bayous 

and man-made canals flowing into Beau Bayou Swamp carry significant amounts of 

sediment, adding to the already degraded condition of the swamp. The proposed 

Beau Bayou hydrologic restoration project consists of 19 elements that reroute water 

through the area with the intention of increasing dissolved oxygen concentrations 

during the period when the area is flooded by the Atchafalaya River including: 

• Dredging of Beau Bayou, through the center of the swamp, along with 

dredging of some of the natural waterways. Dredged material is to be used 

beneficially to address subsidence problems within the adjacent swamp. Any 

exposed spoil is to be vegetated with native plants. 

• Gapping of the natural levee along the northeast section of Bayou L’Embarras 

to allow for the exchange of freshwater and nutrients with the swamp. 

• Creating inline sediment traps to reduce the sediment load currently flowing 

into Beau Bayou Swamp. 

The features listed as new water sources in the plan area designed to deliver water 

into the northern end of the unit, and the project is designed to increase oxygen 

concentrations by improving water circulation in areas that have been shown to be 

hypoxic (dissolved oxygen below 2 grams/liter) for some part of the annual flood 

pulse. Approximately 9,500 acres f the 23,000 acres within the project area is 

inundated when the Atchafalaya River stage is 11.5 feet at Butte La Rose. Water 

quality monitoring from early summer (May 2007) indicates that dissolved oxygen 

concentrations are below levels sufficient to support a healthy aquatic ecosystem 

throughout the entire water column for between 75 and 90% of the inundated area. 

Research in other parts of the Atchafalaya Basin indicates that isolated areas, like 

Beau Bayou, lack a uniform distribution of river water into the system and experience 

similar hypoxia problems. The trend in those areas is for hypoxia to become more 

problematic as summer temperatures increase. The trend is especially prevalent in 

areas where physical flow barriers formed by spoil banks or sediment deposition 

causes water to be trapped in the system and prevents a net water exchange. LIDAR 

data indicates that such is the case for the project area, especially along the northern 

boundary of the area where elevations are as high as 19.5 feet NGVD. 

217

Preliminary evaluation of the area suggests that water diversion projects could be 

constructed with a reasonable expectation of introducing water across those flow 

barriers and improving internal circulation for periods when the Butte La Rose stage 

is greater than 11.5 feet (roughly equivalent to ground elevation at the Beau Bayou 

location of 8 feet NGVD). Assuming that these conditions appropriately outline the 

management objectives of the project, addition of water through the proposed inlet 

features and the improved circulation provided by the removal of interior flow barrier 

would reduce hypoxia in the project area. The duration and extent of improvement 

would be expected to vary annually depending on the amount and timing of the 

annual flood cycle so any anticipated reduction in hypoxia from this project can only 

be evaluated accordingly, but improvements in water flow patterns have been 

associated with reduced hypoxia in other areas of the basin. A hypothetical 

assessment based on the past 10 years of river stage data indicate that similar 

beneficial flow improvements would have occurred on average 101 days in the Beau 

Bayou area under the proposed plan. Only in two of those years (200 and 2006) 

would the benefits of improved circulation have been limited to less than 90 days. 

However the duration in those years was notably less, having each less than 5 days of 

anticipated benefit. Other factors, particularly higher temperatures and dense 

vegetation cover, are also associated with the hypoxia, so while the introduction of 

river water and internal circulation improvements both have mitigating influences on 

hypoxia, it is not expected that hypoxia can be eliminated. However, in the months 

that hypoxia is typically problematic (April through September) over the past ten 

years water circulation would have been improved between 2 and 53% of the time. 

By extension of that improvement and observations of other water management 

projects in the Basin, it would not be unreasonable to expect on average up to 50% 

reduction in the degree of hypoxia for the project area. Similarly, and equally as 

important, the duration of hypoxia should also be reduced on a comparable scale. 

Many other indirect downstream benefits would also be expected, but can’t be 

adequately quantified without more specific project plans. 

It is important to note that evaluation of this assessment is preliminary and limited to 

the portion of the study area that is expected to function as sustainable aquatic habitat. 

It outlines only water quality improvements to the aquatic habitat. That habitat type, 

as outlined above, represents about 42% of the entire study area. It is also possible 

and feasible that project goals may be set to manage aquatic habitat under different 

assumptions and similar assessments could be applied to those criteria or conditions. 

Additional changes are also expected to the forested wetlands, wildlife, fish, and 

other biota in the area, but more information is needed to quantify and interpret those 

changes. 


218

Project Justification: Although limited scientific information has been collected 

within the boundaries of the unit, that information does confirm public reports and 

concern about the future of the area. For years, there have been reports of water 

quality problems, fish kills, accelerated sediment accretion, and other ecological 

aberrations that indicate problems with the Beau Bayou area. Various sources of 

information have indicated that water quality and sedimentation problems exist in the 

Beau Bayou area; those sources include: a previously described hydrological and 

siltation history of Beau Bayou Swamp; USGS synoptic (time synchronized) data; 

sedimentation patterns near Bayou Darby and Alligator Bayou; permanent stage 

recorder information; Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) data; 

and local fishermen’s anecdotal information. The USGS has documented the rate of 

sediment accretion in the southern portion of the Beau Bayou area to be very high 

relative to other areas of the Atchafalaya Basin. 

Failure to act soon with restoration efforts may result in limited options for managing 

the Beau Bayou Swamp ecosystem in the future. Poor water quality in Beau Bayou 

has been deemed significant enough to merit the endorsement of some type of water 

management project, along with pre- and post-construction monitoring. Such action is 

required in order to restore the ecology of the area. 



3) Project Title: Stephensville Sanitation System and Wastewater Assimilation 



Guy Cormier 




Phone: (337) 394-2200 

Fax: (337) 394-5580 




State Funds Proposed: $ 0 


Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $717,963.60 (FY2007); $1,482,038.00 (FY2008). 

219

Description and Location of Project: Wetlands can act as nutrient sinks that 

improve water quality by assimilating nutrients and filtering suspended solids and 

organics. The town of Stephensville, Louisiana, currently employs a biological 

wastewater treatment system to utilize the assimilative functions of adjacent wetlands 

to improve water quality. Treated effluent from the town’s municipal treatment 

facility is released into 5 acres of the adjacent forested wetlands. Based on research 

of previous wetland assimilation projects in Louisiana, we would anticipate an 

increase of approximately 20% in annual plant productivity and an increase of 

approximately 25% in annual sediment accretion due to deposition of organic matter 

in the benefitted project area. Site specific project performance goals would be more 

accurately determined during the engineering and design phase of this project. The 

effluent contains high concentrations of nitrogen, phosphorous, and other essential 

nutrients that can be assimilated by the wetlands. The benefits of this technique 

include increased primary and secondary productivity, vigorous growth of submerged 

aquatic vegetation, emergent vegetation, and increased edge habitat and cover for 

waterfowl and other wildlife. The effluent release also acts as a diversion to increase 

the quantity of fresh water into the system and provides a freshwater source during 

drought conditions. 

This project will include an upgrade of the existing wastewater treatment plant 

infrastructure and construction of a discharge structure and piping system into the 

adjacent wetlands for wetland assimilation. Stephensville’s wastewater facility is 

located in Stephensville along Bayou Milhomme in Lower St. Martin Parish. 


Project Justification: The upgrade of the Stephensville Sanitation System, part of 

the St. Martin Parish Water and Sewer Department, will alleviate the current 

problems associated with water infiltration into the system’s intake pipes and 

structures. Upgrading the system will allow St. Martin Parish to continue to provide 

high quality sanitary services to the surrounding communities while enhancing local 

wetlands. The proposed project will also provide increased treatment capacity that 

will allow the system to accept flows from new developments in the area. The 

process of wetland assimilation of nutrients will stimulate growth and productivity of 

flora and fauna in the adjacent wetlands, and will further improve water quality and 

fisheries habitat in the Belle River, Milhomme Bayou, and Lake Palourde areas. 



220


1) Project Title: Burns Point Recreation Park Improvements 





Fifth Floor Courthouse Building 

Franklin, LA 70538-6198. 

Phone: (337) 828-4100 

Fax: (337) 828-4092 







Description and Location of Project: The project is located in the Burns Point 

Recreation Park, St. Mary Parish, Louisiana and will stabilize the shoreline at the 

Burns Point Recreation Park, classified by the Louisiana Office of State Parks as a 

Special use Park, is an 8.5-acre park located along the coast at the end of Highway 

317. This project is located within a larger shoreline protection project, Bayou Sale 

Shoreline Protection CWPPRA TV-20, which is located along the eastern shoreline of 

East Cote Blanche Bay, from the British-American Canal to the mouth of Bayou Sale. 

The CWPPRA project is approximately 35,776 linear feet of foreshore rock dike 

parallel to and approximately 150 feet out from the existing shoreline and would tie 

into this project on both ends. The park includes camper hook ups, a boat ramp, 

picnic area, and bank fishing opportunities. 

The proposed project features funded through the CIAP program are an 

approximately 600 foot vinyl bulkhead with a 4 inch x 6 foot concrete walkway and 

an approximately 400 foot vinyl bulkhead with a 4 inch x 6 foot concrete walkway. 

In addition, work funded through the Breaux-Wallop Act will be done simultaneously 

at Burns Point, which includes a 35 foot x 30 foot concrete apron in the existing 

limestone launch area, a 250 foot x 7 foot timber wharf on the south side of the boat 

ramp, and a new 250 foot x 175 foot parking area. 

221

The complete project goals are to stabilize the shoreline and improve access to East 

Cote Blanche Bay through improvements to the boat launch. The boat ramp 

improvement, new timber wharf adjacent to the boat ramp, and new parking area are 

being implemented with $490,000 in Breaux-Wallop funds. 


Project Justification: The erosion rate along the shoreline in the project area is 13.5 

feet per year, caused by the large open water fetch and resulting wave energy from 

East Cote Blanche Bay. Construction of the project features will result in a halt to the 

erosion rate. The walkways adjacent the bulkhead will aid in the long-term 

inspection and maintenance of the bulkhead structure by providing access and 

reducing the need for and wear associated with, maintaining vegetation adjacent to 

the structure. 



2) Project Title: Deer Island Pass Realignment 







Phone: (337) 828-4100 

Fax: (337) 828-4092 







$761,046.41 (FY2009); $1,357,057.97 (FY2010) 

222

Description and Location of Project: The project is located in the northern portion 

of the Lower Atchafalaya River Delta near the mouth of Deer Island Bayou. The 

proposed project consists of dredging a 5,280 foot long, 280 foot wide, and 12 foot 

deep channel across the shallow flat at the mouth of Deer Island Bayou to improve 

water and sediment flow into northeast Atchafalaya Bay through the existing Deer 

Island Pass. Dredged material will be placed in marsh creation cells (30 acres total) 

along the eastern shore of the Lower Atchafalaya River to reduce shoreline erosion 

and to create a protected backwater area. The reduction in shoreline erosion aspect of 

this project will protect 50 acres of existing marsh in the project area. The exterior 

face of that marsh creation area may require rip-rap to protect it against erosion from 

boat wakes. A similar project, the Castille Pass Channel Sediment Delivery Project 

(CWPPRA Project AT-04) was engineered and designed through the CWPPRA 

program. That project area is located just south of Deer Island Pass along the Lower 

Atchafalaya River. The Castille Pass Channel Sediment Delivery Project engineering 

and design report projected the restoration of approximately 570 acres of marsh 

through the excavation of channels, of which the main channel off of the Lower 

Atchafalaya River would capture approximately 10% of the flow of the Lower 

Atchafalaya River at high water. That report also projected the creation of 666 acres 

of marsh through increased delta growth over the projected 20 year project life. The 

Deer Island project is projected to capture approximately 7.5% of the Lower 

Atchafalaya River flow at high water, and the delta growth would correspondingly be 

anticipated to be about two thirds the size of the Castille Pass project or 

approximately 400 acres over 20 years. The exact size, depth, and configuration of 

the channel and the projected increased delta growth will be more accurately 

determined with the aid of hydrodynamic and hydrologic modeling during the 

engineering and design phase of this project. Maintenance dredging of the pass will 

be included as a project maintenance activity. 


Project Justification: Presently, the shoal between the Lower Atchafalaya River and 

the head of Deer Island Pass does not allow the efficient flow of water and sediment 

from the river into northeastern Atchafalaya Bay. Natural accretion is occurring in 

the bay, but a more efficient delivery of sediment to that area would enhance marshbuilding 

processes. The proposed dredging will increase delta growth in the extreme 

northeast corner of Atchafalaya Bay. The proposed marsh creation aspect of the 

project will help to reduce shoreline erosion along the Lower Atchafalaya River. 

Also, wave action is resulting in erosion along the eastern bank of the Lower 

Atchafalaya River north of Deer Island Bayou. A GIS comparison of 1990 and 2005 

shoreline positions reveals that along the Lower Atchafalaya River, erosion rates 

during that period have ranged from 12 feet per year to a maximum of 22 feet per 

year. Along the northeast shore of Atchafalaya Bay, shoreline erosion rates vary with 

location. Maximum erosion rates are approximately 5 feet per year. It is estimated 

that the erosion rates in this area will be reduced by 50%. 

223

The project goal is to accelerate deltaic land building in the northeast portion of 

Atchafalaya Bay and reduce shoreline erosion there and along portions of the Lower 

Atchafalaya River shoreline. Additionally, the project will create roughly 30 acres of 

marsh with the dredged material (a more exact estimate would be made later, after 

modeling and engineering). 

The preliminary project benefits are: 

1) The total acreage created will be approximately 30 acres of marsh. Reduced 

shoreline erosion would result in additional direct benefits. 

2) Indirect benefits will occur through increased delta growth. Modeling will be used 

to estimate those benefits. 

3) The project will help to protect structural components of the coastal ecosystem 

such as the natural rim of Atchafalaya Bay. 

4) The project will not protect critical or non-critical infrastructure; however, if 

successful, it will help to impede northward transmission of storm surge. 

5) The proposed project will complement other beneficial use of dredged material 

projects in the area by accelerating deltaic growth, which will reduce physical erosion 

of those existing marsh creation areas. Otherwise, there are no nearby 

protection/restoration projects in that portion of the Lower Atchafalaya River Delta 

with which the proposed project will interact. 



3) Project Title: Planning Assistance and Administration 







Phone: (337) 828-4100 

Fax: (337) 828-4092 







$5,000.00 (FY2009). 

224

Description and Location of Project: This project will provide financial assistance 

to St. Mary Parish Government to manage and implement the CIAP program. 


Project Coast Share: None 

Duration: Six years 

4) Project Title: Point Chevreuil Shoreline Protection 







Phone: (337) 828-4100 

Fax: (337) 828-4092 


Total CIAP Funds Requested: $1,860,165.00 


State Funds Requested: $0 



$610,165.00 (FY2009). 

Description and Location of Project: The project is located in Region 3, 

Atchafalaya River Basin, St. Mary Parish, along the southeastern shoreline of East 

Cote Blanche Bay, around Point Chevreuil and the northwestern shoreline of 

Atchafalaya Bay. 

The eroding shoreline was caused by the open water fetch and resulting wave energy 

from East Cote Blanche and Atchafalaya Bays. The shoreline retreat has resulted in a 

substantial loss of emergent wetlands and critical habitat used by a multitude of 

wildlife and fish species. Project features will protect the natural ridge functions of 

the Bayou Sale Ridge and protect the adjacent marshes. Shoreline erosion rates have 

been estimated by the USGS at 13.5 feet/year. 

225

The proposed project features are construction of a foreshore rock dike or rock 

revetment parallel to the existing eastern shoreline of East Cote Blanche Bay around 

Point Chevreuil. The linear footage of the shoreline is approximately 4,250. It is 

possible that marsh can be created with the fill material from dredging an access 

channel to accommodate construction equipment where needed. This created area 

will be built from the existing shoreline out to the rock dike. The confluence of east 

and west shorelines is vulnerable to erosion and needs protection. The area east of 

the project could benefit from the Wax Lake Outlet influence in terms of sediments 

and nutrients. 

The goal is to reduce and/or reverse shoreline erosion rates and protect natural ridge 

and marsh habitat, as well as maintain the existing hydrology of the area by 

preventing the Atchafalaya Bay shoreline from intercepting an oilfield and pipeline 

canal. The ridge and marsh area provides important habitat for black bears, neotropical 

migrants, wintering migratory waterfowl, and other wildlife. 

The preliminary project benefit is to directly protect approximately 25 acres of 

forested wetlands and intermediate marshes by reducing the current erosion rate of 

13.5 ft/year by 75-100%. Project features will provide protection to and maintain the 

small remnant of natural ridge/chenier function that currently exists along the eastern 

bank of the once-defined Bayou Sale channel. 


Project Justification: 

Coastwide: Maintenance of gulf, bay and lake shoreline integrity; maintain, protect or 

restore ridge functions. 

Regional Strategy: #10. Protect, restore and maintain ridge functions; 

#11. Maintain shoreline integrity and stabilize critical shoreline areas. 

Mapping Unit Strategy: East Cote Blanche Bay (71) – Protect Bay/Lake Shorelines; 

Wax Lake Wetlands (60) – Protect Bay/Lake Shorelines 



5) Project Title: Thorguson Road Improvements 

Entity/Individual nominating the project: St. Mary Parish, Louisiana 






Phone: (337) 828-4100 

Fax: (337) 828-4092 


226






$307,823.57 (FY2009). 

Description and Location of Project: The project is located in Berwick and extends 

to Morgan City in St. Mary Parish, Louisiana, and involves resurfacing 6,100 feet of 

the two-lane Thorguson Road and widening the roadway approximately two feet on 

each side. 

Thorguson Road, located in Berwick, runs north-south and connects LA Hwy 182 

with River Road. The roadway crosses US 90. Thorguson Road is the only road that 

provides a direct access route from the industrial and commercial zones located on 

the Lower Atchafalaya River and the GIWW to US 90. It is a major route for 

industrial and commercial vehicles. The intersection at US 90 and Thorguson Road 

faces the highest volume of traffic in the Berwick area, with nearly 3,200 vehicles and 

a delay of 80 seconds per vehicle during the morning rush hour. The existing 

Thorguson roadway does not adequately accommodate the local and regional 

transportation demand. As industry continues to expand in St. Mary Parish, the 

traffic congestion on Thorguson Road will continue to grow. This will further stress 

the existing infrastructure and lead to increased traffic delays. 

The proposed project feature (upgrading Thorguson Road from Hwy 90 to the River 

Road) is to increase capacity, and to improve safety and efficiency during normal 

operations. The road improvement feature includes the widening of the existing road. 

The preliminary project benefit is to provide improved traffic flow and safety while 

increasing roadway access to the industrial and commercial facilities located in 

Berwick, Louisiana. Additional project cost share includes $38,428 from the State of 

Louisiana Capital Outlay program. 


Project Justification: Thorguson Road has not been repaired in approximately 35 

years and is heavily traveled by commercial traffic, which services the offshore oil 

and gas industry. They commute from fabrication yards and related industries which 

serve OCS operations. The lanes are too narrow at this time and must be widened to 

improve safety. 



227


1) Project Title: French Property Preservation Project 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: St. Tammany Parish Government 


Greg Gordon 

Director, Department of Environmental Services 

21490 Koop Drive, Suite 400 

Mandeville, LA 70471 

Phone: (985) 898-2535 

Fax: (985) 898-2523 







$718,150.00 (FY2009). 

Description and Location of Project: St. Tammany Parish Government seeks to 

acquire a 39.5 acre parcel (herein referred to as the French property) owned by Mr. 

James Fenner and Mrs. Flora French. Composed of pine trees and mixed hardwoods 

with inclusional savannas, the property lies between the I-12 Service Road and Bayou 

Liberty in Slidell, Louisiana. A Gulf South natural gas pipeline is within the 

boundaries of the property. The pipeline runs parallel to the western margin of the 

property and crosses Bayou Liberty. The St. Tammany Parish Government will grant 

easements for increased access to this critical natural resource. Land acquired in fee 

title through this project will be conserved in perpetuity. 

The St. Tammany Parish Government has applied for property acquisition funds from 

the Coastal and Estuarine Land Conservation Program (CELCP). Should the parish 

government receive these funds, the grant will be utilized to implement this project. 

If St. Tammany Parish is not successful in securing CELCP funding, the CIAP grant 

will then be utilized to acquire the French property, as well as implement selected 

portions of the project. 


228

Project Justification: At the request of St. Tammany Parish government, the Trust 

for Public Land has entered into an option agreement with the French family to 

acquire the property. The property will be held for the parish under a lease-purchase 

agreement until funding is secured and the obligation is met. Because the acquisition 

logistics have been resolved, the parish feels the project is free of issues that may 

impact a timely implementation. Land acquired in fee title through this project will 

be conserved in perpetuity. 

St. Tammany Parish has implemented a conservation program that includes the 

acquisition of critical and sensitive parcels within a wildlife corridor. On a larger 

scale, a riparian corridor will extend the entire length of Bayou Liberty and Bayou 

Lacombe, thus connecting Big Branch Marsh National Wildlife Refuge with the 

Abita Creek Flatwoods (The Nature Conservancy) and the Bogue Chitto National 

Wildlife Refuge core reserves. This corridor will expand approximately 38 miles and 

cover a vast array of habitats, from brackish marsh to upland pine savannas. 

The proposed project has a high degree of certainty of benefits. Terrestrial and 

aquatic wildlife will benefit through improved species dispersal and foraging area 

within the corridor. Moreover, the owner of the natural gas pipeline will be granted 

increased access to this natural resource. 

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, St. Tammany Parish is the fifth largest parish 

in the State and has been the fastest growing parish in Louisiana since the 1970s. 

Currently, the Bayou Liberty and Bayou Lacombe Watersheds are under increasing 

pressure from residential and commercial development. In 2002, the Lake 

Pontchartrain Basin Foundation reported that urbanization in St. Tammany Parish has 

occurred at a rate of 2,699 acres a year. At this growth rate, urban areas will occupy 

over 138,000 acres or one-fifth of the parish by 2025 and almost one-third of St. 

Tammany Parish by 2050. During the study period, more than 52,000 acres of 

wetland habitat were lost. In response, the parish developed a regional conservation 

plan that includes the acquisition of critical and sensitive parcels within the Bayou 

Liberty and Bayou Lacombe riparian habitat zones 

The wetlands of St. Tammany Parish suffered a devastating blow from Hurricane 

Katrina on August 29, 2005. The hurricane caused massive tree damage and soil 

erosion, and increased the transport of non-point source pollutants into the parish’s 

many bayous and streams. Recent satellite imagery illustrates that nearly 40 square 

miles of wetlands within the Lake Pontchartrain Basin were lost during the storm 

event. The Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry has estimated that over 

60% of the standing timber within the parish was severely damaged, and the 

Louisiana State University Hurricane Center reported that the forest canopy opened to 

at least 50% of its former tree cover. This one-day event exceeded the amount of 

wetlands the Lake Pontchartrain Basin lost to natural erosion processes from 1990 to 

2000. As wetlands provide the first line of defense for hurricane storm surges and 

help to minimize flooding, St. Tammany Parish is committed to restoring these 

critical coastal resources and protecting the wetlands that remain. The acquisition 

and maintenance of land within these critical wildlife corridors will prevent further 

urbanization within this high-growth region. 

229

Wildlife must utilize the bayous and streams to move through the watersheds, from 

the pine uplands to the coastal marshes along the shore of Lake Pontchartrain. Bayou 

Liberty is a rare “blackwater” tannic forested habitat that is home to a number of 

species of concern, including two endangered species, the red-cockaded woodpecker 

and Louisiana quillwort. The pristine habitat of Bayou Liberty merits protection for 

its wildlife. 



2) Project Title: Green Property Preservation Project 



Greg Gordon 




Phone: (985) 898-2535 

Fax: (985) 898-2523 







$240,680.19 (FY2010) 

Description and Location of Project: St. Tammany Parish seeks to purchase a 27.2 

acre parcel owned by Mr. Haywood Green (herein referred to as the Green property). 

The property is situated between Bayou Lacombe and the Tammany Trace linear park 

south of U.S. 190 in Lacombe, Louisiana. Located within the Bayou Lacombe 

watershed, the land is composed of pristine cypress swamp and bottomland 

hardwoods. Within the Lacombe watershed, many species of birds utilize the habitat 

to nest and forage. Especially abundant are migratory waterfowl and neotropical 

migrants unique to the Mississippi Flyway. 

St. Tammany Parish intends to acquire the property to preserve this sensitive wetland 

from future commercial or residential development. 


