LOUISIANA — Voters recently approved an amendment to the state constitution to help with efforts to fight coastal erosion.
The amendment, which appeared on the ballot during the November 5th election, will provide additional funding for restoration projects in Louisiana’s coastal areas.
As Louisiana faces a severe land loss crisis, with nearly 2,000 square miles of land lost since the 1930s, this additional funding is being hailed as a lifeline.
Without action, scientists predict Louisiana could lose another 3,000 square miles of coastal land in the next 50 years.
The amendment expands an existing fund, originally established in the late 1980s to support coastal restoration, by including additional revenue from renewable energy sources such as wind and solar, alongside the traditional funding from oil and gas companies.
KATC spoke with Glenn Ledet, Executive Director of Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority. He explained how this change will help Louisiana continue to protect its coastal communities from future storms and environmental challenges.
“Any dollar we can get we obviously invest into a sustainable future for the citizens of coastal Louisiana,” Ledet said. “This allows us to build innovative and large-scale restoration protection projects to implement these large-scale hurricane protection systems that you see us building across our state.”
Ledet also tells KATC, that investing in restoration efforts can also aid in supporting families and residents who live along the coast.
"The workers that are living in these coastal communities that are supporting these industries, we want their homes to be protected. Their insurance to be lowered and so it's a collective win," he says. "So, if we can invest these dollars here in making those communities sustainable then those industries can then be sustainable and have an employee workforce that can support them.”
The amendment’s approval could make a substantial difference in the fight to preserve Louisiana’s fragile coast, helping to provide more resources while at the same time—protecting the state’s land and communities for the future.
If you want to read more on all the proposed amendments Louisiana voters can vote on, click here.
