NEW ORLEANS – In a recent letter, over 100 community leaders united to support the East Orleans Landbridge Restoration project, a habitat restoration project that will provide important storm protection for the New Orleans area.
The signers, including business associations, local sportsmen, legislators, scientists, faith leaders, neighborhood associations and community organizations, voiced their support for the Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group’s decision to recommend the project receive $101.2 million in Deepwater Horizon oil spill settlement funds for project completion.
“The East Orleans Landbridge project addresses Deepwater Horizon impacts in an area with critical restoration needs,” said Amanda Moore, senior director of the National Wildlife Federation’s Gulf Program. “We’re excited to see this project recommended to receive these settlement funds and advance the largest project to date on the landbridge. The New Orleans East Landbridge not only protects communities, but improves wildlife habitat, and is an example of the large-scale, science-backed restoration our coast desperately needs.”
The New Orleans East Landbridge separates Lake Pontchartrain from Lake Borgne. This natural landscape feature reduces flooding during storms for communities on and around Lake Pontchartrain and Lake Maurepas including New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Slidell, Mandeville and LaPlace. However, this natural landscape is degrading and eroding due to oil spill impacts, storm and wave impacts, and salinity impacts from the MRGO shipping channel.
“The East Orleans Landbridge serves as a first line of defense for communities throughout the Pontchartrain Basin,” said Kristi Trail, executive director of Pontchartrain Conservancy. “Restoring and strengthening this landscape is an investment in our region’s safety, economy, and environment. This project represents the kind of large-scale, science-driven restoration needed to protect our coast and the communities that depend on it for generations to come.”
The landbridge project will create 1,320 acres of marsh, as well as 14,867 linear feet of shoreline protection and is expected to be completed by mid-2029. This would be the largest restoration project to date on the landbridge.
“The level of public support shown for this project perfectly illustrates its importance,” said Jackie Baham, secretary of the New Orleans East Green Infrastructure Collective. “After 20 years of advocating for the landbridge’s restoration, we are excited that our community is one step closer to the protection we deserve. The landbridge will help ensure that we, as well as future generations, can continue calling this place home.”
Since Hurricane Katrina, restoring the New Orleans East Landbridge area has garnered tens of thousands of supportive public comments. The project area was recommended by the U.S. Army Corps in their 2012 MRGO Ecosystem Feasibility Report and included in CPRA’s 2023 Coastal Master Plan. The landbridge is a priority area identified in the City of New Orleans Resilience Strategy and the Orleans Parish Hazard Mitigation Plan.
Read a copy of the full letter and list of signers here.
About Restore the Mississippi River Delta:
Restore the Mississippi River Delta is working to protect people, wildlife and jobs by reconnecting the river with its wetlands. As our region faces the crisis of land loss, we offer science-based solutions through a comprehensive approach to restoration. Composed of conservation, policy, science and outreach experts from Environmental Defense Fund, National Audubon Society, the National Wildlife Federation and Pontchartrain Conservancy, we are located in New Orleans and Baton Rouge, Louisiana; Washington, D.C.; and around the United States. Learn more at MississippiRiverDelta.org and connect with us on Facebook and Twitter.