230

Project Justification: Mr. Haywood Green is a willing seller and a survey and 

appraisal are forthcoming. St. Tammany Parish has implemented a conservation 

program based on recommendations from Sections 2.2 and 3.2 of the New Directions 

2025 Critical and Sensitive Areas Phase I Report that includes the acquisition of 

critical and sensitive parcels within a wildlife corridor. On a larger scale, a riparian 

corridor will extend the entire length of Bayou Lacombe and Bayou Liberty, thus 

connecting Big Branch Marsh National Wildlife Refuge with the Abita Creek 

Flatwoods (owned by The Nature Conservancy) and the Bogue Chitto National 

Wildlife Refuge core reserves. This expansive corridor will extend approximately 38 

miles and cover a vast array of habitats, from brackish marsh to upland pine savannas. 

Additionally, this project is part of St. Tammany Parish’s Eco-Tourism Plan 

developed by St. Tammany Parish. The design will utilize the Tammany Trace linear 

park to connect a network of projects that educate the public about the value of 

protecting Louisiana’s native habitats and wildlife. 

The proposed project has a high degree of certainty of benefits. Acquisition of the 

Green property will generate important ecological benefits. Terrestrial and aquatic 

wildlife will benefit through improved species dispersal and foraging area within the 

corridor. 

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, St. Tammany Parish is the fifth largest parish 

in the State and has been the fastest growing parish in Louisiana since the 1970s. 

Currently, the Bayou Liberty and Bayou Lacombe Watersheds are under increasing 

pressure from residential and commercial development. In 2002, the Lake 

Pontchartrain Basin Foundation reported that urbanization in St. Tammany Parish had 

occurred at a rate of 2,699 acres a year. At this growth rate, urban areas will occupy 

over 138,000 acres or one-fifth of the parish by 2025 and almost one-third of St. 

Tammany Parish by 2050. During the study period, more than 52,000 acres of 

wetland habitat were lost. In response, the parish developed a regional conservation 

plan that includes the acquisition of critical and sensitive parcels within the Bayou 

Liberty and Bayou Lacombe riparian habitat zones. 

The wetlands of St. Tammany Parish suffered a devastating blow from Hurricane 

Katrina on August 29, 2005. The hurricane caused massive tree damage and soil 

erosion and increased the transport of non-point source pollutants into the parish’s 

many bayous and streams. Recent satellite imagery illustrates that nearly 40 square 

miles of wetlands within the Lake Pontchartrain Basin were lost during the storm. 

The Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry has estimated that over 60% 

of the standing timber within St. Tammany Parish was severely damaged, and the 

Louisiana State University Hurricane Center reported that the forest canopy opened to 

at least 50% of its former tree cover. This one day event exceeded the amount of 

wetlands the Lake Pontchartrain Basin lost to natural erosion processes from 1990 to 

2000. As wetlands provide our first line of defense for hurricane storm surges and 

help to minimize flooding, St. Tammany Parish is committed to restoring these 

critical coastal resources and protecting the wetlands that remain. The acquisition 

and maintenance of land within these critical wildlife corridors will prevent further 

urbanization within this high-growth region. 

231

Wildlife must utilize the bayous and streams to move through the watersheds, from 

the pine uplands to the coastal marshes along the shore of Lake Pontchartrain. Bayou 

Lacombe is a forested habitat that is home to a number of species of concern, 

including two endangered species, the red-cockaded woodpecker and Louisiana 

quillwort. The pristine habitat of Bayou Lacombe merits protection for its wildlife. 



3) Project Title: Mandeville Aquatic Ecosystem Restoration Project 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: St. Tammany Parish Government, 

City of Mandeville 


Greg Gordon 




Phone: (985) 898-2535 

Fax: (985) 898-2523 



David deGeneres, Director of Public Works 

1100 Mandeville High Blvd. 


Phone: (985) 624-3169 

Fax: (985) 624-3152 

pwdirector@cityofmandeville.com 





$417,781.11 (FY2009). 

232

Description and Location of Project: The City of Mandeville utilizes a unique 

biological wastewater treatment system. The process of wetland assimilation 

involves disbursing nitrogen enriched treated sewer effluent into marshland. The 

beneficial result is increased growth of grass, plants, and trees that provide refuge to 

waterfowl and animals. This growth also impedes saltwater intrusion and inhibits 

coastal erosion. Based on research of previous wetland assimilation projects in 

Louisiana, we would anticipate an increase in annual plant productivity of 

approximately 20% and a 25% increase in annual sediment accretion due to 

deposition of organic matter in the benefitted project area. Site specific project 

performance goals will be refined determined during the engineering and design 


This project will include an upgrade of the existing wastewater treatment plant and 

construction of a discharge structure and piping system for wetland assimilation. 

Mandeville’s wastewater facility is located on Mandeville High Boulevard in 

Mandeville, Louisiana, with construction of 2.5 miles of force main for disbursement 

of treated effluent into 1.7 square miles of uninhabited wetland adjacent to the 

western border of the City of Mandeville. Mandeville has allocated funds in the 

amount of $330,000 for the Phase I retrofit its existing wastewater treatment plant for 

implementation of the pipeline. All architectural and engineering plans and 

documentation have been prepared by the City of Mandeville. The project is ready to 

be bid. 


Project Justification: The Aquatic Restoration Project will double the City of 

Mandeville’s wastewater intake, providing quality sanitary service to the area while 

enhancing local marshland. The proposed project will also provide treatment 

capacity that will allow Mandeville to accept the greater flows caused by people 

relocating to the area after Hurricane Katrina. This area experienced an 8 foot tidal 

surge during Hurricane Katrina, while Hurricane Rita inundated the area with another 

7 foot tidal surge and consistent tidal motion. The results of both storms have 

severely eroded this important floodplain. The process of wetland assimilation will 

increase growth of flora and fauna. It will also impede saltwater intrusion and inhibit 

coastal erosion. Although the waters of Lake Pontchartrain are brackish, the tidal 

surge from Hurricane Katrina brought in salt water from the Gulf of Mexico. The 

immersion of freshwater plants with high salinity water has adversely affected the 

wildlife in this area. 



233

4) Project Title: Northshore Beach Marsh Creation/Restoration 



Greg Gordon 


St. Tammany Parish Government 

P.O. Box 628 

Covington, LA 70434 

Phone: (985) 898-2535 

Fax: (985) 898-2523 







Description and Location of Project: 

Project Location: Pontchartrain Basin, St. Tammany Parish. The project area is 

located in open water areas along the north shore near the community of Northshore 

Beach and east of the mouth of Bayou Liberty, south of Slidell. Boundaries are 

generally Bayou Bonfouca to the north and west, Lake Pontchartrain to the south, and 

the GMO Railroad to the east. 

Problem: This area is located along the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain and 

contributes to the integrity of the Lake Pontchartrain/Lake Borgne system. Over 

3,600 acres of marsh were lost on the north shore in the past 50 years, and another 

15% is expected to be lost over the next 50 years. This area was also in the direct 

path of Hurricane Katrina, which removed a tremendous amount of marsh and 

wildlife habitat from the region. Marsh grass and sediment stacked over 9 feet high 

along the tree line north of this site. In order to address the adverse habitat and water 

quality impacts from Hurricane Katrina, it is imperative that marsh restoration occur 

as quickly as possible. St. Tammany Parish Government estimates a loss of between 

600 and 900 acres of intermediate marsh in this area as a result of Hurricanes Katrina 

and Rita. 

234

Proposed Project Features: Project features include approximately 600 acres of 

marsh creation via hydraulic dredging and placement of 2 million cubic yards of 

material. The likely borrow location is Lake Pontchartrain, the Highway 11 Canal, 

and Bayou Bonfouca and associated canals. Using Bayou Bonfouca as a borrow site 

would be contingent upon a finding of sediment suitability. Containment will be 

semi-confined (lake shore and bayou banks are still largely intact), and intermediate 

vegetation would be planted upon material compaction and settlement. 

Project Goals: 

1) Create approximately 600 acres of intermediate marsh. 

2) Reduce erosion of adjacent interior marshes. 

3) Maintain and support the integrity of the Lake Pontchartrain shoreline. 

Preliminary Project Benefits: 

1) Six hundred acres of marsh directly reestablished. 

2) Protect or create 2,500 acres of marsh at the end of 20 years. 

3) Loss rate of adjacent interior marsh reduced by 25 to 49%. 

4) Net positive impact on non-critical infrastructure. 

5) Contribution to the Coast 2050 and LCA objective to protect the Orleans Land 

Bridge. The project also is located near the damaged PO-06 Fritchie Marsh and PO- 

13 Bayou Savage projects, which are working together to reestablish the 

Pontchartrain Basin marshes. This project will work synergistically with these 

projects to provide additional support to the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain and the 

Orleans Land Bridge. 

Identification of Potential Issues: There are some pipelines in the area that will 

require project coordination with the pipeline owners. These pipelines should not 

impact the proposed project expansion. There are no known State issued oyster leases 

in the immediate project area. The project is supported by the parish. The property is 

partially located on the Big Branch Marsh National Wildlife Refuge and the owner is 

the Department of the Interior, USFWS. 


Project Justification: This project complies with the restoration and conservation 

goals of the CIAP by furthering the strategies, goals and objectives of the Coast 2050 

plan, namely conservation and restoration of the Pontchartrain Basin. Additionally, 

all of the Coastal Restoration Project Evaluation Criteria are met. 



235


1) Project Title: Lake Pontchartrain Shoreline Protection 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: Tangipahoa Parish Government 


Maurice Jordan 

Parish Engineer 


Amite, Louisiana 70434 

Phone: (985) 748-3211 

Fax: (985) 748-7050 

tpcroad@i55.com 






$1,623,908.84 (FY2009); $1,607,147.30 (FY2010) 

Description and Location of Project: The project is located in Tangipahoa Parish 

between Pass Manchac and the mouth of the Tangipahoa River. The goal of the 

proposed project is the construction of approximately 12,000 linear feet of foreshore 

protection. 


Project Justification: The proposed shoreline protection project will protect the 

north rim of Lake Pontchartrain, which has experienced an increased rate of shoreline 

erosion over the past decade. The shoreline is eroding at a rate of approximately 5 

feet per year for about 3 miles west of the river and about 10 feet per year for the area 

east of the river mouth. Based on the performance of similar restoration projects east 

of this area at Turtle Cove, we anticipate that implementation of the project feature 

will stop shoreline erosion in these areas. There is potential that this project could be 

built in conjunction with the adjacent proposed St. John Parish CIAP Manchac 

Shoreline Protection project. 


Duration: Four years to complete the entire project. 

236


No Parish-Funded Tier One Projects 


1) Project Title: Henry Hub Access Improvement – Charlie Field Road Bridge 

Replacement 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: Vermilion Parish 


Linda Duhon 




Phone: (337) 898-4300 

Fax: (337) 898-4310 







Description and Location of Project: This project will install a much-needed 

replacement for the Charlie Field Road bridge across a tributary of Bayou Tigre. The 

bridge to be replaced is a three span timber bridge on Charlie Field Road over Bayou 

Tigre. The overall existing bridge width is approximately 35 feet and the overall 

length is approximately 45 feet. 

The replacement bridge will consist of a four span concrete deck bridge. Five bents of 

precast prestressed concrete piles supporting a concrete pile cap will be constructed 

with precast (or cast in place) slab span decks. Concrete guard rails will be provided 

on the bridge decks and steel guard rails will be provided on each end of the bridge 

decks. That bridge is located approximately 2,300 feet south of LA Hwy. 14, in 

eastern Vermilion Parish. 


Project Justification: This existing bridge is a timber structure that is in very poor 

condition. The two ends of the bridge are supported by timber sheet pile abutments 

which have deteriorated to the point that they are in need of replacement. Timber 

stringers and pile caps have also reached the end of their useful life and are in need of 

replacement. The capacity of this old timber structure will continue to diminish as 

the timber elements continue to deteriorate. 

237

Charlie Field Road is a vital link between LA 14 and the Henry Hub, an extremely 

important facility in the natural gas transmission infrastructure system, especially 

natural gas produced on the OCS. Replacement of this bridge structure is essential to 

maintaining/improving access to the Henry Hub and is needed to mitigate the effects 

of OCS traffic on that structure. The Henry Hub is the pricing point for natural gas 

future contracts traded on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It interconnects with 

nine interstate and four intrastate pipelines. The transportation capacity is 1.8 billion 

cubic feet of natural gas. 



2) Project Title: Henry Hub Access Improvements - Charlie Field Road Improvements 



Linda Duhon 




Phone: (337) 898-4300 

Fax: (337) 898-4310 







$157,433.50 (FY2009). 

Description and Location of Project: This project provides for the widening and 

reconstruction of Charlie Field Road from LA Hwy. 14 to LA Hwy. 331 in eastern 

Vermilion Parish. Charlie Field Road is a vital link between LA 14 and the Henry 

Hub. The existing roadway is approximately 4,100 feet long by 18 feet wide and in 

poor condition. Ample shoulders exist to widen the roadway to a 20 foot surface 

which will provide room for the truck traffic to utilize this stretch of the roadway to 

access the Henry Hub. 


238

Project Justification: The proposed road widening and reconstruction of Charlie 

Field Road is essential to maintaining/improving access to the Henry Hub. The 

Henry Hub is an extremely important component of the natural gas transmission 

infrastructure system, especially for natural gas produced on the OCS. The Henry 

Hub is the pricing point for natural gas future contracts traded on the New York 

Mercantile Exchange. It interconnects with nine interstate and four intrastate 

pipelines. The transportation capacity is 1.8 billion cubic feet of natural gas. LA 331 

connects LA 14 with parish roads, which then provide access to the Henry Hub. LA 

331 runs through the Town of Erath until it intersects with Charlie Field Road. 

Charlie Field Road also connects LA 14 with LA 331. Many trucks traveling south 

on LA 331 use Charlie Field Road to access LA 331 from LA 14, as it is a shorter 

distance than the comparable path on LA 331 and they can avoid traveling through 

the populated area of Erath. 

Reconstructing this section of the roadway will improve access to the Henry Hub as 

well as mitigate the damages caused by the many vehicles that service Gulf of 

Mexico-based activities terminating at the Henry Hub. 



3) Project Title: Henry Hub Access Improvements – LA 331 Realignment 



Linda Duhon 




Phone: (337) 898-4300 

Fax: (337) 898-4310 







Description and Location of Project: This project will realign approximately 2,000 

linear feet of LA Hwy. 331, at a location approximately 3 miles south of LA Hwy.14. 


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Project Justification: The LA Hwy. 331 segment of the roadway has a reverse 

curve that represents a safety hazard for traffic traveling this highway to the Henry 

Hub, especially in light of the added vehicular traffic associated with Henry Hub and 

related OCS support activities. This project provides for the realignment (flattening) 

of the reverse curve to allow safer driving conditions on this highway, which provides 

vital access to the Henry Hub. The Henry Hub is an extremely important component 

of the natural gas transmission infrastructure system, especially for natural gas 

produced on the OCS. Louisiana Highway 331 connects LA 14 with parish roads, 

which then provide access to the Henry Hub. The Henry Hub is the pricing point for 

natural gas future contracts traded on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It 

interconnects with nine interstate and four intrastate pipelines. The transportation 

capacity is 1.8 billion cubic feet of natural gas. 



4) Project Title: Intracoastal City Street Improvements 



Linda Duhon 




Phone: (337) 898-4300 

Fax: (337) 898-4310 







$193,308.41 (FY2010). 

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Description and Location of Project: Intracoastal City provides access to Gulf of 

Mexico activities for many oilfield supply vessels and helicopters. Access to the 

many oilfield support facilities located in the Intracoastal City area is vital to 

supporting oil and gas activities in the Gulf of Mexico. This project provides for the 

reconstruction of several roadways in the Intracoastal City area to mitigate the 

damage caused by heavy oilfield support truck traffic over the years. The streets to 

be improved along with their linear footage are as follows: 

Offshore Road 4,700 linear feet 

M. I. Liquid Road 850 linear feet 

Barge Road 1,450 linear feet 

Teal Road 1,200 linear feet 


Project Justification: Improvement of these roadways will mitigate the damages to 

those roads that have been caused by oilfield support truck traffic (including heavy 

truck traffic associated with support for OCS operations). The proposed road work 

will also provide improved access to the many businesses in Intracoastal City that 

support OCS oil and gas exploration and production activities in the Gulf. 



5) Project Title: North Prong Schooner Bayou 



Linda Duhon 




Phone: (337) 898-4300 

Fax: (337) 898-4310 







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Description and Location of Project: This project will repair numerous breaches 

and armor the shoreline along weak spots of 3 miles of the east bank of the North 

Prong of Schooner Bayou, from the GIWW to the Schooner Bayou Locks. With 

several breaches to contain, the project will employ culverts with flap gates to allow 

the freshwater flow to continue into the marshes to the east, while preventing 

uncontrolled saltwater intrusion into the Mermentau Basin. 


Project Justification: Numerous breaches along 3 miles of the levee on the east 

bank of the North Prong of Schooner Bayou from the GIWW to the Schooner Bayou 

Locks threaten the integrity of the Mermentau Basin, and the future of agriculture and 

aquaculture in Vermilion Parish. Construction of the proposed breach repairs and 

shoreline protection project features will also help maintain the historic freshwater 

marshes in that basin. If those breaches are not repaired, saltwater intrusion into the 

Mermentau Basin will increase. 



6) Project Title: Oyster Reef Parallel to the Coastline at Chenier Au Tigre 



Linda Duhon 




Phone: (337) 898-4300 

Fax: (337) 898-4310 







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Description and Location of Project: This project will create a one mile oyster reef 

1,300 feet from shore by using approved available materials. Oyster spat are plentiful 

in this area; therefore, creating this base will establish a living sustainable reef. The 

project location is in Vermilion Parish along the Gulf of Mexico shoreline southeast 

of Cheniere au Tigre (29º 34’ 57” N, 92º 9’ 13” W). 


Project Justification: The shoreline at Cheniere au Tigre is eroding at 10-15 feet per 

year and it is estimated that construction of this project will reduce the shoreline loss 

rate by half. The project will slow down wave energy, attract fish and shellfish 

habitat, slow coastal erosion, and increase recreational fishing opportunities. 



7) Project Title: Shoreline Protection and Marsh Creation at Tiger Point 


Contact Information 

Linda Duhon 




Phone: (337) 898-4300 

Fax: (337) 898-4310 







Description and Location of Project: This project will install cement bags as 

breakwaters for approximately 1,500 feet, to slow erosion and facilitate marsh 

accretion. The project location is in Vermilion Parish along the Gulf of Mexico 

shoreline approximately 3.5 miles east of Freshwater Bayou (29º 32’ 31”N, 92º 14’ 

54”W). 


243

Project Justification: Erosion of approximately 15 feet annually along this area has 

diminished the marsh and the natural ridge function for hurricane protection, and 

reduced the extent of those habits. It is projected that implementation of this project 

will reduce current erosion rates by half. 



8) Project Title: Vermilion Parish CIAP Planning Assistance and Administration 



Linda Duhon 




Phone: (337) 898-4300 

Fax: (337) 898-4310 







$25,000.00 (FY2009); and $25,000.00 (FY2010). 

Description and Location of Project: The project will provide financial assistance 

to the Vermilion Parish government to manage and implement the CIAP program. 


Project Justification: This funding will assist the parish in the administration of the 

parish’s portion of the CIAP Plan. 


Duration: Five years 

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9) Project Title: Weeks Bay/Commercial Canal Marsh Creation and Shoreline 




Linda Duhon 




Phone: (337) 898-4300 

Fax: (337) 898-4310 






Fiscal Year CIAP Allocation: $100,000 (FY07 Vermilion); $100,000 (FY07 Iberia). 

Description and Location of Project: The Feasibility study will involve performing 

an alternative analysis to restore the eroding shoreline between the Gulf Intracoastal 

Waterway (GIWW) and Weeks Bay. Prior work has been done in this area, and the 

objective of this analysis is to evaluate prior investigations and alternatives as well as 

look into new innovative alternatives to restore and protect the shoreline, build 

landmass, and create vegetated wetlands. The goal of the project is to evaluate 

alternative methods in order to provide a reccomendation for the best method to 

pursue to provide shoreline protection and allow for sediment deposition of sediment 

transported by flows from the GIWW in order to build landmass between Weeks Bay 

and the GIWW restoring the shoreline to its previous size and protecting it in the 

future. The Weeks Bay/Commercial Canal Marsh Creation and Shoreline Protection 

project will be done in partnership with Vermilion Parish which is funding $100,000 

of the project cost. 


Project Justification: The project is needed to analyze which method would be best 

to pursue when developing a project that will maintain shoreline integrity, capture 

sediments, and stabilize critical areas of the actively eroding Vermilion Bay System. 

The land loss rate in this area is 0.32% annually. Since this is a feasibility 

investigation, the project will not reduce the rate of land loss but, the implementation 

of this project will help provide a solution to pursue in order to reverse or at least 

reduce this rate. 



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10) Project Title: Shoreline Protection on Southwest Point at Southwest Pass 



Linda Duhon 




Phone: (337) 898-4300 

Fax: (337) 898-4310 







Description and Location of Project: The goal of the project is to armor the 

shoreline via 8,759 linear feet of onshore revetment for the south shoreline of 

Vermilion Bay at Southwest Point. The funds allocated in the current project would 

be used to initiate surveying, geotechnical investigation, engineering, design and 

permit development so that when additional funds become available this project will 

be able to proceed to construction in a more-timely manner. It is estimated that the 

additional cost to complete design and construction of this project is $5,859,041. 


Project Justification: Erosion of peninsulas in the project area is reducing the 

effectiveness of the landmass as a mainland barrier to gulf storm surge, wave energy 

and tidal flux reduction. Average losses of 9.5 feet annually at Southwest Point 

would be halted through implementation of this project. This project will help to 

maintain shoreline integrity and stabilize critical areas of the actively eroding 

Vermilion Bay system. 



246

State Tier Two Projects 

1) Project Title: Central Wetlands Assimilation Project (Phase II) 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: Sewerage and Water Board of New 

Orleans, Marcia St. Martin , Executive Director; St. Bernard Parish Government 

Henry J. Rodriguez, Jr., Parish President. 


Sewerage and Water Board of New Orleans 

Gordon Austin, Chief of Environmental Affairs 

2900 Peoples Ave. 

New Orleans, LA 70122 

(504) 858-7305 fax (504) 585-2455 

gaustin@swbno.org 





St. Bernard Parish Department of Public Works 


8201 W. Judge Perez Dr. 

Chalmette, LA 70043 

Phone: (504) 442-2426 

Fax: (504) 278-4484 


Description and Location of Project: The Sewerage and Water Board of New 

Orleans and St. Bernard Parish jointly propose that a regional wetland restoration 

project be funded to restore critically important wetlands using wetland assimilation 

of treated wastewater effluent. This phase of the project is projected to establish 

10,000 acres of cypress swamp and low-salinity marsh where open water currently 

exists. Based on research involving previous wetland assimilation projects in 

Louisiana, we anticipate an annual increase plant productivity of approximately 20% 

and an annual increase in sediment accretion due to deposition of organic matter of 

25% in the benefitted project area. Site specific project performance projections will 

be refined during the engineering and design phase of this project. It is anticipated 

that cypress trees will be planted as part of this project. The wetland restoration 

project will integrate sustainability with mitigation measures. The enhanced wetlands 

will protect Orleans and St. Bernard Parishes from future storms, while the 

environmental improvement will protect the local economy and culture, which 

depend on productive wetlands. 

247

The Bayou Bienvenue-Central Wetlands Unit to be restored is located between the 

40-Arpent Levee and the Mississippi River Gulf Outlet (MRGO) Levee in Orleans 

and St. Bernard Parishes. This area has been determined to be critical for levee 

protection against storm surge and storm-generated waves. After the construction of 

the MRGO, wetland loss began due to the resulting saltwater intrusion. Hurricane 

Katrina exacerbated the damage to the once productive cypress swamp. The wetlands 

now require fresh water and nutrients to restore and maintain the cypress swamps that 

protect both parishes. Currently, nutrient rich effluent from both parishes is 

discharged into the Mississippi River, where it contributes to the hypoxia, or dead 

zone, in the northern Gulf of Mexico. Rerouting the effluent will allow the nutrients 

to be used to replenish the wetlands, rather than increasing damage to the coastal 

environment. 

The Sewerage and Water Board of New Orleans, East Bank Sewage Treatment Plant 

(EBSTP), is located in the Lower Ninth Ward near Bayou Bienvenue. The East Bank 

Sewage Treatment Plant provides wastewater treatment for the entire east bank of 

Orleans Parish and treats biosolids for both the east and west banks of Orleans Parish. 

The treatment facility received approximately $70 million in damages as a result of 

Hurricane Katrina’s 17 foot storm surge. St. Bernard Parish received catastrophic 

damage to all seven wastewater treatment plants. To mitigate the damage, the St. 

