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The NewsRoom
Release: #3884
Date: September 25, 2008
Minerals Management
Service Approves $8.5 Million Grant for Louisiana Shoreline Project
Louisiana Department of Natural Resources to receive Federal grant
for Rockefeller Refuge Demonstration Project
NEW ORLEANS – The Minerals Management
Service (MMS) has awarded an $8.5 million grant to the Louisiana
Department of Natural Resources through the Coastal Impact
Assistance Program (CIAP) to study different types of shoreline
protection at the existing Rockefeller Refuge area along the
Louisiana Gulf of Mexico shoreline.
The proposed project will install and analyze the
effectiveness of four different test sections of shoreline
protection located along the Gulf of Mexico from Beach Prong to
Joseph Harbor, approximately 45 miles southeast of Lake Charles,
Louisiana. These alternatives will include a 700-foot section of
beach fill with gravel and crushed stone, a 500-foot section of reef
breakwater with gravel and crushed stone beach fill, a 500-foot
section of reef breakwater with lightweight aggregate core, and a
500-foot section of concrete panel breakwater.
“It is very encouraging to see Louisiana’s vitally
important coastal restoration work continue, especially in light of
recent hurricanes,” said MMS Director Randall Luthi. “We look
forward to continuing our work with Louisiana through CIAP to
complete necessary coastal restoration and conservation projects.”
The Rockefeller Refuge, located in Cameron Parish,
is one of the most rapidly eroding portions of the Louisiana Gulf
shoreline – up to thirty to forty feet per year according to
estimates of long-term shoreline retreat. Tropical Storm Frances in
1998 caused more than fifty feet of erosion in just a few days.
Scientists have concluded that modern rates of shoreline recession
within Louisiana’s Chenier Plain are generally increasing over time.
This proposed shoreline project will determine the best alternative
for combating the erosion in the Rockefeller Refuge.
The CIAP was created by the Energy Policy Act of
2005. Through the program, MMS will annually, from 2007-2010,
disburse $250 million in grants to six eligible Outer Continental
Shelf oil and gas producing states – Louisiana, Alabama, Alaska,
California, Mississippi, and Texas. The funding to Louisiana
includes $127.5 million for each of the fiscal years 2007 and 2008,
totaling $255 million. Nineteen Coastal Political Subdivisions
(parishes) will share in the funding projects outlined in the
state’s approved plan.
Contact:
Bill Lee
504-736-2597
Eileen Angelico
504-736-2595
MMS: Securing Ocean Energy & Economic Value for America
U.S. Department of the Interior
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Last Updated:
09/26/2008,
09:55 AM
Central Time
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