UPDATE: On Friday, June 2, 2017, the Louisiana House of Representatives voted to pass the 2017 Coastal Master Plan. The plan will now replace the 2012 plan and can now begin to be implemented. LWF applauds the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority for all of its hard work in updating this plan using the latest science and modeling techniques to suggest the most effective projects to build/maintain land and reduce flooding risk. We would also like to thank the Louisiana Legislature for recognizing the importance of this plan’s passage and for supporting it…and big thanks to all of YOU who have shown your support and contacted your legislators to pass this bill in the legislature!
UPDATE: On Wednesday, May 17, 2017 the Louisiana Senate voted to pass the 2017 Coastal Master Plan. The bill now heads to the House of Representatives for final approval. It’s not over yet! Tell your representatives that you want them to vote yes on this plan to protect Louisiana’s coast!
Louisiana’s 2017 update to its Master Plan for a Sustainable Coast has recently been unanimously approved by the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority Board. It is currently awaiting passage in the Louisiana Legislature, which is required before the updated plan can be implemented.
Why does Louisiana need the updated 2017 Master Plan?
The 2017 Master Plan suggests projects that are based on the best available science. Much has changed in the last five years and much will change in the years to come – this is why the plan must be updated every five years, by law. The latest data on metrics such as expected sea level rise, subsidence, and storm intensity and frequency are put into models that suggest the best projects to build/maintain land and reduce flooding risks.
We must act with a sense of urgency. There is no time to waste. Louisiana is experiencing a coastal crisis and it is urgent that we get the best projects under construction as soon as possible. Delays in approval of the 2017 plan would delay progress to protect communities, industries, and wildlife that depend on a healthy and sustainable coast to survive. We are losing our Sportsman’s Paradise and we must act quickly – and boldly – to save our coast for future generation of sportsmen and women.
Louisiana cannot do this alone. While this is a 50 year, $50 billion plan, the state does not currently have the money to fully fund the Master Plan. The sustainability of Louisiana’s coast is of national significance and federal funds will be needed to successfully implement the 2017 Master Plan. It’s important that legislators come together to support the plan to show the rest of the country that we are united in our commitment to protect Louisiana’s coast. With their help, our coast can continue benefiting not only the state but the entire nation in a sustainable way.
Louisiana could lose 2,250 square miles of land over the next 50 years if nothing is done. Implementation of the 2017 Master Plan will help Louisiana avoid the worst-case scenarios of land loss and reduce damages, which could exceed $150 billion over the next 50 years without the master plan.
This plan must pass the Legislature in order to be implemented.
There is too much at stake – the time to act is now. Contact your legislators today and tell them you support the 2017 Master Plan and they should too. They represent YOU. Your voice matters.
Resources:
Read the 2017 Master Plan here.
Find a list of projects in your parish.
Get details on projects here.