Bernard Department of Public Works is planning to implement a consolidation plan 

that would allow one discharge line to restore the surrounding wetlands. The 

Sewerage and Water Board of New Orleans and St. Bernard Parish are jointly seeking 

funding to implement a phased project that will begin with distribution of partial flow 

to wetlands while final design and plant modifications are completed. Phase I will 

include engineering design, and installation of a distribution line for each plant to the 

wetlands that could utilize existing effluent pumps. Phase II would extend the 

distribution line and implement any necessary plant modifications identified in the 

Phase I design process. Feasibility and design will determine whether additional 

phases could extend the restoration area beyond 10,000 acres. The funding of Phases 

I and II will result in the restoration of at least 10,000 acres of cypress swamps, 

mitigation of future storm damages, and creation of the largest sustainable wastewater 

infrastructure in the world. 


Project Justification: Research has confirmed that the benefits of wetland 

wastewater treatment include improved surface water quality, increased accretion 

rates to balance a high relative water level rise due mainly to subsidence, improved 

plant productivity and habitat quality, protection against storm surge and stormgenerated 

waves, and decreased capital outlays for engineering treatment systems. 

Wetland treatment systems throughout Louisiana have been successfully designed 

and operated to restore deteriorating wetlands. 

248

Wetland wastewater treatment will replace critical infrastructure that was damaged 

during Hurricane Katrina with sustainable, more economical wastewater treatment. 

Wetland treatment facility capital is roughly one-third the cost of capital for 

conventional wastewater treatment. Furthermore, wetland discharge permits allow 

discharge of higher levels of solids to increase accretion rates. For example, rerouting 

effluent from the Mississippi River to wetlands for the EBSTP will result in 

an annual operation savings of almost $2 million. More economic wastewater 

treatment will allow the parishes to continue providing sewer service after suffering 

from severe decreases in revenue. 

Wetland assimilation of wastewater effluent will restore destroyed and rapidly 

disappearing coastal wetlands, which, in addition to their ecological value, protect 

Orleans and St. Bernard Parishes from tropical storm events. Many levees, including 

the 40-Arpent Canal Levee, did not suffer damage where surrounding wetlands acted 

as a buffer against storm surge and storm generated waves. More recently it has been 

determined that the restoration of the swamps adjacent to the EBSTP, the Bayou 

Bienvenue-Central Wetland Unit surrounding the MRGO, and the wetlands near Lake 

Borne are essential for protecting Orleans and St. Bernard Parishes from future 

hurricanes. This project will address restoration of all of these deteriorating wetlands. 

Furthermore, the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality (LDEQ) confirmed 

after Hurricane Katrina that Louisiana municipalities that utilized wetland treatment 

sustained less hurricane damage than municipalities that did not use this method. 



2) Project Title: Coastal Wetlands Restoration through the Assimilation of Treated 

Sanitary Effluent 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: The Louisiana Department of 

Environmental Quality 

Contact Information: Chris Piehler, Clean Waters Project Director 

Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality 

P.O. Box 4312 


Phone: (225) 219-3609 fax (225) 219-4083 

Email: chris.piehler@la.gov 





249

Description and Location of Project: The projects subject to funding from this 

grant will occur across the Louisiana coastal zone. It is estimated that approximately 

8,000 acres of coastal wetlands can be restored or enhanced through this program. 

Recipients of this grant money, which will be used to plan and implement wetlands 

assimilation of treated sanitary effluent for the purpose of nourishing coastal wetlands 

and enhancing their productivity, will include municipal or parish governments or 

their authorized representatives. Individual wetlands assimilation of treated effluent 

(WATE) projects will be evaluated for eligibility for funding by considering the 

potential for enhancement of degraded wetland areas, the quantity of available 

wetlands, the assimilative capacity of the wetland, the monetary capacity of the 

municipality, the wetland purchase or servitude potential, and the infrastructure 

needed to treat and uniformly distribute the effluent to the wetland. 

Over 15 years of experience with wetland discharges in Louisiana have shown the 

benefits of treated sanitary discharges to wetlands. In forested wetlands, it has been 

shown that cypress trees in discharge areas had higher growth rates than those in 

adjacent control areas that did not receive effluent. Recent studies have indicated that 

levees that had a tree barrier sustained far less damage from Hurricane Katrina than 

did levees without trees. The impacts of wetland subsidence have been realized in 

recent years. In addition to the value of accretion and increased productivity, the 

addition of fresh water into a wetland will provide a buffer from the effects of 

saltwater intrusion events. 

The Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality’s (DEQ’s) Municipal Facilities 

group will be tasked with the selection of the most beneficial projects and 

construction oversight of the funded projects. Projects will encompass all coastal 

areas impacted by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Projects of various sizes will be 

selected, with the selection emphasis placed on the restoration potential and the 

economic ability of the municipality. The Office of Environmental Assessment 

Permits Division of DEQ will set parameters to evaluate the success of each site, and 

the Enforcement section will track the monitoring parameters that are indicators of 

system functionality and success of the project. Smaller, more indigent communities 

with no alternative funding sources may be fully funded through CIAP funds, and 

other projects that are partially funded may receive assistance from CIAP as well. 

Numerous municipalities in Louisiana and the nation are using this approach, some 

for approximately 15 years. A multi-agency strike team, Wetlands Assimilation 

Strike Team (WAST), is being coordinated by DEQ for the purpose of identifying 

hurdles to the regulatory process affecting wastewater discharges. Rule changes were 

published to address those hurdles on August 20, 2006. 

250

Where feasible, these projects stand to improve the quality and quantity of wetlands 

within proximity to populated coastal areas, where the benefits wetlands provide in 

terms of storm surge buffer are needed. The level of awareness of this approach is 

low among potential applicants, but the WAST is currently working diligently to raise 

that awareness through the creation of workshops and hurricane recovery workgroup 

meetings. This concept has been presented to the Louisiana Recovery Authority, 

Environmental Task Force, and was well received as a tool to aid in the recovery of 

coastal communities and their associated wetlands. The positive economic and 

environmental aspects of this approach demonstrate that, where feasible, wetland 

assimilation of treated effluent can provide very long-term solutions to municipal 

infrastructure stability as well as protection and enhancement of the wetlands where 

many community members live and work. 

With initial capital outlay to implement a given project, the long-term economic 

benefits include those associated with reduced operation and maintenance of 

traditional mechanical treatment works, biosolids handling reductions, and the 

alternative to tertiary treatment that otherwise would be necessary for a community to 

meet future effluent limit reductions associated with Total Maximum Daily Loading 

requirements specified by the Clean Water Act. The certainty of these projects has 

been demonstrated within Louisiana sufficiently to enable regulation change within 

the Environmental Regulatory Code to categorize suitable projects and wetlands. This 

has resulted in a streamlining of the wastewater discharge permit process. 

The Department of Environmental Quality will provide in-kind match, with personnel 

contributions to evaluate the projects, oversee construction and implementation, 

ensure adequate permit coverage that is protective of the environment, and track the 

progress in wetland restoration after commencement of discharge. Funds provided by 

the CIAP will be dispersed to the potential applicants, the municipal and parish 

governmental agencies that are the responsible entities for wastewater treatment 

within their respective communities. 


Project Justification: Fifteen years of experience with the assimilation of sanitary 

discharges into wetlands have demonstrated that it is a technology that enhances 

wetland productivity and results in vertical accretion of wetland soils. These projects 

can be used to mitigate the damages of saltwater intrusion to vegetative species. The 

enhanced production in forested wetlands will help to lessen the impact of waves and 

storm surge on protection levees and coastal communities. 



251

3) Project Title: Lake Borgne Shoreline Protection 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: Gregory M. Grandy, Louisiana 

Department of Natural Resources 


Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 






Description and Location of Project: The goal of the proposed project is the 

implementation of approximately 10,000 linear feet of shoreline protection project 

features between the CIAP Alligator Point to Bayou Bienvenue shoreline protection 

project, which ends at Bayou Bienvenue, and the CWPPRA PO-30 Shell Beach 

shoreline protection project, which ends at Bayou Dupre. The shoreline protection 

will protect the thin area of marsh that still exists between Lake Borgne and the 

Mississippi River Gulf Outlet (MRGO). The project is located on the southwest 

shoreline of Lake Borgne in St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana. 


Project Justification: The project is necessary to protect the narrow strip of land that 

remains between Lake Borgne and the MRGO and will work in concert with other 

shoreline protection efforts on either side to maintain the shoreline. The shoreline 

erosion rate on the adjacent CWPPRA PO-30 Shell Beach shoreline protection 

project is estimated at 5-7 feet annually. A similar rate of shoreline retreat is believed 

to be ongoing in the CIAP project area; implementation of this project would 

effectively halt that shoreline erosion. The project’s objectives include: preventing 

and reducing Lake Borgne shoreline retreat in the area to mitigate further joining of 

the lake and the MRGO; reestablishing a sustainable lake rim; and preventing or 

reducing conversion of emergent marsh to open water. This project is consistent with 

the Coast 2050 revised strategy of restoring and maintaining a land bridge between 

MRGO and Lake Borgne with created marshes and shoreline protection. 



252

4) Project Title: Lake Pontchartrain Shoreline Protection 




Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 






Description and Location of Project: The proposed project will consist of capping 

21,500 linear feet of USACE existing breakwaters and filling in the gaps to create a 

continuous structure, as well as extending this structure north past Pass Manchac. 

The proposed project is located in St. John the Baptist Parish and Tangipahoa Parish, 

and would complete work that will not be finished through the St. John the Baptist 

and Tangipahoa CIAP projects. 


Project Justification: The breakwaters were built in 1995 by the USACE to a length 

of approximately 25,400 linear feet. Since their construction, the breakwaters have 

settled approximately 2.5 feet and now barely protrude above the water. It is 

anticipated that the level of funding available to St. John the Baptist and Tangipahoa 

parishes may not be enough to fund all of the Lake Pontchartrain shoreline protection 

projects proposed in this area. 



253

5) Project Title: Marsh Island Terracing 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: Gregory M. Grandy, Louisiana 

Department of Natural Resources 


Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 



Parish CIAP Funds Proposed: $ 0 



Description and Location of Project: The goal of the proposed project is to reduce 

shoreline erosion of the lakes and to create marsh in the shallow lakes. The Marsh 

Island terracing projects are located in Lake Sand, Lake Tom, Lake Michael, Oyster 

Lake and Bayou Platte. All of the projects are located in Iberia Parish on the Marsh 

Island Wildlife Management Area and Game Preserve. 


Project Justification: The proposed Marsh Island terracing project will create a total 

of approximately 167 acres of shallow bay bottom terraces planted with native 

vegetation. These proposed terraces represent approximately 30,000 linear feet of 

terracing in Oyster Lake; 50,000 linear feet of terracing in Lake Sand; 25,000 linear 

feet of terracing along Bayou Platte; and 50,000 linear feet of terracing in Lake Tom 

and Lake Michael. The terraces will be constructed with marsh buggy back hoes. 

When construction is complete, the terraces will immediately be vegetated with 

smooth cordgrass to reduce erosion. Long term land loss in this area is 0.29% 

annually (1974-1000). The terraces are expected to reduce erosion of neighboring 

marsh shoreline by half. The project is consistent with the revised Coast 2050 

strategy of restoring and maintaining the barrier island and gulf shoreline, such as at 

Isle Dernieres, the Timbalier Barrier Island chains, Marsh Island, Point au Fer, and 

Chenier au Tigre. 



254

6) Project Title: Point Au Fer/Lake Chapeau Marsh Creation 




Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 






Description and Location of Project: The proposed project will create and nourish 

approximately 300 acres of marsh habitat in the western portion of the Point au Fer 

Island area. Sediment for this project would be mined from the borrow area that was 

used on the CWPPRA Lake Chapeau Marsh Creation project. The Point au Fer/Lake 

Chapeau Marsh Creation project area is bounded by the Atchafalaya Bay to the west; 

and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and is generally located around Locust Bayou in 

Terrebonne Parish, Coast 2050 Region 3. 


Project Justification: The project area was significantly impacted by Hurricanes 

Katrina and Rita. This project is consistent with the revised COAST 2050 strategy of 

restoring and maintaining the barrier island and gulf shoreline. Additionally, this 

project will prevent accelerated marsh loss in the Locust Bayou area from flanking 

the Gulf of Mexico shoreline along Point au Fer Island. 



7) Project Title: Rockefeller Refuge Gulf Shoreline Restoration 



255


Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 



Parish CIAP Funds Proposed: None 

State CIAP Funds Requested: $53,044,992.00 


Description and Location of Project: The proposed project will restore and protect 

the western 9.2 miles of Rockefeller Refuge, thus reducing the current shoreline 

erosion rate by half. Rockefeller Refuge is located in southwestern Louisiana, west 

of Pecan Island and east of Grand Chenier. The project is located along the 

Rockefeller Refuge Gulf shoreline from Beach Prong to Joseph Harbor in Cameron 

Parish, Coast 2050 Region 4, Mermentau Basin. The center of the project area is 

located at the approximate coordinates 30 08 '00" N latitude and 92 45' 00" W 

longitude. 

The proposed project will implement the restoration measures designed and 

engineered through the CWPPRA Program (CWPPRA project ME-18; project 

information available at www.lacoast.gov/projects/list.asp) taking into account the 

results from the proposed CIAP Rockefeller Demonstration Project. 


Project Justification: Rockefeller Wildlife Refuge has one of the most rapidly 

eroding sections of Louisiana’s Gulf shoreline. Estimates of long-term shoreline 

retreat range from 30 to 40 feet annually. Short-term events, such as Tropical Storm 

Frances in 1998, can cause more than 50 feet of erosion over a few days. It is well 

recognized that tropical cyclones play a significant role in contributing to this erosion. 

During storms, the deposits of shell that are perched atop the beach along the refuge 

shoreline can be transported landward by waves as washover deposits onto the marsh. 

This process results in an exposed zone of fragmented marsh seaward of the beach 

that is easily eroded by the Gulf of Mexico. At this time, the Rockefeller Refuge Gulf 

Shoreline Restoration project proposes to create a sand beach and dune system, which 

will reduce wave energies, thereby helping to reduce land loss along the gulf 

shoreline, strengthen the longshore transport system by adding valuable sand to a 

sediment starved system, and rebuild the natural structural framework within the 

coastal ecosystem to provide for a separation of the gulf and the estuary, that will not 

breach within a 20 year project life. The final Rockefeller Refuge Gulf Shoreline 

Restoration project will take into account the results from the proposed CIAP 

Rockefeller Demonstration Project. 

256



8) Project Title: Sand Search - Evaluation of Sand Resources off Terrebonne 

Bay/Basin 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: Louisiana Department Of Natural 

Resources/Syed M. Khalil 


Syed M. Khalil 



Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70801 

Phone: (225) 342-1641 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 

syed.khalil@la.gov 





Description and Location of Project: The proposed project entails surveys for 

suitable sand deposits in the offshore area between Grand Isle and the Timbalier 

Islands. This investigation will include running about 900 line miles of geophysical 

survey (at 1,500 foot spacing) to collect bathymetric, seismic, magnetic, and side scan 

sonar data. After the analyses of the geophysical data, potential sand targets will be 

further probed by about 100 vibracores penetrating about 20 feet into the seabed. 

The survey vessel R/V Coastal Profiler, custom built recently by the State, will be 

used for the survey. This boat is fitted with state-of-the-art geophysical equipment, 

and is housed at the Coastal Studies Institute of Louisiana State University. 

Substantial savings are anticipated in using this survey vessel along with its 

equipment. 


257

Project Justification: Following the globally accepted “Soft Option” of 

emplacement of sand as a mitigation tool, coastal restoration in Louisiana has placed 

sand on various barrier islands in an effort to save the deteriorating coast. The 

importance of emplacement of sand for coastal restoration in Louisiana has been 

established without doubt. Engineering templates (width, height, and revegetation) 

for gulf-side beach nourishment have been developed and are undergoing critical 

review and modification as the CWPPRA-funded projects evolve. However, 

identification of compatible sand resources to implement these projects is an ongoing 

challenge. Most of Louisiana’s shorelines do not have, nearby, sand resources of 

sufficient size and quality to be used in restoration efforts. Offshore sand deposited 

in Ship Shoal is being explored as a resource for the Isles Dernieres restoration. Sand 

deposits at South Pelto Blocks 12 and13 (which are an eastern extension of Ship 

Shoal) have been explored for restoration of Caminada Headlands (LCA) and are 

about 35 miles out. Obviously, dredging and transporting sand across this far 

distance would be expensive. Moreover, exploration for offshore sand deposits has 

been conventionally confined to the eastern part of coastal Louisiana, especially the 

Barataria Basin. As a part of the Coast 2050 Study, the area off Barataria Basin was 

explored for sand. Not much information is available for the areas off Terrebonne 

Basin west of Grand Isle. Geophysical surveys have been conducted in a few areas 

but mostly on very widely spaced track lines, so that they do not shed much light on 

the possibilities of other sand deposits. Thus, a systematic exploration for sand in 

areas off Terrebonne Basin will not only help mitigate quite a few coastal restoration 

projects in the immediate future through Caminada Headland Restoration (LCA) and 

West Belle Pass (CWPPRA PPL16), but will also be useful for future nourishment 

and subsequent restorations. It is important to emphasize that the proposed 

investigation will accelerate implementation of future shoreline restoration by 

identifying sand sources at the feasibility level and allowing engineering level 

investigations to proceed immediately, saving substantial time. 



9) Project Title: Sand Search - Evaluation of Sand Resources in Trinity and Tiger 

Shoals 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: Louisiana Department Of Natural 

Resources/Syed Khalil 


Syed M. Khalil 



Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70801 

Phone: (225) 342-1641 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 

syed.khalil@la.gov 

258





Description and Location of Project: The project will evaluate the sand resources at 

Trinity (29º 12.5’ N, 92º 10.8’ W) and Tiger Shoals (29º 23.6’ N, 92º 04.1’ W). 

Survey vessel R/V Coastal Profiler, custom-built recently by the State, will be used 

for the survey. This boat is fitted with the latest state-of-the-art geophysical 

equipment and is housed at the Coastal Studies Institute of Louisiana State 

University. Substantial savings are anticipated in using this survey vessel along with 

its equipment. Secondly, MMS is funding the environmental studies for Tiger and 

Trinity Shoal through a separate grant. 


Project Justification: The importance of emplacement of sand for coastal 

restoration in Louisiana has been established without doubt. Engineering templates 

(width, height, and re-vegetation) for gulf-side beach nourishment have been 

developed and are undergoing critical review and modification as the CWPPRA 

funded projects evolve. However, identification of compatible sand resources to 

implement these projects is an ongoing problem. Offshore sand deposited in Ship 

Shoal is being explored as a resource for the Isles Dernieres restoration. However, 

most of Louisiana’s remaining shorelines are without sand resources of sufficient size 

and quality to be used in restoration efforts. Exploration for offshore sand deposits 

has been conventionally confined to the eastern part of coastal Louisiana. Trinity and 

Tiger Shoals hold promising potential for sand that could be used for nourishment of 

Rockefeller Refuge, other shore protection projects, and other barrier islands. This 

investigation will accelerate implementation of future shoreline restoration by 

identifying sand sources at the feasibility level and allowing engineering-level 

investigation to proceed immediately, saving quite a bit of time. The present intent is 

to investigate both the shoals by running about 450 line miles of geophysical survey, 

and then collecting bathymetric, seismic, magnetic, and side scan sonar data. After 

the analyses of the geophysical data, potential sand targets will be further probed by 

about 50 vibracores penetrating about 20 feet into the seabed. 



259

10) Project Title: Ship Shoal: Whiskey Island West Flank 




Robert Routon 




Phone: (225) 342-9421 

Fax: (225) 342-9417 


Total State CIAP Funds Proposed: $45,000,000.00 




Description and Location of Project: The proposed project is in the Terrebonne 

Basin of CWPPRA Region 3, Terrebonne Parish, approximately 18 miles southwest 

of Cocodrie, Louisiana. The island is surrounded by Coupe Colin to the west, 

Whiskey Pass to the east, Lake Pelto, Caillou Boca, and Caillou Bay to the north, and 

the Gulf of Mexico to the south. 


necessary land rights for construction through the CWPPRA program, in partnership 

between the USEPA and LDNR. 


Project Justification: The Isles Dernieres barrier island chain, which is considered 

one of the most rapidly deteriorating barrier shorelines in the United States, is losing 

its structural functions for the coastal/estuarine ecosystem. Of primary concern 

among these functions is the chain’s storm buffering capacity and the protection it 

provides human populations, oil and gas infrastructure, inland bays, estuaries, and 

wetlands. Chain breakup has resulted from major storm actions, human alterations, 

and the loss of nourishing sediments from the natural system. Whiskey Island 

changes between 1978 and 1988 include an average annual loss of 31.1 acres. 

260

One approach to the problem includes mining and importing offshore Ship Shoal 

sediment into the Louisiana coastal ecosystem to increase sediment supply and 

strengthen island formation. Other approaches involve rebuilding the natural 

structural framework within the coastal ecosystem to provide for separation of the 

gulf and the estuary and, creating a continuous protective barrier for back bays and 

inland marshes to reduce wave energy, thereby helping to reduce land loss and restore 

the longshore transport system. This project will provide a sustainable barrier island 

habitat for numerous wildlife species, in areas that are presently open water. 

The goal of this project is to increase the longevity of the previously restored and 

natural portions of the island by increasing the island’s width. Increasing the island’s 

width will help to retain sand volume as well as elevation. Approximately 300 acres 

of intertidal, back barrier marsh will be created by semi-confined disposal and 

placement of dredged material. This material is expected to come from a sediment 

source near the island. 

Engineering and design for this project (TE-47) was completed with CWPPRA funds. 

The project was a candidate for CWPPRA Phase II (construction) funding in 

December of 2005, but was not selected. 



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State-Parish Tier Two Projects 

No Tier Two Cost Shared Projects 

Parish-Funded Tier Two Projects 

Assumption 

1) Project Title: Bayou Crab and Cancienne Canal Hydrologic Restoration 




P.O. Box 520 


Phone: (985) 369-7386 

Fax: (985) 369-7341 




State CIAP Funds Proposed: None 

Infrastructure Funds Proposed None 

Description and Location of Project: Lake Verret is located in the west-central 

portion of Assumption Parish. Many of the lake’s tributaries carry significant 

amounts of sediment, nutrients, and pesticides that are having an adverse effect on 

water quality in Lake Verret. The proposed Bayou Crab and Cancienne Canal 

Hydrologic Restoration Project will include: 

a. Establishing “filter strips” (on easements acquired from willing landowners) 

on approximately 248 acres of agricultural land immediately bordering the 

Cancienne Canal. 

b. Dredging of Cancienne Canal and placing the material beneficially as 

sediment added to the filter strips, to be vegetated with native plants. 

Dredging will stop at the interface between swamp and agricultural land. 

c. Gapping the northern section of Bayou Crab to promote the flow of fresh 

water and associated nutrients and sediment into the adjacent swamp. 

d. Creating of an inline sediment trap in the Cancienne Canal to reduce the 

sediment load currently flowing into Lake Verret. 

262


Project Justification: Lake Verret is currently designated by the EPA as an 

impaired water body (LDEQ sub segment 120204) that exceeds water quality 

standards for organic enrichment/low dissolved oxygen, nutrients, pH, pesticides, 

mercury, and noxious aquatic plants. Cancienne Canal and Bayou Crab have been 

identified as major sources of suspended and dissolved sediments that have, over 

time, led to significant shallowing of portions of the lake. The nutrients are also the 

sources of high nutrient concentrations, which have been shown to be responsible for 

eutrophication in the southern end of Lake Verret. 

Dredging Cancienne Canal will allow for a more efficient hydrologic exchange with 

Bayou Lafourche, providing the potential for enhancing beneficial freshwater inflows 

into that bayou. Beneficial placement of the dredged material will provide a suitable 

substrate for the establishment of filter strips along both banks of the canal. 

The filter strips will aid in reducing the loading of sediment, nutrients, and 

agricultural pesticides that drain into Cancienne Canal and then flow into Lake 

Verret. Likewise, the inline sediment trap will reduce excessive sediment inflows 

into Lake Verret. Based on research of buffer strips along agricultural fields, it is 

estimated that the filter strips will lead to a 40% reduction in sediment transport 

across the buffer into the adjacent waterways and ultimately into Lake Verret. There 

will be some variability on a site by site basis due to variations in the ratio of the 

drainage area to the buffer width (i.e., the smaller the ratio the greater the reduction in 

sedimentation rate) and the variability of flow pathways within the buffer area. 

Gapping the northern section of Bayou Crab will help to divert agricultural runoff 

into the adjacent swamp, thus reducing inflow of non-point source pollutants (i.e., 

sediment, excess nutrients, and pesticides) into Lake Verret during periods of heavy 

runoff. 



