Anglers fish concentrations of trout in the canals.

Wildlife, especially fish, evolved to roll with hurricanes, and like forest fires, hurricanes would largely act as forces of habitat renewal. It has changed course at least five times over the last 4600 years, but the marshes morphed accordingly. Marsh deltas and barrier islands naturally formed and decayed, formed and decayed, as the river channel moved east and west. Natural decay occurred in marshes that were no longer fed by the Mississippi or its distributaries, but powerful floods and tropical cyclones historically transfused decaying marshes with the lifeblood and plasma of fresh water and alluvial sediments. The floods slowed the advance of ocean water, so that plants that thrive in brackish or fresh water could take root and stabilize the river sediments, and thus restore some elevation, and the marsh.

Enter modernity. The Mississippi River Delta still supports the most productive shallow-water and offshore fisheries in the country. But, a succession of dams constructed along the Mississippi River reduced the amount of freshwater and silt needed to replenish even the existing river delta. The river channel was “stabilized” by flood control projects, levies, which prevented freshwater and silt from flowing into decaying deltas. Meanwhile a “wagon wheel” of channels were cut through the marshes for oil and gas exploration and access. These channels accelerate the flow of tides, which continue to erode and undercut the grass banks. As a result, the marsh sinks, and seawater continues its insidious advance.

According to the United States Geological Service (USGS), “Louisiana's wetlands today represent about 40 percent of the wetlands of the continental United States, but about 80 percent of the losses.” Louisiana has lost more than 75 kilometers of wetlands a year, and it is currently estimated that the hurricanes took away more than 100 square miles.

The storms’ impact was so horrific it seems that finally, almost all interests agree that a vision of a sustainable Louisiana coast must be created.

“ The loss of one of the nations most complex and productive habitats means that our fisheries become less productive, and that the oil and natural gas infrastructure, the nation's top port, and every person in the coastal region becomes more vunerable to hurricanes. We all realize that know,” said Carlton Defrechou, Executive Director of the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation.”

“Some of the things that have prohibited restoration aren’t there any more, as well as the bad politics,” Defrechou added. The people that came back are some of the best around. There’s a unity in this community I’ve never experienced before, and I’m a native. The coast can be sustainable. But it’s going to take some very hard decisions.”

Almost everyone, except the Army Corps of Engineers, agrees that the Mississippi Gulf Outlet (a.k.a. Mr. Go), a shortcut dug through the marsh in the fifties for ocean going vessels, must be decommissioned. Only one or two vessels use the shortcut a day, and since the channel allowed Katrina a clear path into New Orleans, it has proven the most costly Army Corps boondoggle in history, perhaps in excess of $100 billion. In terms of ecological impacts, Mr. Go ushered saltwater straight into the marshes that would have otherwise protected New Orleans, and led to their decline.

Restoring the natural hydrology below New Orleans, where possible, is a top priority.

“Since the storm many of those areas have been impacted so significantly, we’ll see a lot of New Orleans redeveloped, but further south and east (swamps) that will give us the opportunity to reintroduce river water and the right amount of nutrients and silt,” said Randy Lanctot, Editor of the Louisiana Wildlife Federation’s publication.

The current Mississippi River delta has also rapidly degraded due to maintenance of deep draft navigation causing the river’s fresh water and sediment to be spewed off the continental shelf rather than maintaining delta wetlands, ridges and barrier islands. 

“Another effect of that discharge off the shelf is that the southwest Louisiana coastal marshes do not benefit from the longshore drift of sediment that would occur under natural river/delta function which is what built them and the Chenier ridges over geologic time as the river built a delta and then relocated along the coast,” added Lanctot.