2) Project Title: Brule Canal Hydrologic Restoration 




P.O. Box 520 


Phone: (985) 369-7386 

Fax: (985) 369-7341 


263






portion of Assumption Parish. Many of the tributaries to Lake Verret carry significant 


water quality in the lake. The proposed Brule Canal Hydrologic Restoration Project 

will include: 

a. Establishing “filter strips” (on easements acquired from willing landowners) 

on approximately 17.5 acres of agricultural land immediately bordering Brule 

Canal. 

b. Dredging the northern section of Brule Canal and placing the material 

beneficially as sediment added to the filter strips, to be vegetated with native 

plants. Dredging will stop at the interface between swamp and crop land. 

c. Gapping the northern section of Brule Canal to promote the flow of fresh 

water and associated nutrients and sediment into the adjacent swamp. 

d. Creating an inline sediment trap in the southern section of Brule Canal to 

reduce the sediment load currently flowing into Lake Verret. 





mercury, and noxious aquatic plants. Brule Canal has been identified as a source of 

suspended and dissolved sediments that have, over time, led to significant shallowing 

of portions of the lake. These sediments are also sources of high nutrient 

concentrations shown to be responsible for eutrophication of Lake Verret. 

Dredging of the northern section of Brule Canal will provide a more consistent source 

of fresh water to the cypress swamps bordering Lake Verret, and it will provide a 

suitable substrate for the establishment of filter strips along both banks of the canal. 

The filter strips will help to reduce loadings of sediment, nutrients, and pesticides that 

drain into Brule Canal and then flow into Lake Verret. Based on research of buffer 

strips along agricultural fields, it is estimated that the filter strips will lead to a 40% 

reduction in sediment transport across the buffer into the adjacent waterways and 

ultimately into Lake Verret. There will be some variability on a site by site basis due 

264

to variations in the ratio of the drainage area to the buffer width (i.e. the smaller the 

ratio the greater the reduction in sedimentation rate) and the variability of flow 

pathways within the buffer area. 

Gapping the southern section of Brule Canal will act to divert waters (agricultural 

runoff) into the adjacent swamp, facilitating removal of sediment, excess nutrients, 

and pesticides. This in turn will reduce the non-point source pollutants moving into 

Lake Verret. 



3) Project Title: Elm Hall Canal Hydrologic Restoration 




P.O. Box 520 


Phone: (985) 369-7386 

Fax: (985) 369-7341 









water quality in Lake Verret. The proposed Elm Hall Canal Hydrologic Restoration 

Project will include: 

a. Establishing “filter strips” (on easements acquired from willing 

landowners) on approximately 26.3 acres of agricultural land immediately 

bordering Elm Hall Canal. 

b. Dredging Elm Hall Canal, and using the dredged material beneficially as 

sediment added to the filter strips, to be vegetated with native plants. 

Dredging will stop at the interface between swamp and agricultural land. 

265

c. Gapping the western section of Elm Hall Canal to increase the flow of 

fresh water, nutrients, and sediment into the adjacent swamp. 

d. Creating an inline sediment trap in the canal to reduce the sediment load 

currently flowing into Lake Verret. 





mercury, and noxious aquatic plants. Elm Hall Canal has been identified as a major 

source of suspended and dissolved sediments that have, over time, led to significant 

shallowing of portions of the lake. The sediments are also sources of the high 

nutrient concentrations shown to be responsible for eutrophication in Lake Verret. 

Dredging of the eastern section of Elm Hall Canal will provide a more consistent 

source of fresh water for the cypress swamps bordering Lake Verret. Dredging will 

also provide a suitable substrate for the establishment of filter strips along both banks 

of the canal. 


agricultural pesticides that drain into Elm Hall Canal and then flow into Lake Verret. 

Based on research of buffer strips along agricultural fields, it is estimated that the 

filter strips will lead to a 40% reduction in sediment transport across the buffer into 

the adjacent waterways and ultimately into Lake Verret. There will be some 

variability on a site by site basis due to variations in the ratio of the drainage area to 

the buffer width (i.e. the smaller the ratio the greater the reduction in sedimentation 

rate) and the variability of flow pathways within the buffer area. 

Gapping the western section of Elm Hall Canal will divert flows (agricultural runoff) 

into the adjacent swamp, facilitating removal of sediment, excess nutrients, and 

pesticides and thereby reducing runoff of non-point source pollutants into Lake 

Verret. 



4) Project Title: Himalaya Canal Hydrologic Restoration 


266



P.O. Box 520 


Phone: (985) 369-7386 

Fax: (985) 369-7341 









water quality in the lake. The proposed Himalaya Canal Hydrologic Restoration 

Project will include: 


landowners) on approximately 200 acres of agricultural land immediately 

bordering Himalaya Canal. 

b. Dredging the eastern section of Himalaya Canal and placing the dredged 

material beneficially as sediment added to the filter strips, which are to be 

vegetated with native plants. Dredging will stop at the interface between 

swamp and agricultural land. 

c. Gapping the western section of Himalaya Canal to promote the flow of 

fresh water, nutrients, and sediment into the adjacent swamp. 

d. Creating an inline sediment trap constructed in the western section of 

Himalaya Canal to reduce the sediment load currently flowing into Lake 

Verret. 


Project Justification: Lake Verret is currently designated by EPA as an impaired 

water body (LDEQ sub segment 120204) that exceeds water quality standards for 

organic enrichment/low dissolved oxygen, nutrients, pH, pesticides, mercury, and 

noxious aquatic plants. Himalaya Canal has been identified as a source of suspended 

and dissolved sediments that have, over time, led to significant shallowing of portions 

of the lake. In addition, that canal is a source of high nutrient concentrations, thus 

contributing to eutrophication in Lake Verret. 

267

Dredging of the eastern section of Himalaya Canal will provide a more consistent 

source of fresh water to the cypress swamps bordering Lake Verret, and it will 

provide a suitable substrate for the establishment of filter strips along both banks of 

the canal. 


agricultural pesticides that drain into Himalaya Canal and then flow into Lake Verret. 

Based on research of buffer strips along agricultural fields, it is estimated that the 

filter strips will lead to a 40% reduction in sediment transport across the buffer into 

the adjacent waterways and ultimately into Lake Verret. There will be some 

variability on a site by site basis due to variations in the ratio of the drainage area to 

the buffer width (i.e. the smaller the ratio the greater the reduction in sedimentation 

rate) and the variability of flow pathways within the buffer area. 

Gapping the western section of Himalaya Canal will act to divert agricultural runoff 

into the adjacent swamp, facilitating reduction non-point source pollutants (i.e., 

sediment, excess nutrients, and pesticides) moving into Lake Verret. 



5) Project Title: Shell Beach Restoration 




P.O. Box 520 


Phone: (985) 369-7386 

Fax: (985) 369-7341 






Description and Location of Project: The Shell Beach Restoration Project would 

be located along Lake Verret, in west-central Assumption Parish. Assumption 

Parish plans to acquire fee title to the property at Shell Beach and use a hydraulic 

dredge to remove accumulated sediment from shallow areas of Lake Verret, and 

beneficially use that material. The project objective is to remove accumulated 

sediment from Lake Verret and beneficially place the sediment on approximately 6 

268

acres of the lake’s shoreline at Shell Beach, and to provide access to a historically 

public recreation area. The project would use sediment removed from Lake Verret to 

re-establish a portion of the eroded lake shoreline at Shell Beach, and would bring in 

a thin layer of sand to cover the restored shoreline area at Shell Beach. Shell Beach 

has historically been a public recreation area, but the public lease was lost on this area 

due to an administrative mistake; since that time, the landowner has not maintained 

the area and has not allowed public access. The exact location, size, configuration, 

and quantity of sand to be deposited on Shell Beach, and the sediment to be removed 

from Lake Verret as part of the Shell Beach Restoration Project, will be more 

accurately determined during the engineering and design phase of this project. 


Project Justification: The USGS has documented very high rates sediment 

accretion in Lake Verret. One approach to address the excessive sedimentation of 

Lake Verret’s shallow waters at Shell Beach, is the careful dredging of accumulated 

sediment from those waters and the revegetation of those deposits with desirable 

native plants. In addition some shoreline erosion has occurred in the Shell Beach area 

and implementation of this project will address that problem and provide public 

access to natural resources at this historical recreation area. 



6) Project Title: Whitmel Canal, Bayou St. Vincent, and Company Canal Hydrologic 

Restoration 




P.O. Box 520 


Phone: (985) 369-7386 

Fax: (985) 369-7341 






269




water quality in the lake. The proposed Whitmel Canal, Bayou St. Vincent, and 

Company Canal Hydrologic Restoration Project will include: 


landowners) on approximately 55 acres of agricultural land immediately 

bordering the Whitmel Canal. 

b. Dredging of the eastern section of Whitmel Canal, Bayou St. Vincent, and 

Company Canal, and beneficially adding that material as sediment to the 

filter strips, to be vegetated with native plants. Dredging will stop at the 

interface between swamp and agricultural land. 

c. Gapping the western section of Whitmel Canal to promote inflow of 

water, nutrients, and sediment into the adjacent swamp. 

d. Creating an inline sediment trap in the western section of Whitmel Canal 

to reduce the sediment load currently flowing into Lake Verret. 


Project Justification: Lake Verret is currently designated by the EPA as an impaired 

water body (LDEQ sub segment 120204) that exceeds water quality standards for 

organic enrichment/low dissolved oxygen, nutrients, pH, pesticides, mercury, and 

noxious aquatic plants. Whitmel Canal, Bayou St. Vincent, and Company Canal have 

been identified as major sources of suspended and dissolved sediments that have, 

over time, led to significant shallowing of portions of the lake. These sediments are 

also sources of high nutrient concentrations and the resultant eutrophication in Lake 

Verret. 

Dredging the eastern section of Whitmel Canal, Bayou St. Vincent, and Company 

Canal will provide a more consistent source of fresh water to the cypress swamps 

bordering Lake Verret, and it will provide a suitable substrate for the establishment of 

filter strips along both banks of the canal. 

The filter strips will help to reduce the inflow of nonpoint source pollutants (i.e., 

sediment, nutrients, and pesticides) that drain into Whitmel Canal, Bayou St. Vincent, 

and Company Canal, and then into Lake Verret. Based on research of buffer strips 

along agricultural fields, it is estimated that the filter strips will lead to a 40% 

reduction in sediment transport across the buffer into the adjacent waterways and 

ultimately into Lake Verret. There will be some variability on a site by site basis due 

to variations in the ratio of the drainage area to the buffer width (i.e., the smaller the 

ratio the greater the reduction in sedimentation rate) and the variability of flow 

pathways within the buffer area. 

270

Gapping the western section of Whitmel Canal will help to divert agricultural runoff 

into the adjacent swamp, reducing non-point source pollutants before they flow into 

Lake Verret. 




1) Project Title: Calcasieu Parish Administrative Assistance 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: Calcasieu Parish Police Jury (CPPJ) 



Division of Planning and Development, CPPJ 



Phone: (337) 721-3600 

Fax: (337) 437-3586 



Parish CIAP Funds Proposed: $ 20,000.00 



Description and Location of Project: The project will provide financial assistance 

to the Calcasieu Parish Police Jury to manage and implement the CIAP program. 


Project Justification: This funding will provide financial assistance to Calcasieu 

Parish in order to fund a portion of the costs that will be incurred by the parish for the 

administration of the CIAP. 


Duration: Four Years 

271


1) Project Title: Little Florida to Martin Beach Coastal Erosion Bank Stabilization 




P.O. Box 1280 


Phone: (337) 905-1189 

Fax: (337) 905-1191 






Description and Location of Project: This project entails the stabilization and 

erosion mitigation of approximately two miles of shoreline in Cameron Parish west of 

the breakwaters from Little Florida Beach and running west towards Martin Beach. 

The project will utilize a comprehensive scientific understanding of the local 

shoreline, including the impacts of the updrift breakwaters. The resulting analysis 

will produce the design and implementation of a long-term soft solution utilizing lowprofile 

geo-textile stabilization systems. The overall project will be performed in five 

distinct phases: (1) scientifically based data acquisition process; (2) data analysis and 

system design; (3) permitting coordination and approval; (4) construction; and (5) 

annual system monitoring. 


Project Justification: This project will be designed to stabilize and assist in the 

control of erosion for the shoreline in Cameron Parish that is not protected and is 

potentially impacted by the breakwater system. It will provide protection for property 

and road systems that run along the shoreline. In addition, this system will help 

minimize the potentially negative down-drift impacts of the breakwater system and it 

will eliminate the possible continuation of an expensive hard structure system into the 

existing beach environment. Additionally, the system will minimize the long-term 

impact of erosion that results from damaging storms and tidal influences. 



272

2) Project Title: Reclamation of Sand Mines on Cameron Parish Cheniers 



Contact Information: Earnestine T. Horn 

P.O. Box 1280 

Carmeron, LA 70631 

Phone: (337) 905-1187 

Fax: (337) 905-1191 


Total CIAP Funds Requested: $770,000.00 

Total Parish Funds Requested: $770,000.00 

Total State Funds Requested: $0 


Description and Location of Project: The project is located in existing sand mines 

on cheniers in Cameron Parish. The project will fill in approximately ten existing 

sand mines on cheniers, ranging in size from one half acre to 10 acres. The mines will 

be filled with the wood and herbaceous debris created by Hurricane Rita. The full 

landfills would then be capped with clean native sediment, from the existing sand 

mine, and reforested with live oak and hackberry trees. The live oaks will be planted 

on 40-foot spacings and hackberry on 20-foot spacings. Fifty year land right 

easements will be required on the reclaimed sand mines. 


Project Justification: The result will be a reduction in the amount of land 

subsidence due to sand mining, and the reduction of storm surge heights restoring 

chenier ridge functions and elevations. 

The project will eliminate the wood debris piles located in southern Cameron Parish 

through their beneficial use in landfills that were created by the mining of sand. This 

beneficial use of organic material to reclaim the land will reduce subsidence potential 

and reduce the debris removal costs to FEMA and the parish. The live oak trees on 

the capped landfill will serve as natural mechanisms for reducing the height of initial 

storm surge during future hurricanes. 



273

3) Project Title: South Oak Grove Restoration 




P.O. Box 1280 


Phone: (337) 905-1189 

Fax: (337) 905-1191 







portion of Coast 2050, Region 4, Oak Grove mapping unit. The project features are 

located along the Mermentau River and Lower Mud Lake in the south central portion 

of Cameron Parish (the center of the project feature is located approximately at 

latitude 29º 45’ 58” N and longitude 93º 3’ 54”W). Project features include the 

repair/replacement of two existing water control structures (48 inch culverts) that are 

currently not functioning as designed and the refurbishment of 1.5 miles of adjacent 

levees. The objective of the proposed project is to repair the water control structures 

so that pre-Hurricane Rita salinity and water levels can be restored to approximately 

1,000 acres of marsh. 


Project Justification: The new/repaired structures will reduce saltwater intrusion 

into the project area and restore historic salinity and hydrologic regimes. Without this 

project the 1,000-acre interior marsh area will experience extensive loss. 











274






4) Project Title: Mermentau Ship Channel Sediment By-Pass 




P.O. Box 1280 


Phone: (337) 905-1189 

Fax: (337) 905-1191 






Description and Location of Project: The project proposes to rebuild 75 to 100 

acres of gulf shoreline at Hackberry Beach by moving sediment from the east side of 

the Mermentau Pass to the west via a hydraulic dredge. The project area is located 

along the Gulf of Mexico shoreline at the mouth of the Mermentau Ship Channel, 

south of Grand Chenier. 


Project Justification: The Gulf of Mexico shoreline west of the Mermentau Ship 

Channel has seen high erosion rates as a result of the disruption of longshore 

sediment across the mouth of the Ship Channel following the construction of the 

Mermentau Ship Channel jetties. West of the jetties there continues to be high 

erosion (>50 ft/year) along Hackberry Beach. This area west of Mermentau Cut has 

the highest gulf shore erosion along the Cameron Parish shoreline. 

The goal is to reduce gulf shoreline erosion on the west of the Mermentau Ship 

Channel jetties by transporting sediment from the east jetty area. Approximately 1 to 

2 million cubic yards of material can be transported west of the Mermentau Ship 

Channel jetties to rebuild at least 75 to 100 acres of gulf shoreline at Hackberry 

Beach. 

275



have to be in conjunction with the dredging cycles nearby, which occur 


Iberia Parish 

1) Project Title: Acadiana Regional Airport Street Improvements – Ember Road 



Sally Angers 





Phone: (337) 365-8246 

Fax: (337) 369-4470 






Description and Location of Project: This project will reconstruct 270 feet of 

Ember Road, which provides access to the Acadiana Regional Airport. That airport is 

immediately northwest of New Iberia. Ember Road extends roughly southwesterly 

from its intersection with Admiral Doyle Drive; it provides access to the Acadiana 

Regional Airport, which has air cargo and helicopter services that support OCS oil 

and gas exploration and production activities in the Gulf of Mexico. 


Project Justification: The involved Ember Road segment supports a substantial 

amount of use related to support of OCS exploration and production activities. That 

use has been a significant factor in the wear and tear of that roadway segment and the 

need for the proposed reconstruction. 



276

2) Project Title: Artificial Reef in Bird Island Bayou 



Sally Angers 





Phone: (337) 365-8246 

Fax: (337) 369-4470 






Description and Location of Project: Construct a 10-acre reef in Bird Island Bayou 

in a wide area called “The Boulevard”, which is located on the Marsh Island Wildlife 

Management Area and Game Preserve. Marsh Island is managed by the Louisiana 

Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. Resources and expertise from that agency will 

be requested to assist in the implementation of this project. 


Project Justification: Historically, there was an oyster reef at this location; thus, this 

location will provide a good base for placement of limestone for reef restoration. 

Since this is a demonstration project, the amount of anticipated reduction of emergent 

wetland loss is unknown; and it is expected that implementation of this project will 

answer that question. 



277

3) Project Title: Iberia Parish Administration of CIAP Plan 



Sally Angers 





Phone: (337) 365-8246 

Fax: (337) 369-4470 


Total CIAP Funds Proposed: $250,617 

Parish CIAP Funds Proposed: $250,617 


Infrastructure Funds Proposed: $250,617 


will provide financial assistance to Iberia Parish Government to manage and 

implement the CIAP program. This project will staff an administrative position to be 

housed at the Iberia Soil and Water Conservation District. Housing this position at 

the office will give the incumbent access to the resources and information readily 

available to the district, such as boat, vehicle, office space, computer equipment, 

technical assistance and equipment. 


Project Justification: This funding is needed by Iberia Parish for administration of 

its CIAP Plan. 



4) Project Title: Oyster Lake Terracing 



Sally Angers 





Phone: (337) 365-8246 

Fax: (337) 369-4470 


278






Marsh Island State Wildlife Refuge, and will construct approximately 34 acres of 

shallow bay bottom terraces planted with vegetative planting. 


Project Justification: Oyster Lake is a historic pond on Marsh Island that has 





excellent opportunity to build terraces to break wave energy and possibly trap loose 

sediment. The construction of the terraces will result in the direct creation of 34 acres 

of marsh and it is anticipated that construction of the terraces will result in a 50% 

reduction in the erosion of the neighboring shoreline. 



5) Project Title: Shark Island Shoreline Restoration Demo 



Sally Angers 





Phone: (337) 365-8246 

Fax: (337) 369-4470 






279

Description and Location of Project: This project will test methods of shoreline 

protection on actively eroding shoreline at Shark Island (located approximately at 

latitude 29º 46’ 7” N and longitude 91º 52’ 2” W), preparatory to a larger project at 

Shark Island intended to protect 4.5 miles of shoreline along Vermilion Bay. 


Project Justification: Information from this project would be used in efforts to 

maintain shoreline integrity and stabilize critical areas of the actively eroding 

Vermilion Bay system. The annual erosion rate at Shark Island has been reported as 

23.7 feet (1978-1998), including 36 feet for the northern portion of Shark Island 

(Britsch and Dunbar 1996), and 24 feet for the southern portion (Britsch and Dunbar 

1996). Since this is a demonstration project, the anticipated reduction of land loss is 

unknown and it is expected that implementation of this project will answer that 

question. 



6) Project Title: Port of Iberia Street Improvements – Unifab Road 



Sally Angers 





Phone: (337) 365-8246 

Fax: (337) 369-4470 






Description and Location of Project: This project will patch and overlay 850 feet of 

Unifab Road. The project is located in Iberia Parish, and will aid the Port of Iberia in 

its day-to-day operations. 


280


produced products and the large equipment used in transporting these products takes a 




7) Project Title: Vegetative Plantings 



Sally Angers 





Phone: (337) 365-8246 

Fax: (337) 369-4470 






Description and Location of Project: Conduct annual vegetative plantings on 

approximately 102,000 linear feet of shorelines in Vermilion Bay, and other areas, 

that have proven to be sites where plantings might help establish and solidify the 

shoreline. This assumes planting a double row of Smooth Cordgrass plugs every 2 

feet on center. 


Project Justification: The project is needed to maintain shoreline integrity and 

stabilize critical areas of the actively eroding Vermilion Bay System. The shoreline 

erosion rate along the west and northwest shoreline of Vermilion Bay ranges from 5 

to 15 feet annually and it is projected that implementation of this project would result 

in a 50% reduction in those rates in the project areas. 



281


1) Project Title: Bayou Dupont Natural Ridge Restoration 







(504) 736-6440 fax (504) 731-4607 






Description and Location of Project: The project is sited in Jefferson Parish, below 

Lafitte, Louisiana, and southeast of the Pen, in the vicinity of the Dupre Cut area of 

the Barataria Bay Waterway. 

The project will include approximately 25,000 linear feet of natural ridge restoration 

and stabilization, as well as reforestation of approximately 30 acres of restored ridges. 

Existing bank lines will be followed and breaches will be plugged to interconnect 

existing land masses, thus creating a series of ridges. The ridges will be constructed 

along a portion of the north bank of Bayou Dupont that lies between its intersection 

with oil and gas canals in the Sea Deuce area, westward to its intersection with the 

southeast bank of Chenier Traverse Bayou. 

Features will include earthen embankments to reinforce the existing bank lines and 

interconnect existing spoil deposits, as well as appurtenant canal opening plugs, cut 

closures, and stone rip-rap placements needed to stabilize the earthen embankments 

through open water areas. The restored ridge will be planted with native tree species 

to provide for future stabilization. 


282

Project Justification: This project will restore one of the natural ridges that 

historically sustained the area’s complex hydrology. Wetlands in the Myrtle 

Grove/Bayou Dupont area have been adversely impacted by erosion, subsidence, and 

the past construction of oil and gas production canals. The proposed restoration of 

natural bank lines along portions of the north shore of Bayou Dupont will help to 

dampen the adverse effects of unchecked tidal exchange. The reestablished ridge will 

be stabilized by plantings of suitable tree species along the restored bank lines. The 

restored natural ridge will act as a retention feature that will help to ensure that 

sediments obtained from the Mississippi River and/or through future LDNR 

dedicated dredging projects will be successfully distributed into the surrounding 

marshes. 



2) Project Title: Lake Salvador Shoreline Protection and Marsh Creation at Jean Lafitte 

National Park 







(504) 736-6440 fax (504) 731-4607 






Description and Location of Project: The project site is located along the southeast 

shoreline of Lake Salvador at the Barataria Preserve portion of Jean Lafitte National 

Historical Park and Preserve and lands south of Bayou Villars in Jefferson Parish, 

Louisiana. 

283

The goals of this project are to protect the existing shoreline and to restore marsh. 

Rock revetment will be used to protect the shoreline in the southeast portion of Lake 

Salvador and immediately south of Bayou Villars near the Gulf Intracoastal 

Waterway (GIWW). Rocks will be placed offshore and the protected area will be 

backfilled with dredged material in order to mimic the historical lake rim. Dredged 

material will be used to fill a 55 acre area of open water between Lake Salvador and 

the Bayou Segnette Waterway. Approximately 21,000 linear feet of shoreline 

(15,000 on the Barataria Preserve and 6,000 on private land) will be armored with 

rock; 130 acres of eroded marsh will be created using dredged material, and marsh 

nourishment will be used to enrich 135 acres of degraded marsh. Dredged material 

will be obtained from a borrow source located near the project area in Lake Salvador. 


Project Justification: Within the past 50 years, the project area has undergone a 

remarkable transformation, including the loss of more than 620 acres of wetlands. 

Since the late 1950s, annual shoreline erosion rates at the Barataria Preserve averaged 

21 linear feet, with a high exceeding 90 feet. An astonishing shoreline retreat of 

approximately 2,400 feet has occurred at the southern end of the Pipeline Canal since 

1958. Shoreline retreat and wetland loss were accelerated by the powerful winds and 

storm surge caused by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Within the project area, these 

storms caused 100 feet of shoreline retreat and the interior marsh was compacted or 

torn apart, creating open water ponds. The high loss of wetlands that has occurred is 

also responsible for flooding of the neighboring communities of Crown Point, Jean 

Lafitte, and Barataria. Shoreline stabilization and marsh restoration will ensure the 

protection of natural resources and infrastructure, including two federally maintained 

navigation channels: Bayou Segnette Waterway and the GIWW. 

Direct benefits of this project include stabilizing 21,000 linear feet of shoreline, 

creating 130 acres of marsh, and providing nourishment to 135 acres. Approximately 

350 to 400 acres will be directly impacted and over 1,000 acres will be indirectly 

affected. This project will protect a large portion of the southeastern rim of Lake 

Salvador and will complement existing shoreline protection projects that have been 

constructed on the Barataria Preserve. Completion of this project will complete 

armament of the southeastern portion of Lake Salvador. 

One key feature of this project is the storm surge protection for local communities 

and infrastructure. The project site is located in a critical area 15 miles south of New 

Orleans that provides the last line of defense against storm surge coming from Lake 

Salvador and the Barataria Bay. In addition, oil and gas infrastructure in the areas 

will be protected from destructive storm surges. 

284




Dedicated dredging for wetland creation 

Stabilization of major navigation channels 

Maintenance of bay and lake shoreline integrity 


Restore and Sustain Marshes 

Protect Bay and Lake Shorelines 




Duration: Thirty months 

3) Project Title: South Shore of the Pen Shoreline Protection and Marsh Restoration 







(504) 736-6440 fax (504) 731-4607 






Description and Location of Project: The project is located in Region 2, Barataria 

Basin, Jefferson Parish, South Shore of the Pen, Bayou Dupont, Barataria Bay 

Waterway. 

The goals of this project are to stop shoreline erosion, to create 74 acres and to 

nourish 107 acres of marsh located between The Pen and Barataria Bay. 

Approximately 1,000 feet of concrete pile and panel wall and 10,900 feet of rock 

revetment will be constructed along the south shore of The Pen and Bayou Dupont. 

285

Two existing bayous will remain open and a site specific opening to The Pen will be 

incorporated at the eastern marsh creation site. Dedicated dredging will be used to 

create approximately 74 acres of marsh and nourish an additional 107 acres of marsh, 

within the triangular area bounded by the south shore of The Pen, the Barataria Bay 

Waterway (Dupre Cut) and the Creole Gas Pipeline Canal. Containment dikes 

constructed for marsh creation and nourishment will be degraded upon completion of 

construction. 

This project is currently authorized by CWPPRA and is still in the engineering and 

design phase, in partnership between the USEPA and LDNR. 


Project Justification: The triangular landmass bounded by the southern shoreline of 

The Pen, the Barataria Bay Waterway (Dupre Cut), and the Pipeline Canal is 

deteriorating due to shoreline erosion (ranging from 4 to 27 feet per year) and interior 

marsh loss. Loss of this protective landmass would provide a more direct connection 

between the marine/tidal processes of the lower Barataria Basin and the freshwaterdominated 

upper basin. This project serves as the eastern extension of the CWPPRA 

Central Barataria Basin Land Bridge project and will complement previously 

constructed projects including: Barataria Bay Waterway East Side Shoreline 

Protection (BA-26) and Naomi Outfall Management (BA-03c). 






Vegetative Planting 






#26. Dedicated dredging to create marsh on the land bridge 

Mapping Unit Strategies: 

#12. Maintain ridge function. 

#13. Restore ridge function of Bayou Barataria. 

#14. Restore hydrology. 



286



4) Project Title: Marsh Restoration via Management of Rosethorne Municipal Effluent 







(504) 736-6440 fax (504) 731-4607 






Description and Location of Project: The existing wetlands to be restored are 

located South of Louisiana Highway 45 (Jean Lafitte Blvd.). The Town of Jean 

Lafitte Rosethorne treatment facility is located approximately 1,000 feet from 

Louisiana Highway 45 and west of Louisiana Highway 3134 (Leo Kerner Blvd.) 

Bridge, and currently discharges treated municipal effluent into Bayou Barataria. 

The project will utilize secondarily treated municipal effluent (STME) diverted from 

the Rosethorne treatment facility to restore and sustain coastal wetland habitat. The 

use of STME offers an alternative for habitat restoration. It has been shown that the 

application of STME results in higher habitat productivity, increased accretion to 

offset relative sea level rise, and reduced saltwater intrusion while at the same time 

resulting in improved water quality. In effect, the nutrients and freshwater in STME 

are viewed as restoration resources. Because restoration projects are integrated into 

treatment programs for improving water quality, restoration using STME is very costeffective. 

The proposed project envisions re-routing STME to adjacent wetlands. 

Freshwater, nutrients, and organic matter in the effluent will enhance deteriorating 

wetlands. The projects will be carefully designed so that the maximum area of 

wetlands is benefited and the highest nutrient removal is achieved. The effluents will 

be treated for pathogens and monitored for metals before discharge to wetland to 

ensure that there is not threat of contamination. 

287

The existing Rosethorne treatment facility serves the entire Town of Jean Lafitte. 

The treatment plant is an oxidation pond. The nearest treatment facility, which is the 

Marrero treatment plant, is approximately 9 miles away with the closest sewer system 

that ties into the Marrero treatment plant approximately 5 miles away. Based on this 

information, if the Rosethorne treatment facility were to undergo extensive damage, 

the Town of Jean Lafitte would have no way of treating its raw sewerage. When other 

municipalities throughout Louisiana have constructed similar wetland assimilation 

facilities, those treatment plants have sustained less damage due to hurricanes. Such 

projects have also helped prevent the extended interruption of service to citizens and 

businesses that occurred and are occurring to other municipalities following 

Hurricane Katrina. 


Project Justification: The project goal is two-fold. First, this project will restore 

destroyed and rapidly disappearing coastal wetlands that, in addition to their 

ecological value, originally protected the metropolitan New Orleans area from 

tropical storm events. Secondly, this project will repair damaged critical infrastructure 

as well as reduce the cost of future operation, maintenance and permit compliance 

monitoring. It will also help reduce costs from the results of future tropical storm 

events as explained above. Jefferson Parish believes that discharging treated effluent 

into neighboring wetlands will provide water quality improvement, solids handling, 

wetland mitigation, hazard mitigation and the ability to restore up to 300-500 acres of 

cypress wetlands. Based on research of previous wetland assimilation projects in 

Louisiana, we would anticipate an increase in annual plant productivity of 

approximately 20% and an increase of 25% in annual sediment accretion due to 


performance projections would be more accurately determined during the engineering 

and design phase of this project. 

The existing Fleming wetlands have suffered great losses and are therefore 

increasingly subjected to saltwater intrusion. These wetlands require fresh water and 

nutrients to restore and maintain cypress swamps, which originally existed in the area. 

Wetlands in these areas protect the levees that receive incoming storm surge and 

storm generated waves. This project will also reduce nutrient loading in the Lower 

Mississippi River Basin, which will prevent further hypoxia in the Northern Gulf of 

Mexico. Instead of discharging effluent into Bayou Barataria and its waterways 

ecosystem, the effluent will be used as a nutrient source for replenishing wetlands. 

The hypoxic, or dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico affects the environment and the 

local economy, which is dependent on commercial and recreational fishing. 



288

5) Project Title: Tidal Restrictions at Barataria Bay Waterway, Harvey Cut, and Little 

Lake 







(504) 736-6440 fax (504) 731-4607 






Description and Location of Project: The project is sited in Jefferson Parish, on the 

portion of the Barataria Bay Waterway that is south of Bayou Dupont and north of 

Goose Bayou, and at the southern ends of Bayou Perot and Bayou Rigolettes, near 

their confluence, just northeast of Little Lake. 

This project will restore hydrologic conditions at the critical Land Bridge area by 

restricting channel dimensions at Harvey Cut and at the Bayou Perot/Little Lake 

intersection. Additionally, four sheetpile barriers will be strategically placed in the 

Barataria Bay Waterway as a means of reestablishing historical levels of hydrologic 

exchange within the area. This project will help protect the integrity of the shorelines 

of the Dupre Cut portion of the Barataria Bay Waterway. The project will also 

restrict channel dimensions to limit saltwater intrusion, tidal prism, and enhance 

freshwater retention. 

Features will include a barrier wall structure with a 500-foot-wide x 12-foot-deep 

barge bay opening (to be optimized) would be constructed to constrict Bayou Perot to 

its historical 1956 opening. Another barrier wall structure with a 56-foot-wide x 12- 

foot-deep barge bay opening will be constructed to constrict flows through Harvey 

Cut. The project will also involve the construction of four strategically placed barrier 

wall structures across the Dupre Cut, with appropriately sized openings for marine 

transportation and barge traffic (125 foot wide x 12 foot deep barge bay openings, 

typically). These structures will be built so as to constrict the flows experienced in 

this area of the Barataria Bay Waterway. These barrier walls will consist of vertical 

pre-stressed concrete sheetpiles, approximately 6 inches thick x 8 feet wide x 20 

linear feet long. These sheetpile slabs will be supported along each length by 60 foot 

long precast concrete piles having an “H”-Pile configuration for the top 20 feet, and 

driven at 8.5 feet, center to center, along the wall alignment. Along the edge of the 

channel, the barrier walls will be reinforced along each side with stone aggregate 

berms. 

289

The width and depth of three (3) waterways that currently serve as pathways for 

saltwater intrusion will be restricted. Current depth data for the waterways was not 

available; widths were estimated based on most recent aerial photography. Exact 

measurements for existing conditions will be determined in the engineering and 

design phase. Channel restrictions include: 

• Restrict width of Bayou Perot from approximately 1,904 feet to 500 feet; 

depth will be restricted to 12 feet. 

• Restrict width of Harvey Cut from approximately 568 feet to 56 feet; 

depth will be restricted to 12 feet. 

• Restrict width of Barataria Bay Waterway at four (4) locations from 

approximately 560 feet; depth will be restricted to 12 feet. 

It is anticipated that these restrictions will lower salinities north of the Barataria land 

bridge, which can be measured by monitoring salinities at existing monitoring 

stations including: 

• USGS 073802375: Lake Salvador near Lafitte, LA 

• USGS 07380323: Bayou Barataria at Lafitte, LA 

Additional site specific salinity and bathymetry will be acquired during the 

engineering and design phase of this project to adequately depict the baseline 

conditions of the site and to design the project. In addition, the exact location, size, 

configuration of the project features as well as updated site specific biological goals 

of the project will be more accurately determined during the engineering and design 



Project Justification: The measured objective for this project would be lowered 

salinities at strategically placed observation points north of the Barataria land bridge. 

The National Wetlands Research Center reports that on the basin level, the Barataria 

Basin continues to suffer the highest land loss rate of 11.1 square miles annually, 

accounting for 31.8% of all land loss in Louisiana for the 1978-1990 time frame. 

The project is located in a rapidly deteriorating area of the Barataria Land Bridge. 

Due to bankline erosion, the historical openings, which once allowed limited tidal 

exchange with the freshwater and intermediate marshes north of the project, have 

been enlarged to such a degree that a catastrophic change in the basic hydrology of 

the wetlands is being experienced. Barriers, in the form of channel restriction, are 

proposed to reestablish the historical levels of hydrologic exchange within the 

channels. The project will limit tidal inflows from Little Lake and Turtle Bay and 

enhance the retention of fresh water in the marshes north of the proposed structures. 

290

Additionally, the historical width of the Dupre Cut portion of the Barataria Bay 

Waterway has enlarged to such a degree that a catastrophic change in the basic 

hydrology of the wetlands has occurred. These hydrologic changes have accelerated 

saltwater intrusion, increased the tidal prism, and reduced up-gradient freshwater and 

sediment retention. As a result, significant losses are occurring in adjacent wetland 

areas. Sheet pile barriers are proposed to limit the tidal and storm driven forces of 

erosion and enhance freshwater retention in the adjacent marshes north of the 

proposed structures. 

Restoration of original area wide hydrology and increased retention of fresh water in 

marsh areas north of the project will help conserve these critical wetlands along the 

Barataria Land Bridge. During hurricane and extra-tropical storm events, the barrier 

walls constructed by this project will help to dampen and reduce storm surge 

amplitudes that may be experienced along the upper reaches of the Barataria Bay 

Waterway in the Lafitte and Bayou Villars areas of Jefferson Parish, and will protect 

oil and gas infrastructure within the direct vicinity. 





Maintain estuarine gradient to achieve diversity 


Restore natural drainage patterns 





291


1) Project Title: East Timbalier Island Restoration 








Phone: (985) 632-4666 

Fax: (985) 632-8653 



Parish CIAP Funds Proposed: N/A 

State CIAP Funds Proposed: N/A 


Description and Location of Project: The project is located in Lafourche Parish, 

Louisiana, on East Timbalier Island. The island is part of a barrier island chain that 

separates Terrebonne and Timbalier Bays from the Gulf of Mexico. Prior to the TE- 

30 Project, “East Timbalier Island Sediment Restoration,” that was proposed in 1994, 

the remnants of the island were expected to disintegrate within 11 years. Losing an 

average of 70 ft/year, the island experienced one of Louisiana’s highest coastal 

erosion rates in the last century. As a barrier island, East Timbalier not only protects 

Louisiana’s coast from hurricanes and storm surges but also lessens the erosive forces 

of high waves from the Gulf of Mexico as well. 

The goal of the project is to reestablish the historic barrier island separating the bay 

from the gulf, thereby adding protection to interior areas. The proposed project 

features are the creation of approximately of 3,200 linear feet of segmented 

breakwaters in the eastern end of the project area by salvaging rocks from the existing 

rock dikes along the southern boundary of the island; depositing hydraulically 

dredged sand behind the breakwaters to create approximately 190 acres of supratidal 

habitat, depositing hydraulically dredging sand to create approximately 180 acres of 

intertidal habitat on the bay side of the island; vegetative planting on both the dune 

and marsh habitat; and 8,200 linear feet of sand fencing on the created dune. 


292

Project Justification: Hurricane Katrina’s impact eroded the eastern part of the 

island. It is necessary to restore the island to ensure protection of marsh and human 

habitat from hurricanes and erosion. The oil and gas facility on the island is now 

exposed to the Gulf of Mexico. This project is a joint venture with Maritech to renourish/rebuild 

East Timbalier Island and the back wetland area that protects critical 

oil and gas infrastructure areas operated by Maritech. Maritech has stated that they 

would help fund maintenance after the island is restored. 

Project cost share: None 


2) Project Title: East Caminada Headland Beach/Dune Restoration and Marsh 

Creation 








Phone: (985) 632-4666 

Fax: (985) 632-8653 






Description and Location of Project: The proposed project will restore 

approximately 760 acres of marsh and 660 acres of beach and dune habitat across the 

western 7.0 miles of Caminada Headland. The proposed project site is located in 

Lafourche Parish along Caminada Headland, extending from Bay Champagne to 

Bayou Thunder. The center of the project area is located at the approximate 

coordinates 29° 08 '47.86" N latitude and 90° 07' 6.62" W longitude. The proposed 

project comprises the central Caminada Headland component of the Barataria Basin 

Barrier Shoreline Restoration Project that was identified as a critical near-term 

restoration project in the Louisiana Coastal Area (LCA) Ecosystem Restoration 

Study. 


293

Project Justification: Over the last 100 years, the Caminada Headland has 

experienced an average shoreline erosion rate of 45 feet/year. The overall goal of this 

project is to maintain the headland reach of the Barataria Shoreline, help sustain 

significant and unique coastal habitats (e.g., back-barrier marshes, chenier ridges, and 

mangroves), protect threatened and endangered species, and provide a sediment 

source for areas east and west of the headland. Incidental benefits from this 

ecological restoration will protect Port Fourchon, local State highways, and the only 

hurricane evacuation route available to the region. This project helps to address 

critical ecological needs and will restore and protect essential geomorphic features to 

help create a sustainable ecosystem in the Barataria Basin. The project is synergistic 

with future restoration by maintaining or restoring the integrity of Louisiana’s 

coastline. The draft feasibility study and environmental impact statement for the 

Barataria Basin Barrier Shoreline Project, of which this proposed project is a part, is 

scheduled for fall 2007. 



3) Project Title: Hydrologic Restoration of Bayou L’Eau Bleu 








Phone: (985) 632-4666 

Fax: (985) 632-8653 






294

Description and Location of Project: This project is located in Lafourche Parish, 

east of the Terrebonne Parish line and west of the South Lafourche Levee System. It 

involves the restoration of Bayou L’Eau Bleu connections with Grand Bayou on the 

south and the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW) on the north, and the connections 

between St. Louis Canal and Bayou Pointe au Chien (on the south). The purpose of 

this hydrologic restoration is to reintroduce freshwater flows from the GIWW and 

other fresh water supplies from the north, and to have those flows move south into the 

broken marsh between the Terrebonne Parish line and the South Lafourche Levee 

System. St. Louis Canal currently conveys approximately 500 cfs from the GIWW. 

The objective of the project is to increase that flow to as much as 3,000 cfs to reduce 

the loss of intermediate marsh by 50% in the project area. 


Project Justification: The GIWW has been documented to transport Atchafalaya 

River flows easterly, especially during periods of elevated Atchafalaya River flows. 

Directing as much as 3,000 cfs of fresh water down St. Louis Canal (representing 

about half of the peak flow in the GIWW at this location that currently moves east to 

the Barataria Basin) could positively impact up to 4,200 acres of brackish and 

intermediate marsh that are adversely affected by elevated salinity levels. The land 

loss in the intermediate zone marsh in the project area averaged approximately 0.17% 

annually from 1985-2005. Marsh benefits would result from reduced salinity spikes, 

enhanced wetland productivity through the introduction of additional fresh water and 

nutrients, and by a subsequent reduction in land loss rates. This project will slow 

down the salt water reaching the northern wetlands in Lafourche Parish. Reducing 

that saltwater intrusion will then reduce degradation and loss of fresh and low-salinity 

wetlands. 




No Tier Two Projects 

295


1) Project Title: Lake Pontchartrain Shoreline Protection - Hospital Wall 





Advisor and Director; Coastal and Environmental Affairs 



Phone: (504) 658-4074; Fax: (504) 658-4938 






Description and Location of Project: This project will consist of approximately 

3,000 feet of rock breakwater. The project is located in the Pontchartrain Basin, in 

eastern Orleans Parish along the Lake Pontchartrain shoreline at the Rigolets. The 

goals and objectives are conservation, restoration, and protection of coastal area, 

including wetlands. 


Project Justification: High wave energy, sea level rise, and subsidence levels are 

impacting the wetland shorelines of Lake Pontchartrain, Chef Pass, the Rigolets, and 

Lake St. Catherine, which were subject to high erosion rates (10 to 60 feet/year) 

before Hurricane Katrina. Construction of the proposed project feature would 

effectively halt the shoreline erosion. Impacts from the passage of the hurricane 

resulted in accelerated shoreline erosion and marsh destruction. Identified in both 

Coast 2050 and the LCA, this area forms a barrier between Lake Pontchartrain and 

Lake Borgne, an eventual passage to the Gulf of Mexico. The proposed project will 

benefit 300 acres and protect 14 acres by reducing the shoreline erosion rate by 

100%. The project will maintain part of the Pontchartrain shoreline and protect 

communities and infrastructure. 



296

2) Project Title: Lake Pontchartrain Shoreline Protection and Marsh Creation – Irish 

Bayou to Chef Menteur Pass 








Phone: (504) 658-4074; Fax: (504) 658-4938 



Total Parish CIAP Funds Proposed: $13,252,000.00 

State CIAP Funds Requested: $0 



20,700 feet of rock breakwater along a 2 foot contour extending from Point aux 

Herbes to Chef Menteur Pass. Approximately 46 acres of marsh will be created by 

hydraulically dredging material from the bottom of Lake Pontchartrain, and placing it 

into confined marsh creation sites. The project is located in the Pontchartrain Basin, 

in eastern Orleans Parish along the Lake Pontchartrain shoreline between Point aux 

Herbes and Chef Menteur Pass. 


Project Justification: The project area consists of a relatively narrow segment of 

marsh and shallow open water between an existing Federal hurricane protection 

levee, Interstate10, and Lake Pontchartrain. As the shoreline deteriorates and retreats, 

interior marsh and local infrastructure are exposed to the high-energy conditions of 

Lake Pontchartrain. The erosion rate along the shoreline of Lake Pontchartrain 

between Point aux Herbes and Chef Menteur Pass, based on an analysis of shoreline 

change, varies between 5 and 54 feet per year. Construction of the proposed project 

feature would effectively halt the shoreline erosion rate. The proposed project will 

benefit approximately 250 acres of brackish marsh and open water. 



297

3) Project Title: The Rigolets Shoreline Protection and Marsh Creation - Grand Coin 

Pocket 








Phone: (504) 658-4074; Fax: (504) 658-4938 







8,000 linear feet of rock breakwater shoreline protection and approximately 100 acres 

of marsh creation and restoration along the south bank of Rigolets Pass. The project 

is located in the Pontchartrain Basin, in eastern Orleans Parish between the west bank 

of the Rigolets and the northern shore of Lake St. Catherine. 


Project Justification: High wave energy, sea level rise, and subsidence levels are 

impacting the wetland shorelines of Lake Pontchartrain, Chef Pass, the Rigolets, and 

Lake St. Catherine. This is exhibited by increasingly high erosion rates since the 

1980s. Identified in both Coast 2050 and the LCA, this critical area is defined as a 

land bridge that forms a marsh barrier between Lake Pontchartrain and Lake Borgne, 

a bay of the Gulf of Mexico. The land bridge functions as a natural barrier that 

dampens storm surge during hurricanes and reduces the flow of water into Lake 

Pontchartrain. Grand Coin Pocket, once a small pond, is a section of brackish marsh 

that separates Lake St. Catherine from the Rigolets. The deep and fast moving 

Rigolets Pass is eroding the northern side of Grand Coin Pocket, while tidal 

influences within Lake St. Catherine affect the southern side. Without this marsh, the 

Rigolets will become part of Lake St. Catherine, further increasing tidal and wave 

impacts on wetland habitat, New Orleans communities, and a hurricane evacuation 

route, U.S. Highway 90. Construction of the proposed project feature would 

effectively halt the shoreline erosion rate. 



298


1) Project Title: Bayou Grand Liard Ridge Restoration 




P.J. Hahn 



Phone: (504) 297-5629 

Fax: (504) 274-2463 






Description and Location of Project: The project proposed to create and nourish 

marsh and associated edge habitat for aquatic species through pipeline sediment 

delivery and restoring the Grand Liard Ridge to reduce wave and tidal setup and 

provide fallout habitat for neotropical migrant birds. Specific goals include creating 

342 acres of saline marsh, nourishing 140 acres of saline marsh and constructing 

approximately 20,000 linear feet or 31 acres of maritime ridge habitat. The project is 

located in Plaquemines Parish along Bayou Grand Liard starting just south of the 

Buras Drainage Canal and extending to Bay Jacques (center point approximately 29º 

17’ 37”N, 89º 28’ 11”W). 


Project Justification: This area has experienced tremendous wetland loss due to a 

variety of forces including subsidence, salt water intrusion, a lack of sediment supply 

and oil and gas activities. The Bastion Bay and Grand Liard mapping units were 

historically structured by a series of north-south bayous and associated ridges. 

Currently, the majority of these bayou ridges have eroded and subsided. Ridge loss 

combined with interior wetland loss has resulted in large expanses of unbroken open 

water. The Grand Liard Ridge is the most prominent remaining ridge, and separates 

the open bays of the Bastian Bay and Grand Liard mapping units. Land loss 

projections suggest that the remaining bayou bank wetlands will be completely 

converted to open water by 2050. The proposed project would re-establish some 

ridge and marsh function in the Bayou Grand Liard vicinity. The Coast 2050 1983 to 

1990 loss rate for the Grand Liard mapping unit is 1.7% annually and its rate of 

subsidence is 2.1 to 3.5 feet per century. 



299

2) Project Title: Beneficial Use of Dredged Material Program 




P.J. Hahn 



Phone: (504) 297-5629 

Fax: (504) 274-2463 






Description and Location of Project: The Beneficial Use of Dredged Material 

Program seeks to enhance existing dredging practices on the Mississippi River and its 

Passes by partnering with the USACE to beneficially use material to restore marshes 

in Plaquemines Parish. The program will pay the incremental cost above the Federal 

standard (if necessary) to beneficially place sediment dredged by the USACE to 

maintain navigation channels in coastal Louisiana. It is estimated that the proposed 

beneficial use will restore approximately 200 acres of marsh in shall open water. 


Project Justification: Addressing the rapid ongoing conversion of Louisiana coastal 

wetlands to open water requires a variety of restoration methods. The need to 

implement those methods involving greater use of external sediment sources has been 

increasing recognized as and advocated by the scientific community. The USACE 

annually dredges millions of cubic yards of sediment from navigation channels in 

Louisiana. This project will take increased advantage of opportunities to use that 

sediment for ecosystem restoration in Plaquemines Parish. Plaquemines Parish will 

coordinate with the USACE, LDNR, various port entities, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife 

Service, the National Marine Fisheries Service, the Louisiana Department of Wildlife 

and Fisheries, and others to facilitate implementation of collaboratively developed 

marsh restoration plans using material dredged from various federally maintained 

waterways. The increased use of those sediments for marsh creation is a key strategy 

for sustaining Plaquemines Parish. During the engineering and design phase of this 

program, the project sites and borrow areas will be located, designed and permitted. 



300

3) Project Title: Grand Bayou Ridge Restoration 




P.J. Hahn 



Phone: (504) 297-5629 

Fax: (504) 274-2463 






Description and Location of Project: The project proposed to create and nourish 

marsh and associated edge habitat for aquatic species through pipeline sediment 

delivery and restoring the Grand Bayou Ridge to reduce wave and tidal setup and 

provide fallout habitat for neotropical migrant birds. Specific goals include creating 

480 acres of saline marsh and constructing approximately 20,000 linear feet or 

approximately 15 acres of maritime ridge habitat. The project area is located in 

Plaquemines Parish along Grand Bayou starting at the north approximately with 

Empire, Louisiana extending to the south to approximately Bay de Suite (project 

center point approximately 29º 22’ 36”N, 89º 40’ 1”W). 


Project Justification: This area has experienced tremendous wetland loss due to a 

variety of forces including subsidence, salt water intrusion, a lack of sediment supply 

and oil and gas activities. Southwest Plaquemines parish was historically structured 

by a series of north-south bayous and associated ridges. Currently, the majority of 

these bayou ridges have eroded and subsided. Ridge loss combined with interior 

wetland loss has resulted in large expanses of unbroken open water. The upper reach 

of Grand Bayou is still a prominent ridge, but the ridge and the fringing marsh are 

open water just south of Empire and remains so for approximately two miles. Land 

loss projections suggest that the remaining bayou bank wetlands will be completely 

converted to open water by 2050. The proposed project would re-establish some 

ridge and marsh function in the Grand Bayou vicinity. The Coast 2050 1983 to 1990 

loss rate for the adjacent Grand Liard mapping unit is 1.7% annually and its rate of 

subsidence is 2.1 to 3.5 feet per century. 



301




1) Project Title: St. Charles Parish Wetlands Education Center 



Earl Matherne 



P.O. Box 302 


Phone: (985) 783-5060 

Fax: (985) 783-6447 






Description and Location of Project: The project entails the construction of the first 

phase of the 20,000-square-foot St. Charles Parish Wetland Education center. This first 

phase will provide the basis for a three-phase education center. This center will ultimately 

include a main meeting room that will accommodate 200 students, two classrooms that will 

accommodate 40-60 students each, two laboratories that will accommodate 40 students 

each, an administrative office, indoor and outdoor storage, convenience space 

(restroom, kitchen) and an aggregate parking area. The project is to be located on the 

shoreline of Lake Pontchartrain near the Bonnet Carré Spillway in Norco, Louisiana. The 

site is owned by St. Charles Parish and is already used as an education area. The site 

includes a jetty and a nature trail. 


302

Project Justification: St. Charles Parish is located in both the Pontchartrain and 

Barataria Basins of Louisiana. The proposed site is centrally located and easily 

accessible to schoolchildren in St. Charles Parish and surrounding parishes. The site 

offers a diversity rarely seen in Louisiana, from freshwater to brackish water 

environments, open water environments, and marsh and forested wetlands, all on 28 

acres. While the site is heavily used by science teachers now, educating over 600 kids 

this year, the lack of permanent facilities limits its potential. There are approximately 

10,000 students enrolled in St. Charles Parish public schools, grades K-12 annually. It 

is estimated that between 2,800 and 3,000 students would use the center annually 

following construction of Phase I. Permanent facilities will provide safe, clean 

restrooms and shelter from the elements, specifically the heat. It will also allow 

scientific equipment to be readily accessible at the site and available to more teachers, 

and therefore more students. 




1) Project Title: Culvert Installation through Existing Berms and Board Roads 





P. O. Box 106 


Phone: (225) 562-2262 

Fax: (225) 562-2279 






303

Description and Location of Project: The St. James Parish Council will install 24 

inch plastic pipe through existing spoil banks and earthen berms to allow water 

exchange through these man-made barriers. Presently, throughout the west bank of 

St. James Parish, there are several old spoil banks that have impounded thousands of 

acres of swamps. The parish will open several of these obstructions to allow water 

flow both into and out of the areas. In several cases, landowners require access 

across these berms and roads and will not allow the parish to complete open cut 

channels. These areas have been identified, will be cut, and a 24 inch plastic pipe 

will be installed through these obstructions to reestablish natural water flow. The 

culvert installations will allow present ingress and egress into these areas to continue 

and enhance the water quality and nutrient exchange in the project area. St. James 

Parish proposes to install these culverts along the St. James Canal beginning at 

Latitude 29º54’36” - Longitude 90º43’48” and ending at Latitude 30º03’00” - 

Longitude 90º57’00”. It is estimated that approximately 100 sites would each need 

three sets of culverts to be installed along this 20 mile stretch of canal. 

St. James Parish has already hired an engineering consultant to develop and obtain a 

permit to dredge the West St. James Canal. The permit allows the parish to 

reestablish and maintain the existing drainage canal and deposit the dredged material 

on the existing spoil bank. Some of the property owners have objected to gapping the 

spoil bank because it would limit their access to the property. The installation of 

plastic pipes will allow the parish to reestablish some of the natural hydrology that is 

so vital to this wetland area. All landowners have expressed their willingness to 

allow the pipes to be installed, thus providing a means that is acceptable to all parties 

involved. The parish is prepared to use its own equipment and manpower to install 

the culverts, thereby reducing the total cost of the project. In this effort, St. James 

Parish will provide in-kind labor estimated at $15,000 toward the project. All other 

work will be provided under force account methods and will utilize FEMA rates for 

equipment and material. The parish estimates that all work completed under this 

proposed project will take approximately 100 days to complete and will be performed 

with minimal impact to existing wetland areas, since all work will be completed from 

inside the existing waterways. 


Project Justification: The goal of this project is to reduce the amount of time that 

water is impounded on these coastal forests due to the berms along the West St. 

James Canal which reduce drainage from the forest. In addition, access roads within 

the forests will be modified to allow drainage. Research has shown that the new 

biomass productivity in semipermanently flooded forests is lower when compared 

with forests with pulsing hydroperiods. It is estimated that implementation of this 

project will increase the net biomass productivity of the affected forested areas by 

50%. 

304

Since humans moved into the marsh and wetland areas, they have built levees and 

berms. In the last centuries, humans dug canals for navigation and to facilitate oil and 

gas exploration. Most of those canals were dug without regard for their impacts on 

the surrounding wetland areas. T he berms that were constructed along swamp and 

marshland areas prevent sediments from entering the impounded areas. Without 

sediment and fresh nutrients, subsidence can overtake wetland growth and lead to 

swamp deterioration. These berms have negatively impacted the hydrologic balance, 

which has led to conditions that kill wetland vegetation. As wetlands disappear, the 

wells, pipelines, and roads that are needed to explore, extract, and produce products 

that make the oil and natural gas industry possible will be exposed to open water 

conditions. These problems can lead to high replacement costs and increase the 

likelihood of spills or pipeline ruptures, which increases the potential damage to 

wetlands and wetland habitats. The key to restoring and protecting our wetland 

swamps and our ecosystem is to manage and use the natural forces. The goals of the 

Coast 2050 initiative were to create and sustain marsh and wetland areas by 

accumulating sediment an organic matter and maintain the exchange of energy and 

organisms. In the upper Barataria Basin, the lack of sediment in conjunction with 

subsidence and deteriorating wetlands has produced a coastal system that is 

collapsing. 

The gapping of earthen berms and installation of plastic culverts will allow water 

exchange with the wetland areas identified under this proposal. The West St. James 

Canal traverses St. James Parish from one end to the other and is approximately 20 

miles long. Earthen berms that were created when the canal was dug have caused 

impoundments that negatively affect over 100,000 acres. The installation of 24 inch 

culverts at approximately 100 different sites along this canal will provide an 

immediate, maintenance free solution to the sediment and water isolation problem. 

The parish has the necessary equipment and means to spearhead such a valuable and 

achievable project. The project benefits are easily identified and can be installed and 

maintained without any disruption of existing wetland areas while providing not only 

instantaneous results, but long-term benefits as well. 



305

2) Project Title: Mini-Siphon into St. James Canal at Baytree Site 





P. O. Box 106 


Phone: (225) 562-2262 

Fax: (225) 562-2279 






Description and Location of Project: The St. James Parish Council plans to team 

up with the State to build a 1,500 cfs mini-siphon over the Mississippi River levee at 

Baytree, Louisiana. The parish plans to construct a siphon and drainage canal on a 

63-acre tract of land from the Mississippi River to the St. James West Bank Canal. 

The siphon will dump fresh water into the depository canal to be built at the foot of 

the Mississippi River levee in Section 47 and continue through Section 49, located in 

T-11-S, R-16-E. The siphon, depository canal and spoil bank gapping will allow 

fresh water into approximately 2,200 acres of the Bayou Chevreuil forested wetland 

areas. It is projected that the fresh water will provide needed nutrients and sediments 

that will enhance wetland restoration and improve water quality, increase (or 

maintain) overstory closure to >50%, and herbaceous or scrub-shrub midstory cover 

to >33%, within 20 years in cypress-tupelo swamps in the project area. The exact 

location, size, configuration, and operational protocol as well as updated site specific 

biological goals of the Mini-Siphon into St. James Canal at Baytree project will be 

more accurately determined during the engineering and design phase of this project. 

The freshwater diversion will take advantage of natural topography and hydrologic 

features to re-establish input of basic resources and circulation. Part of this project is 

currently in the engineering and design phase of a tenth list CWPPRA project (Small 

Freshwater Diversion to the Northwestern Barataria Basin BA-34). That CWPPRA 

project is being managed in partnership between the Environmental Protection 

Agency and LDNR. 

306

The proposed project would consist of two 72 inch diameter steel pipes that will 

extend from the Mississippi River, over the levee, and empty into a discharge pond. 

From the discharge pond, a 400 square foot channel will extend approximately 13,500 

feet into the parish cross-cut canal, which empties into Bayou Chevreuil. The parish 

will use its own equipment and labor to clear the agriculture property and prepare 

land for digging of the depositary canal. Additionally, the parish will pay all costs 

associated with surveying and channel engineering design. The total cost of 

equipment and labor to clear the property is estimated at $45,000. 


Project Justification: The siphon project will re-establish the input of fresh water 

into the 7,000 acre Bayou Chevreuil and Lac Des Allemands areas, which are at the 

upper region of the Barataria Basin. Swamps in the upper Barataria Basin have been 

isolated from the Mississippi River for many years. The river was historically the 

primary source of water, sediments, and nutrients needed to sustain a healthy wetland 

area. The swamps are now dependent upon local rainfall and flooding to provide the 

nutrients and sediments they receive. Subsidence levels are moderate and because of 

the lack of sediment input and low swamp productivity, there is an accretion deficit, 

which results in the loss of wetlands and wetland habitats. The freshwater project 

will increase productivity and regeneration of cypress and tupelo swamps. It will 

suppress poor water quality and low dissolved oxygen levels and allow nutrient 

loading from the Mississippi River to be deposited in areas needed in the northern end 

of the Basin. This will also reduce the excessive nutrient loading from the 

Mississippi River into the Gulf of Mexico. Additionally, the loss of continual fresh 

water into Lac Des Allemands has resulted in increased salinity levels, which 

increases the stress on both freshwater vegetation and the dominant species of bald 

cypress. The freshwater diversion will not only improve water quality in the lakes 

but will directly affect approximately 4,000 acres of cypress and tupelo swamp. 



4) Project Title: West Bank Wetlands Conservation and Protection (Phase III) 





P. O. Box 106 


(225) 562-2262 fax (225) 562-2279 


307






purchase several large tracts of existing wetlands to prohibit their destruction and aid 

in the protection of our parish’s coastal wetland areas. T his project will purchase 

approximately 385 acres of existing wetlands from the Bayou Chevreuil Land Co., 

LLC. The areas the parish would like to purchase and protect are wetlands that adjoin 

a major State highway linking the communities of South Vacherie in St. James Parish 

to Chackbay in Lafourche Parish. The purchase of these tracts will eliminate any 

future development along this 1.8-mile stretch of LA Highway 20. 


cypress swamp in St. James Parish. It is the intention of the St. James Parish Council 

to create a Louisiana Conservation Servitude on the entire 385 acres. The Bayou 

Chevreuil Land Co., LLC is the legal owner of the proposed land to be purchased. 

There are no liens, encumbrances, easements, or restrictions on the property proposed 

under this project. 


the Baptist Parishes, La.” (1973) shows the soil types to be Barbary association (Ba), 

Barbary-Fausse association (BB), Commerce silt loam (Cm), Commerce silty clay 

loam (Cn), Convent complex (Cr), and Sharkey association, frequently flooded (Sm). 

Elevations on the site range from 0.5 to 5.0 feet above NGVD for mean sea level. The 

majority of the site remains saturated or inundated for most of the year. 






green ash. 

The proposed project is located in St. James Parish, in Sections 33 and 28, Township- 

13-South, and Range-17-East, South Vacherie, Louisiana. St. James Parish will use 

its own equipment and labor to cut slits in the existing spoil banks. The existing spoil 

banks will be breached to allow water to move in and out of the swamp areas. 

Natural and man-made ditches that are presently full of sediment will be dredged to 

restore natural drainage through the impounded swamps. It is estimated that it will 

take approximately 25 days to complete the opening and creation of slits in the 

existing spoil banks. The cost to St. James Parish associated with the project includes 

equipment, $22,500, and labor, $8,000. Therefore, the parish is prepared to match the 

CIAP monies with in-kind contributions of $30,500. 

308


Project Justification: Approximately 385 acres of cypress swamp will be preserved 

once purchased from this land owner. Parish ownership of the property is vital in 

order to prevent commercial and residential development along this existing State 

highway. The benefits from purchasing this property include hurricane protection, 

flood control, control of wetland impacts due to development, and protection of a 

critical ecological system. The program provides both near-term and long-term 

benefits and, at a cost of less than $1,600 per acre, is considered highly cost effective 

in addressing the protection of coastal and wetland areas. This project addresses the 

goal of the LCA Ecosystem Restoration Plan towards the reversing of the current 

trend of degradation of the coastal ecosystem and destruction of critical wetland 

habitats. The purchase of the property coupled with the reestablishment of natural 

hydraulic water flow through the removal of existing continuous spoil banks will 

enhance the entire site. This plan will reintroduce natural flood flows along the 

drainage canals that are now cut off from needed nutrients and sediments. The 

project not only provides multiple benefits for wetland preservation and 

enhancement, but also allows for flood protection by providing a large natural water 

reservoir and hurricane protection from wind and storm surge. 



4) Project Title: West Bank Wetlands Conservation and Protection (Phase IV) 





P. O. Box 106 


Phone: (225) 562-2262 

Fax: (225) 562-2279 






309

Description and Location of Project: The St. James Parish Council will purchase 

several large tracts of existing wetlands to prohibit their destruction and aid in the 

protection of our parish’s coastal wetland areas. This project will purchase 

approximately 194 acres of existing wetlands from the Bayou Chevreuil Land Co., 

LLC. The parish will purchase and protect wetland areas that are adjacent to a major 

State highway that links the communities of South Vacherie in St. James Parish to 

Chackbay in Lafourche Parish. The purchase of these tracts will protect this 

important highway from erosion and prevent any future destruction and development 

in this cypress swamp area. 








the Baptist Parishes, La.” (1973) show the soil types to be Barbary association (Ba); 

Barbary-Fausse association (BB); Commerce silt loam (Cm); Commerce silty clay 

loam (Cn); Convent complex (Cr); and Sharkey association, frequently flooded (Sm). 

Elevations on the site range from 0.5 to 4.0 feet above NGVD for mean sea level. 

The majority of the site remains saturated or inundated for most of the year. 




on the spoil banks of the highway borrow canal. These include sweetgum, water oak, 

overcup oak, Nuttall oak, willow oak, bitter pecan, and green ash. 

The proposed project is located in St. James Parish, in Sections 33 and 35, Township- 

13-South, and Range-17-East, South Vacherie, La. The parish will use its own 

equipment and labor to cut slits in the existing spoil banks. The existing spoil banks 

will be breached to allow water to move in and out of the swamp land areas. Natural 

and man-made ditches that are presently full of sediment will be dredged to restore 

natural drainage through the impounded swamps. It is estimated that to complete the 

opening and creation of slits in the existing spoil banks would take approximately 10 

days. The parish cost associated with the project includes equipment ($13,000). 


Project Justification: Approximately 194 acres of cypress swamp and will be 

preserved once purchased from this land owner. Parish ownership of the property is 

vital in order to prevent commercial and residential development along this existing 

State highway and protect the highway from erosion and water damage if the trees 

were cut for logging. The benefits from purchasing this property include hurricane 

310

protection, flood control, control of wetland impacts due to development, and 

protection of a critical ecological system. The program provides both near-term and 

long-term benefits and, at a cost of approximately $1,800 per acre, is considered 

highly cost effective in addressing the protection of coastal and wetland areas. This 

project addresses the goal of the Louisiana Coastal Area (LCA) Ecosystem 

Restoration Plan towards the reversing of the current trend of degradation of the 

coastal ecosystem and destruction of critical wetland habitats. The purchase of the 

property coupled with the re-establishment of natural hydraulic water flow through 

the removal of existing continuous spoil banks will enhance the entire site. This plan 

will reintroduce natural flood flows along the drainage canals that are now cut off 

from needed nutrients and sediments. The project not only provides multiple benefits 

for wetland preservation and enhancement, but also allows for flood protection by 

providing a large natural water reservoir and hurricane protection from wind and 

storm surge. 



5) Project Title: West Bank Wetland Conservation and Protection, Phase II 





P. O. Box 106 


Phone: (225) 562-2262 

Fax: (225) 562-2279 







purchase several large tracts of existing wetlands to prohibit the destruction of, and 

aid in the protection of, the parish’s coastal wetland areas. This project proposes to 

purchase approximately 235 acres of existing wetlands from the Bayou Chevreuil 

Land Co., LLC. The areas the parish would like to purchase and protect adjoin a 

major State highway that links the communities of South Vacherie in St. James Parish 

to Chackbay in Lafourche Parish. The purchase of these tracts will eliminate any 

future development along this 1.8-mile stretch of LA Highway 20. Land acquired in 

fee title through this project will be conserved in perpetuity. 

311







The soil survey of the site as depicted in the “Soil Survey of St. James and St. 

John the Baptist Parishes, La.” (1973) show the soil types to be Barbary association 

(Ba), Barbary-Fausse association (BB), Commerce silt loam (Cm), Commerce silty 

clay loam (Cn), Convent complex (Cr), and Sharkey association, frequently flooded 

(Sm). Elevations on the site range from 0.5 to 5.0 feet above NGVD for mean sea 

level. The majority of the site remains saturated or inundated for most of the year. 






green ash. 

The proposed project is located in St. James Parish, in Sections 34 and 27, 

Township-13-South, and Range-17-East, South Vacherie, Louisiana. St. James 

Parish will use its own equipment and labor to cut slits in the existing spoil banks. 

These spoil banks will be breached to allow water to move in and out of the swamp 

areas. Natural and man-made ditches that are presently full of sediment will be 

dredged to restore natural drainage through the impounded swamps. It will take 

approximately 30 days to complete the opening and creation of slits in the existing 

spoil banks. The parish cost associated with the project includes equipment, $29,000, 

and labor, $10,100. Therefore, St. James Parish is prepared to match the CIAP monies 

with in-kind contributions of $39,100. 


312

Project Justification: Approximately 235 acres of cypress swamp will be preserved 

once purchased from this landowner. Purchase of the property is vital if the parish is 

to prevent commercial and residential development along this existing State highway. 

The benefits from purchasing this property include hurricane protection, flood 

control, control of wetland impacts due to development, and protection of a critical 

ecological system. The program provides both near-term and long-term benefits and, 

at a cost of less than $1,600 per acre, is considered highly cost effective in addressing 

the protection of coastal and wetland areas. This project addresses the goal of the 

Louisiana Coastal Area (LCA) Ecosystem Restoration Plan towards reversing the 

trend of degradation of the coastal ecosystem and destruction of critical wetland 

habitats. The purchase of the property coupled with the reestablishment of natural 

hydraulic water flow through the removal of existing continuous spoil banks will 

enhance the entire site. This plan will reintroduce natural flood flows along the 

drainage canals that are now cut off from needed nutrients and sediments. The 

project not only provides multiple benefits for wetland preservation and 

enhancement, but also allows for flood protection by providing a large natural water 

reservoir and hurricane protection from wind and storm surge. 




1) Project Title: Manchac Shoreline Protection 







Phone: (985) 651-5565 

Fax: (985) 653-9808 






313

Description and Location of Project: The proposed project will consist of capping 

21,500 linear feet of USACE existing breakwaters and filling in the gaps to create a 

continuous structure. The project is located in St. John the Baptist Parish near the 

town of Manchac, near the Manchac Wildlife Management area and Manchac Pass. 


Project Justification: The breakwaters were built in 1995 by the USACE. Their 

length was approximately 25,400 linear feet. Since its construction, the breakwaters 

have settled approximately 2.5 feet and now barely protrude above the water. The 

project will partner costs with approximately $1,000,000 from a NAWCA Grant. 

There is potential that this project could be built in conjunction with the adjacent 

proposed Tangipahoa Parish CIAP Lake Pontchartrain Shoreline Protection project. 




1) Project Title: Bayou Sorrel Hydrologic Restoration 


Guy Cormier 


P.O. Box 9 


Phone: (337) 394-2200 

Fax: (337) 394-5580 






Description and Location of Project: There are six main waterways that deliver 

water and sediment from the Atchafalaya River into the eastern portion of the 

Atchafalaya River Basin. Sediment traps are proposed for two of those six water 

inputs: Bayou Sorrel (30º 7’ 1” N, 91º 28’ 26” W) and Coon Trap (30º 5’ 29” N, 91º 

28’ 20” W). The size and location of each feature are similar to those proposed by 

the USACE in the 1982 Feasibility Study for Atchafalaya Basin environmental 

management. Additional on-site dissolved oxygen data and related analysis will be 

required during the engineering and design phase of this project to accurately depict t 

314

aseline site conditions in the project area and to allow evaluation of the effectiveness 

of the project features once they are installed. This data collection and analysis will 

lead to the refinement of measurable goals. 

Through extrapolation of information from other areas of the Atchafalaya Basin that 

have been monitored extensively, it would be reasonable to expect this project to 

achieve, on average, up to 50% reduction in the degree of hypoxia and sediment 

accretion for the project area. Similarly, and of equal importance, the duration of 

hypoxia should also be reduced on a comparable scale. Many other indirect 

downstream benefits would also be expected, but cannot be adequately quantified 

without more-specific project plans. 

In addition to the anticipated improvements to water quality, there are expected 

benefits to fish, crawfish, and wildlife habitat; other biota; and forest health; however, 

more information is needed to quantify and interpret those changes. It is important to 

note that this preliminary assessment focuses on that portion of the study area 

expected to function as sustainable aquatic habitat. 


Project Justification: In general, aquatic habitat lost to sediment accretion is typical 

in a developing delta floodplain. The fact that the Atchafalaya Basin is a swamp also 

means that a certain degree of poor water quality (low dissolved oxygen – hypoxia) is 

to be expected in the process of assimilating organic material that is a product of 

floodplain formation. However, ecosystem function is impaired by undesirable 

hydrologic changes, such as when water is impounded in the floodplain as drainage 

routes are blocked by sediment deposition. Hypoxia in these areas has been shown to 

be widespread at times, especially if high water levels occur in the warmer months of 

late summer. The normal delta-building process was interrupted by flood control 

levees, and petrochemical access, production, and transport. However, the most 

recent and manageable cause of water impoundment and insufficient water circulation 

is sediment accretion. Water flow patterns have changed and a much smaller 

percentage of the total water volume that flows down the Atchafalaya River now 

flows over floodplain habitat. This represents a dramatic change from flow patterns 

during the period when the swamp was formed. It is the sediment that ultimately 

determines the physical nature of the habitat and this in turn shapes the ecology of the 

Atchafalaya Basin Floodway System (ABFS). As a result, it is the sediment that must 

be managed in order to effect change in the ecology. 

This project proposes a sediment trap at the mouth of each of the two sources of water 

to the eastern side of the ABFS. The USACE has already specified the size and 

location of the sediment feature on Bayou Sorrel in the Main Report and the 

Environmental Impact Statement of the 1982 Feasibility Study that, in part, outlined 

the USACE plans for retaining sediment from the area in question. 

315

There are few tools available for resource managers to use in limiting sediment 

accretion that fills critical open water habitat. The same is true for combating 

hypoxia that further impairs that same habitat. The life source of the floodplain is 

Atchafalaya River water and the resources that it provides, one of which is a rich 

supply of dissolved oxygen. Delivering the water to the aquatic environment is the 

first step, but adequately circulating it throughout the swamp is equally important. 

Improving the very limited interior water circulation can only be accomplished by 

reconnecting isolated and segmented floodplain areas through the removal of flow 

barriers. Therefore, the reduction of sediment is a critical component of that 

management strategy that seeks not to jeopardize aquatic or forested habitats that are 

targets for conservation. The concept of front-line sediment reduction makes internal 

circulation improvements less risky, and it reduces the likelihood that sediment 

trapped at the site of circulation projects will have to be placed on habitat that is 

intended for conservation. 



2) Project Title: Bayou Pigeon Hydrologic Restoration 


Guy Cormier 




(337) 394-2200 fax (337) 394-5580 


Total CIAP funds Proposed: $2,700,000.00 




Description and Location of Project: Bayou Pigeon is located in the northeastern 

portion of Iberia Parish and is within the Atchafalaya Basin Floodway System. That 

bayou provides a hydrologic connection between the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway 

(GIWW), which provides flow from the Atchafalaya River, and the adjacent 

downstream bayous, lakes, and wetlands. Because sedimentation has severely 

reduced water flows down Pigeon Bayou, this project would dredge that bayou to 

restore channel dimensions that have been reduced by sedimentation. The proposed 

project will consist of acquiring easements for the disposal of dredged material on the 

adjacent bayou banks. The overall length of dredging will be determined by surveys 

but is estimated to be approximately 17,420 linear feet (approximate center of 

316

dredging 30º 3’ 32” N, 91º 20’ 12” W). Approximate elevation of the channel bottom 

and channel width will be determined by surveys and additional planning but would 

likely be -10 feet National Geodetic Vertical Datum and between 40 and 60 feet, 

respectively. Dredged material could be placed within canal banks to reduce impacts 

to adjacent forested areas. Spoil disposal will occur on alternating banks to minimize 

impacts to overbank flows. Shoaled entrances to adjacent well location canals along 

the bayou could be opened to further restore water flows, but are not included as 

project features at this time. Additional on-site dissolved oxygen data and related 

analysis will be required during the engineering and design phase of this project to 

accurately depict the baseline site conditions in the project area and to allow 

evaluation of the effectiveness of the implementation of project features. This data 

collection and analysis will lead to the refinement of measurable project goals. 

Through extrapolation of information from other areas of the Atchafalaya Basin that 

have been monitored extensively, it would be reasonable to expect this project to 

achieve, on average, up to 50% reduction in the degree of hypoxia and sediment 

accretion for the project area. Similarly, and of equal importance, the duration of 

hypoxia should also be reduced on a comparable scale. Many other indirect 

downstream benefits would also be expected, but cannot be adequately quantified 

without more specific project plans. 

In addition to the anticipated improvements to water quality, there are expected 

benefits to fish, crawfish, and wildlife habitat; other biota; and forest health; however, 

more information is needed to quantify and interpret those changes. It is important to 

note that this preliminary assessment focuses on that portion of the study area 

expected to function as sustainable aquatic habitat. 


Project Justification: Bayou Pigeon is a main source of fresh water for swamps, 

bayous, and lakes surrounding and connected to that waterway. Sedimentation has 

reduced the flow of water through this bayou and into the adjacent areas. Reduced 

water flows are associated with anoxic conditions, which can lead to decreased 

fishery production and decreased vigor of cypress swamps. Restoration of water 

flows will improve water quality and the productivity of the adjacent swamps. 



317

3) Project Title: Lake Henderson Acquisition 



Guy Cormier 




(337) 394-2200 fax (337) 394-5580 





Infrastructure Funds Proposed: $ 0 

Description and Location of Project: St. Martin Parish plans to increase the 

number of publicly owned/protected acres in the Atchafalaya Basin by purchasing the 

4,000-acre Henderson Lake. The lake is a shallow picturesque water body located 

within the Atchafalaya Basin in south central Louisiana. The lake is one of the 

premier fishing lakes in the Atchafalaya Basin portion of the Atchafalaya Basin 

Floodway System (ABFS). The lake is used intensively for recreational and 

commercial purposes. Interstate 10 crosses Henderson Lake and provides easy access 

to many local swamp tours in the area. 

St. Martin Parish proposes to purchase Henderson Lake from the owner, the St. 

Martin Land Company, to conserve, restore, and protect the functions and values of 

the Lake Henderson Basin while improving water quality and wildlife and fisheries 

habitat in the region. Land acquired in fee title through this project will be conserved 

in perpetuity. 


Project Justification: Louisiana’s Atchafalaya Basin is the nation’s largest river 

swamp, containing nationally significant expanses of bottomland hardwoods, 

swamplands, bayous, and back-water lakes. Fish and wildlife values are very high, 

with some reporting a fecundity three-and-one-half times that of the Everglades. A 

large percentage of the migratory bird species in the North American flyway use the 

area each year. That Atchafalaya Basin is an Everglades-scale natural resource, and it 

deserves the same level of national concern for its preservation. Yet much of the 

basin is unprotected through State or national park or refuge status–the Atchafalaya 

National Wildlife Refuge only comprises about 15,000 acres. 

318

This project will conserve, restore, and protect the functions and values of the Lake 

Henderson region by improving water quality in the area and restoring and preserving 

precious fish and wildlife habitat. Purchasing this property will allow St. Martin 

Parish to conserve this valuable natural resource for the benefit of the environment 

and the recreational use of the people of the State of Louisiana and the nation. 

Without conservation and preservation, many areas of the Atchafalaya face these 

threats: 

Logging of the remaining cypress and the bottomland hardwoods will continue. 

Lack of public access through private holdings restricts public use and support for 

conservation. 

Dredging has changed natural hydraulics, accelerated siltation, and created 

oxygen-deprived dead zones. 

Increased siltation has converted wetlands to dry land, and development pressures 

south of I-10 are increasing. 

At least one lake in the basin is polluted with mercury, and a fish advisory has 

been issued. 



4) Project Title: Lake Henderson Exotic-Invasive Species Control 



Guy Cormier 




(337) 394-2200 fax (337) 394-5580 






319

Description and Location of Project: The 4,000-acre Henderson Lake Exotic- 

Invasive Species Control Project will focus on two primary goals: identifying 

locations/areas of invasive aquatic plant concentration, and reducing the area affected 

by those concentrations by at least 75%. Control will be achieved through the 

application of herbicide as well as mechanical removal of water hyacinth at water 

management structures. It is currently estimated that the duration of this project will 

be two years in which treatments will occur once each year. Henderson Lake is a 

shallow picturesque water body located within the Atchafalaya Basin in south central 

Louisiana. The lake is bisected by Interstate Highway 10 and is bordered by the 

Atchafalaya River on the East and by the West Atchafalaya Basin Protection Levee 

on the west and south. 


Project Justification: Henderson Lake is one of the premier fishing lakes in the 

Atchafalaya Basin Floodway System. The lake is used intensively for recreational 

and commercial purposes and a major swamp tour industry has developed there. 

Hydrilla and water hyacinth, two of Louisiana’s most invasive aquatic plants, have 

choked the waterways of the lake, causing major water quality and access problems. 

This has led to limited boat traffic and reduced fishing areas in the lake. Hydrilla 

completely infested the lake over the past decade, causing decreased use and 

economic hardship for service businesses associated with the lake. Attempts to 

control hydrilla with seasonal drawdowns were not successful. These drawdowns 

essentially drained the lake, causing tremendous economic loss for the swamp tour 

industry and other businesses centered there. The objective of this project is to 

reduce the threat of exotic invasive species in Henderson Lake. 





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1) Project Title: Fritchie Marsh Creation 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: 

St. Tammany Parish Government 

P.O. Box 628 

Covington, LA 70434 

(985) 898-2552 


Greg Gordon 




Phone: (985) 898-2535 

Fax: (985) 898-2523 






Description and Location of Project: The project focuses on the Pontchartrain 

Basin, St. Tammany Parish. The project area is located in the Fritchie Marsh, 

generally southeast of the city of Slidell. The marsh is bounded by Highway 90 to the 

east, Highway 433 to the west and south, and the natural high lands to the north. The 

project boundaries will be the same as PO-06 Fritchie Marsh Project. The project 

goal is to create approximately 200 to 300 acres of intermediate marsh via hydraulic 

dredging and placement of ¾ million cubic yards of material. 

The likely borrow area locations are Salt Bayou and the West Pearl River. 

Containment will be semi-confined (bayou banks are still largely intact). Marsh 

vegetation is expected to emerge naturally upon settlement. Approximately 3 miles 

of Salt Bayou needs to be dredged to remove sediment and grass deposited in its 

channel by Hurricane Katrina. In addition to providing sediment for this marsh 

creation project, dredging will also result in the reestablishment of freshwater flow 

patterns from Salt Bayou to the West Pearl River. 

There are no known State issued oyster leases in the immediate project area. The 

project is supported by the parish. The project is partially located on the Big Branch 

Marsh National Wildlife Refuge and the owner is the Department of the Interior, 

USFWS. That agency has expressed support for the project. 

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Project Justification: This area is located along the north shore of Lake 

Pontchartrain and contributes to the integrity of the Lake Pontchartrain/Lake Borgne 

system. Over 3,600 acres of marsh were lost on the north shore in the past 50 years, 

and another 15% is expected to be lost over the next 50 years. This area was also in 

the direct path of Hurricane Katrina, which removed approximately 1,200 to 1,500 

acres of marsh and wildlife habitat from this area. In order to minimize the adverse 

habitat and water quality impacts from Hurricane Katrina, it is imperative that marsh 

restoration occur as quickly as possible. St. Tammany Parish Government estimates 

that it lost between 1,200 and 1,500 acres of intermediate marsh as a result of 

Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Salt Bayou, dredged as a component of PO-06, was 

almost entirely filled with marsh grass and sediment dislodged by the storm. 



2) Project Title: Fritchie Marsh Stormwater Diversion Pilot Project 



Greg Gordon 




Phone: (985) 898-2535 

Fax: (985) 898-2523 






Description and Location of Project: The project is located in the Pontchartrain 

Basin, St. Tammany Parish. The project area is located in the Fritchie Marsh, 

generally southeast of the city of Slidell. The marsh is bounded by U. S. Highway 90 

to the east, LA Highway 433 to the west and south, and the natural high lands to the 

north. The objective of this project is to verify the viability of discharging additional 

stormwater to the marsh as a means of restoration, develop and evaluate alternatives 

to introduce additional stormwater in the marsh while maintaining or improving 

upstream drainage performance, and to select the appropriate alternative to design and 

construct a stormwater diversion/wetland restoration project. 

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The initial phase of the project will consist of determining methods of routing 

additional stormwater to Fritchie Marsh using hydrologic and hydraulic analysis, 

performing a stormwater water quality analysis, and determining Fritchie marsh’s 

ability to assimilate additional stormwater discharge and also to determine the 

benefits of this assimilation. Once it is determined that there is a benefit to the marsh 

from additional stormwater inputs, an evaluation will be performed to determine the 

most cost effective methods to introduce additional stormwater to the marsh. Other 

potential alternatives include enhancements to or dredging of other inputs into the 

marsh such as Salt Bayou and Bloom Bayou, or perhaps altering the discharge 

location of the W-14 canal. The existing weir structure could also be evaluated and 

optimized, and if necessary a better means of distributing stormwater through the 

marsh developed. This project will compliment benefits provided by the previous 

LDNR Fritchie Marsh restoration project and a proposed project to discharged treated 

wastewater effluent to the Fritchie Marsh as an additional means of wetland 

restoration. 

In the first year of the project, a stormwater wetland restoration evaluation will be 

performed including any necessary hydraulic and hydrologic modeling, and 

conceptual engineering design. The stormwater wetland evaluation will be performed 

in conjunction with the wastewater to wetland Use Attainability Analysis (UAA), 

which is being performed to evaluate the ability of Fritchie Marsh to assimilate a 

treated wastewater effluent discharge. The wastewater to wetlands UAA is already 

funded by the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency through the Lake Pontchartrain 

Basin Foundation as part of the St. Tammany Parish Wastewater Consolidation 

Program. 

In conjunction with the wastewater to wetlands UAA, a hydrologic and hydraulic 

analysis of the Fritchie Marsh basin will be performed to determine the quantity of 

stormwater available to divert to the marsh and in turn to determine and evaluate 

alternatives for routing of stormwater to the marsh. The hydraulic and hydrologic 

analysis will also include a stormwater water quality analysis. In general, this portion 

of the work will consist of the following activities: data collection and evaluation, 

define Fritchie Marsh basin boundaries, setup hydrologic and hydraulic model, run 

design storm simulations, run water quality simulations, develop alternatives, and 

evaluate alternatives. 

Once an alternative to provide additional stormwater to the Fritchie Marsh is selected, 

the engineering and design phase of the project will ensue, and will be followed by 

construction of the restoration project. 


Project Justification: The proposed project is justifiable because the project would 

contribute to the restoration of a deteriorating coastal ecosystem which has suffered 

for years due to lack of freshwater and sediment input, and from saltwater intrusion. 

The addition of stormwater to the deteriorated wetlands would improve the health of 

the vegetation by providing additional nutrients and sediment that the stormwater 

carrier into the wetlands. 

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The project would serve to strengthen storm surge protection for the City of Slidell 

and surrounding areas as coastal wetlands diminish storm surge by decreasing winds 

and wave action. Deteriorated wetlands and open water allow the surge to move 

towards developed land unimpeded. 

This area is located along the north shore and contributes to the integrity of the Lake 

Pontchartrain/Lake Borgne system. Over 3,600 acres of marsh were lost on the north 

shore in the past 50 years, and another 15% is expected to be lost over the next 50 

years. In order to address the adverse habitat and water quality impacts of Hurricane 

Katrina, it is imperative that marsh restoration occur as soon as possible. St. 

Tammany Parish estimates a loss of 1,200 to 1,500 acres of intermediate marsh as a 

result of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Salt Bayou, dredged as a component of PO-06, 

was almost entirely filled with marsh grass and sediment dislodged by the storm. 



3) Project Title: Guste Island Aquatic Ecosystem Restoration 



Greg Gordon 




(985) 898-2535 (phone) 

(985) 898-2523 (fax) 






Description and Location of Project: The project consists of the acquisition of the 

352 acre tract of marshland on which the Guste Island Utility Company’s operations 

currently reside and into which they discharge treated wastewater (the approximate 

center of the project is at latitude 30º 24’ 56” N and longitude 90º 13’ 6” W). The 

approximate center of the project area is. The Guste Island Utility Company utilizes a 

unique biological wastewater treatment system. The process of wetland assimilation 

involves dispersing nitrogen enriched treated sewer effluent into marshland. The 

beneficial result is increased growth of grass, trees and other plants providing refuge 

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to waterfowl and other animals. Based on research of previous wetland assimilation 

projects in Louisiana, we would anticipate an increase in annual plant productivity of 

approximately 20% and a 25% increase in annual sediment accretion due to 


performance projections would be refined during the engineering and design phase of 

this project. The system also impedes saltwater intrusion and inhibits coastal erosion. 


Project Justification: The Aquatic Restoration Project at Guste Island is a unique 

project that will allow St. Tammany Parish to accomplish a number of goals. 

Currently the Guste Island Utility Company owns the 352 acre parcel that contains a 

60 acre oxidation pond with a wastewater treatment capacity of 60,000 gallons per 

day. The Guste Island Utility Company utilizes a wetland assimilation process that 

involves disbursing nitrogen enriched treated sewer effluent back into the marshland 

that is part of the 352 acre parcel. If the parcel is acquired, St. Tammany Parish 

would, at its own expense, make improvements to the existing oxidation pond (as 

well as construct a similar-sized pond next to it in the future) so as to accept 

wastewater flows from the surrounding developments, which use their own separate 

wastewater treatment plants. These actions will increase the flow of enriched treated 

sewer effluent to the tract’s marshland. Further, the parish will execute agreements 

with the Guste Island Utility Company, which owns the surrounding 3,034 acres of 

marshland, so as to allow for the enriched effluent to flow over that marshland and 

provide the same aforementioned benefits. 



4) Project Title: West St. Tammany Parish Coastal Wetland Habitat Acquisition 



Greg Gordon 




Phone: (985) 898-2535 

Fax: (985) 898-2523 


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Description and Location of Project: 

Project Location: The Lake Pontchartrain shoreline in its natural state is a finite 

resource in St. Tammany Parish. Only about 8.5 miles of forested shoreline remain in 

this parish, excluding Fontainebleau State Park. That resource is likely to be placed 

under enormous development pressure in the near future and it should be the goal of 

St. Tammany Parish to preserve what is left of the cypress-lined shoreline, and 

adjacent fresh marshes, for their historical value as well as their irreplaceable habitat, 

water quality, and otherwise natural value. A significant portion of the cypress 

swamps of the Pontchartrain/Maurepas Basin has been logged, drained, or cleared for 

development or agriculture. Southwestern St. Tammany Parish is no exception. 

However, the shoreline of Lake Pontchartrain remains in relatively good ecological 

health. As the shoreline slowly migrates backwards, older trees fall into the lake, 

providing shelter for biota and natural breakwaters for energy directed at the 

shoreline. This creates a strip several hundred yards wide that forms the transition 

between inshore wetland habitat and the lake’s deeper water habitat. Despite the 

natural rearward movement of the shoreline, however, this fringe habitat still 

maintains its integrity and productivity. 

In St. Tammany Parish, this particular habitat type exists only between the parish’s 

western boundary and the Lewisburg area. The lake shore east of this has been 

converted to sterile bulkheads, except for the few hundred feet of Green Fund 

property in Mandeville. Beginning at the shoreline east of Mandeville is a fringe 

intermediate marsh habitat interspersed with residential bulkheads or other artificial 

shoreline structures, all the way to the Mississippi border. The residential 

development industry tends to mistakenly view property such as this as appropriate 

for upscale development because of its proximity to water. However, the continued 

existence of this area in its natural state is crucial to both the water quality of Lake 

Pontchartrain and to the general safety of the populations immediately upland. This 

natural barrier is the first line of defense that low-lying areas have against surges 

brought on by tropical storms and hurricanes. Submerged aquatic vegetation that is 

crucial as shelter and nursery areas for aquatic species (many of them commercially 

important) is experiencing a comeback since the abatement of shell dredging has 

decreased turbidity in the lake, but the dredging and bulkhead work required for 

residential development would reverse this trend. 

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Coast 2050, the State’s blueprint for the next half century of coastal resource 

management, has established the preservation of the Lake Pontchartrain shoreline 

integrity as both a “coastwide” as well as a “regional” strategy. This project fits 

squarely within that intent. It should be noted that the Coast 2050 strategy does not 

state only that the location of the shoreline should be maintained, but that its 

ecological integrity is essential as well. To preserve the shoreline, acquisition must 

play a part. 

Project Description: The project will depend on St. Tammany Parish contracting with 

a consultant to identify various funding sources and mechanisms for acquiring and 

setting aside natural Lake Pontchartrain shoreline habitat and adjacent fresh marsh 

centered around Madisonville, specifically between the westernmost parish line and 

Lewisburg. The target acquisition area consists of between 2,500 and 3,000 acres of 

shoreline habitat and approximately 1,000 and 1,500 acres of freshwater marsh. That 

firm will then aggressively coordinate the utilization of those sources and 

mechanisms to accomplish just that. It is the intent of St. Tammany Parish to acquire 

and otherwise preserve the integrity of the Lake Pontchartrain shoreline where it 

exists in its natural, ecologically healthy state. Land acquired in fee title through this 

project will be conserved in perpetuity. 


Project Justification: This project meets the restoration and conservation goals 

outlined in the CIAP Goals and Objectives. Preserving the integrity of Lake 

Pontchartrain shorelines and the adjacent coastal marshes fits squarely within the 

goals, objectives and strategies of the Coast 2050 plan. This project also fulfills the 

need for conservation of coastal forests and inland wetland and aquatic habitats. 

All of the Coastal Restoration Project Evaluation Criteria are met. The primary issue 

in this project will be landowner negotiations. 





327


1) Project Title: Beach and Back Barrier Marsh Restoration, East and Trinity Islands 


Government 


Al Levron, Parish Manager 


P.O. Box 2768 



Phone: (985) 873-6405 

Fax: (985) 873-6409 






Description and Location of Project: The proposed Beach and Back Barrier Marsh 

Restoration, East and Trinity Islands would restore a total of 146 acres of beach and 

dune habitat and 533 acres of back barrier marsh. East and Trinity Islands are two of 

five islands that make up the Isles Dernieres barrier island chain. T he proposed 

project is in the Terrebonne Basin of CWPPRA Region 3, Terrebonne Parish, 

approximately 38 miles south of Houma, Louisiana. The Gulf of Mexico lies to the 

south. 


Project Justification: Barrier islands are the first line of defense against storm surge 

and protect the interior wetlands and infrastructure from open ocean wave effects. 

From 1887 to 2002, the documented shoreline change for East Island was a loss of 17 

feet per year, and Trinity Island lost 38.4 feet per year. It is anticipated that 

implementation of this project will result in a reduction in the current land loss rate of 

25%. A breach on the eastern end of East Island that developed in 2005 increased to 

approximately 4,000 feet due to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Although the New Cut 

restoration (TE-37) CWPPRA project will begin construction this year, partial filling 

of the breach on the eastern end of East Island is a contracting additive alternate, and 

will be accomplished only if sufficient project funds are available. This is highly 

unlikely given the recent spikes in constructions costs. Additionally, the TE-37 

project does not provide for extensive beach and back barrier marsh restoration on the 

eastern end behind the breach, or for back barrier marsh and beach restoration on 

Trinity Island. This area sustains considerable wave action and material movement 

not only on the gulf shore, but also on the backside of the island due to Wine Island 

Pass. 

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The overall project goals are to fortify and extend the lives of these two barrier 

islands and capitalize on the success of previous CWPPRA barrier island restoration 

projects. Specific project goals include the introduction of new sediment into this 

sediment starved environment; extension of the lives of the barrier islands by 

increasing their widths; providing a back barrier platform to enable successful island 

migration; and protecting the Terrebonne estuary and vegetated wetlands against the 

direct exposure to the Gulf of Mexico. 

This project was presented at the CWPPRA Task Force Meeting in January 2006, 

during discussions for Priority Project List 16 proposals, but was not selected for 

continued investigation. No engineering and design funds have been spent on this 

project. 



2) Project Title: Mississippi River Long Distance Sediment Pipeline 


Government 


Mr. Al Levron 



P.O. Box 2768 



Phone: (985) 873-6405 

Fax: (985) 873-6409 (fax) 






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Description and Location of Project: This project would extend the Mississippi 

River Long Distance Sediment Pipeline (MRLDSP) proposed for CIAP funding by 

the State and Plaquemines, Jefferson, and Lafourche Parishes into Terrebonne Parish. 

The MRLDSP proposal by the State and three parishes involves installation and use 

of a sediment delivery pipeline, extending from the Mississippi River near Myrtle 

Grove across the central Barataria Basin, to restore marsh and ridge habitat in that 

reach. At this time, the MRLDSP project is conceptual and the location and features 

of this project are dependent on the actual alignment ultimately selected following 

project design studies. The proposal described here is to extend the MRLDSP, 

accompanied by required booster pumps and outlets, for Mississippi River sediment 

slurry transport into the eastern and central Terrebonne Basin wetlands for marsh 

restoration purposes. Restoration locations will be selected to enhance the 

sustainability of existing and planned levee systems. The primary project purpose, 

however, is to identify and apply appropriate alignment, construction techniques and 

materials, and (as feasible) reuse strategies and infrastructure for future, larger-scale, 

systemic benefit marsh and ridge restoration and creation projects in the Terrebonne 

Basin. Information gained from the planning and design for the Barataria Basin 

segment of the MRLDSP will be fully utilized in the design and implementation of 

the proposed Terrebonne Basin segment. 


Project Justification: The marshes located in the project area have been 

hydrologically isolated from historic flow patterns by construction of various 

navigation channels, including the Houma Navigation Canal, and by the closure of 

Bayou Terrebonne from Bayou Lafourche. As a result of these interruptions in the 

natural deltaic process, Terrebonne Parish has been deprived of the sediments, which 

at one time replenished the soils and are now washed away by natural and human 

processes. As a result, Terrebonne Parish continues to experience one of the higher 

average annual land loss rates in Louisiana, an average of 10 square miles per year. 

This project is needed as a significant tool in addressing that serious land loss 

problem. 



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3) Project Title: North Lost Lake Marsh Creation/Enhancement 


Government 


Mr. Al Levron 



P.O. Box 2768 



Phone: (985) 873-6407 

Fax: (985)-873-6409 (fax) 






Description and Location of Project: Phase 1 of the North Lost Lake Marsh 

Creation/Enhancement Project consists of depositing dredged material to establish of 

approximately 100 acres of marsh in open water, and to enhance approximately 96 

acres of highly degraded marsh. Phase 1 is located in Region 3, Terrebonne Basin, 

Terrebonne Parish, Louisiana. Phase 1 is approximately 21,300 feet in length and 

300 feet wide and is situated in Section 1, Township 20 South, Range 13 East and 

Sections 4, 5, 6, 9 and 10, Township 20 South, Range 14 East. 

Marsh creation will be conducted along the submerged Bayou Mauvais Bois ridge 

west of Voss Canal, along the north shore of Lost Lake to the mouth of Bayou 

Decade. Vegetation will be initially planted on the marshes constructed in open 

water, but it will not be artificially maintained. Vegetative plantings may be replaced 

if initially unsuccessful and if recommended by planting experts. Smooth Cordgrass 

(Spartina alterniflora) plantings are anticipated. Planting in marsh enhancement areas 

will not be required. 

Phase 2 of the North Lost Lake Marsh Creation/Enhancement Project consists of the 

establishment of approximately 60 acres of marsh in open water and the enhancement 

of approximately 53 acres of highly degraded marsh. Phase 2 is also located along 

Crochet Canal in Region 3, Terrebonne Basin, Terrebonne Parish, Louisiana, and has 

two sites. The first site is approximately 3,700 feet in length and is located in Section 

1, Township 20 South, Range 13 East. The second site is approximately 12,800 feet 

in length and is located along the west bank of Bayou Decade in Sections 2, 3 and 10, 

Township 20 South, Range 14 East. 

331

Vegetation will be initially planted on the marshes constructed in open water, but it 

will not be artificially maintained. Vegetative plantings may be replaced if initially 

unsuccessful and if recommended by the planting experts. Smooth Cordgrass 

(Spartina alterniflora) plantings are anticipated. Planting in marsh enhancement areas 

will not be required. 

Burlington Resources, LLC, the landowner in the project area, has indicated a 

willingness to share 4% of the estimated project cost. 


Project Justification: The continued deterioration of broken marshes west of Brady 

Canal, from Lake Pagie and Lost Lake northward to Carencro Bayou, will expose 

fragile (organic and floating) Penchant Basin freshwater marshes to catastrophic 

storm-related damage and/or increase tidal exchange and saltwater intrusion problems 

during the salty season. The proposed project will create marshes in open water areas 

occurring within existing marshes. This will reduce the wave fetch and decrease 

wave related erosion of the marshes located on the margins of these interior open 

water areas. The created marshes, along with proposed vegetative plantings, will also 

reduce storm surges and reduce the potential for storm-related marsh breaching. 

Additionally, the proposed marsh creation will restore the hydrological regime to its 

original condition, thereby allowing “brown” river water to be introduced into an area 

of intermediate marshes north of Carencro Bayou. This will stimulate organic 

production and reduce the very rapid and recent loss of marsh in that area. 

Project goals include reducing shoreline retreat on the north shore of Lost Lake, 

preventing shoreline breaching and thereby restoring the hydrological regime to its 

original condition. By creating marsh in interior open water areas, wave generation, 

fetch, and associated wave-wind-induced marsh erosion will also be reduced. The 

project will also spur the introduction of “brown” water into an intermediate marsh 

area that has experienced substantial recent losses will be facilitated. 



332

4) Project Title: Shoreline Protection on the Houma Navigation Canal 


Government 


Mr. Al Levron 



P.O. Box 2768 



Phone: (985) 873-6407 

Fax: (985)-873-6409 (fax) 






Description and Location of Project: The Houma Navigation Canal (HNC) is 

located approximately 45 miles southwest of New Orleans, in the center/lower section 

of Terrebonne Parish, Region 3, in the Terrebonne Basin. Miles 12 to 31.4 have been 

proposed for shoreline protection in this project. 

This project proposes placing a rock dike along the west bank of the channel in a 

major portion of the area between Mile 28 to 23.5, and along the east bank of the 

channel between Mile 24.3 to 23.7. These reaches were identified as most critically 

in need of bank stabilization. The proposed design is the same for all reaches and 

consists of a foreshore dike with an all rock section (36 inch gradation) placed on a 

geotextile reinforcement fabric. The dike extends 50 feet from bank to toe and is 5 

feet NGVD at its highest elevation. Flotation dredging is required to access the 

worksite and will be allowed to elevation –8.0 MLG, beginning a minimum of 50 feet 

from the toe of the dike section proper. Approximately 25,000 cubic yards of 

flotation dredging is required on the west bank and 60,000 cubic yards on the east 

bank. The dredged material will be placed behind the rock dike. 


333

Project Justification: The shoreline of the HNC is suffering from severe erosion 

due to tidal action as well as waves created by vessels navigating the channel. The 

shoreline erosion rate in the project area is approximately 5.4 feet annually and 

implementation of this project will halt the shoreline erosion. If this erosion is 

allowed to continue, the entire area will be devastated by saltwater intrusion. This 

will eventually lead to the destruction of the entire management area. This project 

proposes placing a rock dike along the most critical reaches of the east and west bank 

lines of the channel from Bayou Plat to Bayou Provost. The rock dike will be placed 

off the bank line to allow for marsh creation behind the dike. 

Over 40,000 acres of adjacent marsh will be protected by the implementation of this 

project. Failure to implement this project will result in the continued erosion of the 

shoreline from tidal action and marine vessel activity. The entire area would 

eventually succumb to the effects of increasing salinities and would gradually convert 

to open water. In addition to the loss of critical habitat, the navigation channel itself 

could sustain impacts. 



5) Project Title: South Lake DeCade Shoreline Protection 


Government 


Mr. Al Levron 



P.O. Box 2768 



(985) 873-6405 

(985) 873-6409 (fax) 






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Description and Location of Project: The proposed project area is located in the 

Terrebonne Basin of CWPPRA Region 3, Terrebonne Parish, Sections 25 and 26, 

T19S – R15E, approximately 15 miles southwest of Houma, Louisiana. Project 

components include approximately 1.6 miles of foreshore rock dike to protect the 

critical areas of the southern Lake DeCade shoreline from breaching. The cost 

estimate for this project includes a large contingency for construction due to large 

increases in construction costs for rock dike shoreline protection projects due to 

extraordinary demand for rock in Louisiana as a result of post-Hurricane Katrina 

storm protection projects. 


Project Justification: The project area is experiencing marsh deterioration due to 

subsidence, rapid tidal exchange, and human-induced hydrologic changes that 

increase salinities. Between 1956 and 1978, the percentage of project area acreage 

that was open water increased from 3% to greater than 25%. By 1993, almost 34% of 

the project area was open water. Further, in ocular comparisons of 1991, 1995 and 

1998 infrared aerial photography of the project area and western vicinity, it is 

apparent that marsh fragmentation and conversion to open water in the project area 

continues and is particularly severe in the western and southern portions. 

Disintegration of the once unbroken marshes diminishes its buffering function. It is 

projected that the shoreline protection feature will eliminate erosion on the adjacent 

shoreline. Shoreline erosion along the south embankment of Lake DeCade threatens 

to breach the hydrologic barrier between the lake and interior marshes. 



6) Project Title: Whiskey Island Back Barrier Marsh Creation 


Government 


Mr. Al Levron 



P.O. Box 2768 



(985) 873-6405 

(985) 873-6409 (fax) 


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Description and Location of Project: Whiskey Island is one of five islands that 

make up the Isles Dernieres barrier island chain. The proposed project is in the 

Terrebonne Basin of CWPPRA Region 3, Terrebonne Parish, approximately 18 miles 

southwest of Cocodrie, Louisiana. The island is surrounded by Coupe Colin to the 

west; Whiskey Pass to the east; Lake Pelto, Caillou Boca, and Caillou Bay to the 

north; and the Gulf of Mexico to the south. 

The goal of this project is to increase the longevity of Whiskey Island. The objectives 

are to restore approximately 300 acres of intertidal, back barrier marsh by placement 

of hydraulically dredged semi-confined sediment. The dredged material is expected 

to come from a sediment source near the island. A minimum of six 1-acre tidal ponds 

and 10,000 feet of tidal creeks will be constructed. The area will be planted with 

Smooth Cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora), a native marsh plant valued for its ability 

to colonize and protect fragile marsh soil. 


Project Justification: Gulfside and bayside erosion has resulted in the narrowing of 

Whiskey Island as well as the entire Isles Dernieres chain. The migration of the two 

shorelines toward each other has resulted in an average decrease in width of 68% for 

the Isles Dernieres. Within 100 years, the entire subaerial portion of the Isles 

Dernieres barrier island system is expected to disappear, except for small land 

fragments associated with the western end of Whiskey Island and the eastern end of 

East Island. Some estimates, however, project that the Isles Dernieres will disappear 

as early as 2017. Still other projections suggest that, without restoration, the island 

will become subaqueous sand shoals between 2007 and 2019. 

The goal of this project is to increase the longevity of the previously restored and 

natural portions of the island by increasing the island’s width. Increasing the island’s 

width will help to retain sand volume as well as elevation. Approximately 300 acres 

of intertidal, back barrier marsh will be created by semi-confined disposal and 

placement of dredged material. This material is expected to come from a sediment 

source near the island. 

This project was presented at the CWPPRA PPL 13 (TE-50) planning round and was 

selected for Phase I (Engineering and Design) funding. 



336

7) Project Title: Houma Navigation Canal (HNC) Lock 

Entity/Individual Nominating the Project: Terrebonne Levee and Conservation 

District 


Al Levron 

Director of Public Works 


P.O. Box 2768 


Phone: (985)873-6407 

Fax: (985)873-6407 






Description and Location of Project: This project involves the use of CIAP funds 

to support and accelerate construction of the Houma Navigation Canal (HNC) Lock 

complex for hurricane protection, control of saltwater intrusion, and enhanced 

freshwater distribution for coastal restoration purposes. The proposed lock complex 

is a critically important component of the Morganza to the Gulf of Mexico 

(MTGOM) Hurricane Protection Project now awaiting Congressional authorization. 

The HNC lock complex would be located at Dulac, Louisiana, near the confluence of 

the HNC and Bayou Grand Caillou. That complex will consist of a 200 foot wide 

floodgate, a 110 foot wide by 800 foot long lock chamber, and the associated needed 

improvements to the site, all built in a realigned HNC channel just west of the 

existing HNC. The project also includes a closure dam across the existing HNC 

channel once the new structure and channel are built. The new lock and floodgate 

will be built primarily on an existing maintenance dredging spoil disposal area on the 

west bank of the existing HNC. The project will be built in this manner to allow for 

continued, uninterrupted navigation in support of Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) 

activities through the channel during construction period. The HNC Lock complex 

will tie in with the proposed MTGOM hurricane protection levees at their juncture 

with the HNC. 

The HNC floodgate is designed to allow for continued use of the channel by the 

offshore fabrication industry located in Houma, 20 miles to the north. It allows for 

use of the channel by structures up to 250 feet wide through innovative design 

techniques. 

337

The HNC lock chamber is a key component of the complex because it will allow for 

continued use of the waterway during periods of saltwater intrusion and freshwater 

management. During those periods, the floodgate will be closed, and smaller vessels 

will be routed through the lock chamber. Also during those periods, but much less 

frequently, the larger floodgate will have to be opened for a short period of time to 

allow for passage of larger vessels. These passages will usually only require a 12 

hour opening of the large floodgate. 

The CIAP funds requested will be spent on the project component consisting of an 

access road from Mayfield Road to the lock site and associated culverts at Bayou 

Platte. The 4,400 foot, two lane road will be constructed in two phases, with the first 

phase beginning in the spring of 2008 and the second phase in the summer of 2009. 

The total cost of the access road is $10 million; the Terrebonne Levee and 

Conservation District will use $3 million of CIAP funding, consistent with executed 

agreements and MOAs, to support construction of that access road. The road will 

provide access for the construction of the lock and floodgate and for long-term 

operations and maintenance of the project. 

The USACE is expected to complete design for the lock complex (lock and 

floodgate) in the fall of 2009. The USACE intend to bid the entire lock complex in a 

single construction contract, and construction could start in late 2009. 

As outlined in the guidance for the application process as specified by LDNR, as well 

as the preliminary guidance provided by the U.S. Minerals Management Service, the 

nominating entities have worked to find other complementary funding sources for the 

HNC Lock complex. Those entities have identified the following funding sources 

and associated partners that are available and applicable to the lock project. They are 

as follows: 

Terrebonne Parish CIAP Funding 

$ 3 Million 

State Capital Outlay 

60 Million 

Federal Appropriations 

90 Million 

Total 

$153 Million 

Project Type: Authorized Use 5, with additional benefits to coastal wetlands, i.e., 

Authorized Use 1 

Project Justification: The HNC has enabled Houma to serve as a major source of 

onshore support for offshore oil and gas oil and gas exploration and production. That 

waterway, however, along with canals excavated for pipelines transporting OCS oil 

and gas production, have significantly contributed to the degradation and loss of 

freshwater marshes and swamps. This extensive loss of low-salinity wetlands has 

made Houma and adjacent communities more vulnerable to storm surge from 

hurricanes. HNC-related saltwater intrusion has also adversely affected municipal 

freshwater supplies in the Houma area and along portions of Bayou Lafourche. 

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The project will help to mitigate OCS impacts by reducing wetland losses through 

reductions in saltwater intrusion and enhanced potential for improved distribution of 

freshwater and nutrients and enhanced management of Atchafalaya River inflows via 

the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway. A 1998 USACE feasibility report indicated that the 

lock’s salinity reduction alone would reduce wetland loss by about 1,260 acres over 

the 50-year project life (an average of approximately 25.2 acres per year); that 

estimate does not include beneficial operation of the lock and floodgate to enhance 

freshwater distribution into the adjacent wetlands. Measurable objectives for the 

proposed CIAP expenditures include accelerating the construction of the lock, 

floodgate and associated features of the HNC lock complex, thereby providing the 

capability to: 

1) reduce saltwater intrusion into sensitive wetlands and area water supplies via 

lock and floodgate operation when target salinity thresholds (e.g., 7.5 parts per 

thousand) are exceeded at Dulac and/or Atchafalaya River flows fall below a 

designated flow level (e.g., 100,000 cubic feet per second); 

2) increase freshwater inflows from the HNC into Terrebonne Basin wetlands; 

3) reduce tidal surges up the HNC during hurricanes. 



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1) Project Title: Bird Island 



Linda Duhon 




Phone: (337) 898-4300 

Fax: (337) 898-4310 






Description and Location of Project: The original 10 acre island will be encircled 

with approximately 7,000 linear feet of rock to protect the remaining island. The 

project will also create a catch basin for dredged material that could be used for future 

oilfield maintenance or for when the State’s small dredge program is in the area. This 

project is similar to Queen Bess Island in Barataria Bay. Bird Island is located in 

Vermilion Parish in Southwest Pass between Marsh Island and the State Wildlife 

Management Area and Game Preserve (29º 35’ 45”N, 92º 2’ 11”W). 


Project Justification: Louisiana is one of the most important states in the southeast 

in terms of nesting colonial waterbirds (Spendelow and Patton 1988). Although, 

studies have found that the occupation, colony size, and species composition of 

wading bird and seabird colony sites can often be variable (Martin and Lester 1990; 

Michot et al. 2003), Bird Island has been used as a colonial wading bird nesting site 

for approximately 30 years. Unfortunately, according to the USGS, the island has 

decreased from approximately 10 acres in 1988 to approximately 0.7 acre in 2004. A 

similar project built at Queen Bess Island where rock was placed around the island in 

1992 and dredged material placed in 1996 has resulted in stabilization of that Island. 



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2) Project Title: LA 167 Extension Environmental Assessment and Line and 

Engineering Grade Report 



Linda Duhon 




Phone: (337) 898-4300 

Fax: (337) 898-4310 






Description and Location of Project: This project includes the preparation of an 

environmental assessment and a line and engineering grade report for the LA 

Highway 167 extension. The proposed route includes approximately 3.5 miles of 

new four lane urban roadway along with widening and overlay of approximately 6.8 

miles on existing LA 82. LA Highway 167 currently terminates in Abbeville at 

Highway 14. The work involves extensive survey work and determination of the 

appropriate alignment and elevation profile of the planned highway extension project. 

That information will be used to determine the sizes of needed drainage structures, 

and to develop cost estimates for the planned LA Highway 167 Extension project. 

The goal of this proposal is to produce an acceptable environmental assessment and 

associated report within 2 years of CIAP grant approval. 


Project Justification: The proposed work is an essential step needed for design and, 

ultimately, construction of the LA Highway 167 Extension project. That highway 

extension project is needed to mitigate the impact of OCS-related vehicle traffic on 

local and parish roads in the Abbeville area as those vehicles transit to and from OCS 

support facilities at Intracoastal City, Freshwater City, and the Port of Vermilion. 

Those impacts include added wear and tear on local and parish roadways, as well as 

increased traffic in Abbeville and adjacent communities. That highway extension 

project will allow direct access to those southern Vermilion Parish OCS support 

locations via State route without having to utilize city (Abbeville) and parish roads. 

The improved access would provide a key intermodal link for the State’s 

infrastructure, particularly for OCS activities. 

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3) Project Title: LA 3147 (Freshwater City Road) Improvements 



Linda Duhon 




Phone: (337) 898-4300 

Fax: (337) 898-4310 






Description and Location of Project: This project includes hard surfacing of 

approximately 10.5 miles of the two-lane LA Highway 3147 which provides roadway 

access to Freshwater City Port. Freshwater City Port is the southernmost port on the 

Vermilion Parish coast. The entire roadway is 11.5 miles long and approximately 1 

mile was improved by the Louisiana DOTD as a test section. This proposed project 

improves the remaining 10.5 miles. 


Project Justification: Freshwater City Port is a vital access point to the Gulf of 

Mexico. State Highway 3147 provides access to the port but is limited by the current 

aggregate surfacing. A motor patrol is currently permanently assigned to this stretch 

of aggregate roadway to keep it in a condition which will allow the many trucks with 

supplies and equipment for OCS activities to utilize this roadway. Providing a hard 

surface for this roadway will reduce the maintenance required due to OCS-related 

truck traffic, and would improve access to the port by such traffic. 



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4) Project Title: Northeast White Lake Shoreline Protection and Marsh Creation 



Linda Duhon 




Phone: (337) 898-4300 

Fax: (337) 898-4310 






Description and Location of Project: This project will provide approximately 3,000 

linear feet of rock shoreline protection engineered for this site. The funds allocated in 

the current project will be used for surveying, geotechnical investigation, engineering, 

design and permit development so that when additional funds become available this 

project will be able to proceed to construction in a more timely manner. It is 

estimated that the additional cost to complete the design and construct this project is 

$900,000. 


Project Justification: The bank line at the mouth of Schooner Bayou at White Lake 

has eroded into surrounding marshes, causing marsh loss. The annual erosion rate is 

approximately 10-15 feet and construction of this project feature will halt that 

erosion. 



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5) Project Title: State Wildlife Refuge Weir Replacement 



Linda Duhon 




Phone: (337) 898-4300 

Fax: (337) 898-4310 






Description and Location of Project: This project includes the repair of four weirs 

on the State Wildlife Refuge (South Lake Weir {29º 40’ 13” N, 92º 8’ 38” W}, North 

Lake Weir {29º 41’ 10” N, 92º 9’ 8” W}, Hog Bayou Weir {29º 41’ 35” N, 92º 8’ 

51” W} and Prien Lake Weir {29º 40’ 31” N, 92º 8’ 3” W}) in Vermilion Parish. The 

weirs, which are each approximately 120 feet long and located in previously plugged 

canals, were damaged by Hurricane Rita and no longer function as originally 

designed. They require additional limestone and associated earthwork to be restored 

to their originally intended function. The objective of the proposed project is to 

repair the weirs so that pre-Hurricane Rita salinity and water levels can be restored to 

the marsh. 


Project Justification: The goal of the project is to repair the existing weirs on the 

State Wildlife Refuge. The purpose of these weirs is buffer the inflow of higher 

salinity waters into lower-salinity lakes, ponds, and associated marshes, and to 

stabilize water levels in those lakes and ponds to enhance the growth of submerged 

aquatic vegetation. 



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6) Project Title: Chenier au Tigre Cement Bag Extension 



Linda Duhon 




Phone: (337) 898-4300 

Fax: (337) 898-4310 






Description and Location of Project: This project will install cement bags to create 

approximately 1,000 linear feet of breakwater to slow shoreline erosion. This project 

feature has previously been built at this location and is working. This project will 

expand the area of influence. This project is located in Vermilion Parish along the 

Gulf of Mexico shoreline at Chenier au Tigre (29º 33’ 42”N, 92º 12’ 27”W). 


Project Justification: The existing shoreline erosion rate along Chenier au Tigre is 

approximately 15 feet annually. Extending the project will afford the Chenier au 

Tigre more protection by reducing the current erosion rate by 50%, will buffer storm 

surge, and will protect the integrity of the marsh behind the project feature. 



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7) Project Title: Four Mile Canal Hydrologic Restoration 



Linda Duhon 




Phone: (337) 898-4300 

Fax: (337) 898-4310 






Description and Location of Project: This project will construct a rock plug with a 

barge bay to reduce the cross section of the Four Mile Canal to the needed navigation 

width and depth. Appropriate navigation lighting or signage will be included in the 

project as required by the U.S. Coast Guard. The funds allocated in the current 

project will be used for surveying, geotechnical investigation, engineering, design and 

permit development so that when additional funds become available this project will 

be able to proceed to construction in a more timely manner. It is estimated that the 

additional cost to complete the design and construct this project is $3,527,244. The 

project is located in Vermilion Parish just north of the intersection of Four Mile Canal 

and Vermilion Bay (29º 44’ 34” N, 92º 6’ 46” W). 


Project Justification: This project will help to move fresh water through Onion 

Bayou, the Vermilion River, Schooner Bayou, and Bayou Chene by reducing the 

cross sectional area of Four Mile Canal by approximately 70%. This project will 

begin to restore the historic hydrologic flows that existed prior to the boat wakeinduced 

erosion that has occurred along Four Mile Canal. The project will also help 

to hold a head of fresh water in the Intracoastal City area to buffer salinities, thus 

helping the adjacent marshes. This project is consistent with Louisiana’s 

Comprehensive Master Plan for a Sustainable Coast. 



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8) Project Title: Hydrologic Restoration of Little Bayou Chene 



Linda Duhon 




Phone: (337) 898-4300 

Fax: (337) 898-4310 






Description and Location of Project: This project is located along the eastern edge 

of the GIWW at the location of Bayou Chene at the entrance to Little Vermilion Bay. 

This project will construct a rock plug with a barge bay to reduce the cross section of 

Bayou Chene by approximately 80% , to the depth and width required for navigation 

interests. Appropriate navigation lighting or signage will be included in the project as 

required by the U.S. Coast Guard. 


Project Justification: Reducing the cross section of Little Bayou Chene to the 

needed width and depth for navigation will help to move fresh water through Onion 

Bayou, the Vermilion River, Schooner Bayou, and Bayou Chene. This project will 

begin to restore the historic hydrologic flows that existed prior to the boat wake 

induced erosion that has occurred along the GIWW at Little Bayou Chene. This 

project will also help to hold a head of fresh water in the Intracoastal City area, and 

help to reduce saltwater intrusion into adjacent fresh and low-salinity marshes and 

into waterways used as irrigation sources for rice and crawfish farming. This project 

is consistent with Louisiana’s Comprehensive Master Plan for a Sustainable Coast. 



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9) Project Title: Prien Point Reef Extension 



Linda Duhon 




Phone: (337) 898-4300 

Fax: (337) 898-4310 






Description and Location of Project: This project consists of creating 

approximately 5,000 linear feet of oyster reef by the Louisiana Wetlands Association 

along the Redfish Point shoreline in Vermilion Bay, using clean graded recycled 

materials. 


Project Justification: This project will extend previous reef restoration efforts by 

the Louisiana Wetlands Association in the Acadiana Bays system. These reefs will 

afford the shoreline more protection and improve fish and shellfish habitat within the 

Acadiana Bays region. The erosion rate along the west and northwest shoreline of 

Vermilion Bay ranges from 5 to 15 feet annually and it is projected that 

implementation of this project will reduce that erosion rate by half in the project area. 



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Louisiana Coastal Impact Assistance Plan - Coastal Protection and ...

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