West Fourchon Creation & Nourishment Marsh

The primary causes of land loss in the project area are oil
and gas canals, subsidence, and sediment deprivation, which
have resulted in an estimated rate of -0.41% per year based
on hyper-temporal analysis conducted by USGS for the
extended project boundary for the years 1984 to 2012.
Bounded by Bayou Lafourche to the east and Timbalier Bay
to the west the project area is also subject to shoreline
erosion.

This project would create 302 acres of saline inter-tidal marsh
and nourish 312 acres of emergent marsh using material
dredged from the Gulf of Mexico, southwest of the project
area. Earthen containment dikes will be constructed along
the project boundary to contain the material. Vegetative
plantings are planned at a 50% density, with half planned at
TY1 and half planned at TY3 if necessary. Containment
dikes will be degraded or gapped by TY3 to allow access for
estuarine organisms. Funding will be set aside for the
creation of tidal creeks if needed. This project, along with
TE-23 West Belle Pass Headland Restoration and TE-52
West Belle Pass Barrier Headland Restoration, will help
stabilize the edge of the marshes and protect Port Fourchon
from the west. The initial construction elevation is +2.4 feet
NAVD 88; after settlement, marsh is expected to be +1.4
NAVD 88.

The project is located in Region 3, Terrebonne Basin, in
Lafourche Parish.

This project was approved for Phase I Engineering and
Design in January 2015.

This project is on Priority Project List (PPL) 24.

The West Fourchon Creation & Nourishment Marsh sponsors include:

• Federal Sponsor: National Marine Fisheries Service
• Local Sponsor: Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority

 

Fritchie Marsh Creation and Terracing

A significant portion of the Fritchie Marsh was lost due to
Hurricane Katrina. Post storm shallow open water areas
dominate the landscape which limits the effectiveness of the
PO-06 CWPRRA project. Wetlands in the project vicinity
are being lost at the rate -1.09%/year based on USGS
data from 1985 to 2015. These marshes cannot recover
without replacement of lost sediment, which is critical if the
northshore marshes are to be sustained.

Project goals include restoring and nourishing marsh.
Specific goals of the project are: 1) create approximately 291
acres of marsh; 2) nourish approximately 49 acres of existing
marsh; and 3) construct about 36,610 feet of earthen terraces
or 26 emergent acres.

An alternative analysis was conducted leading to the
selection of features and configuration to compliment and
work synergistically with the existing PO-06 project and
planned mitigation and restoration projects in the Fritchie
Marsh. A robust engineering cost is included to evaluate
increasing the project size if costs allow or adjust the
layout, if needed during Phase 1. Approximately 2 million
cubic yards of material would be placed confined to restore
291 acres and nourish approximately 49 acres of brackish
marsh. Material would be dredged from a borrow site in
Lake Pontchartrain. The borrow site would be designed to
avoid and minimize impacts to aquatic habitat and existing
shorelines. Approximately 26 acres of earthen terraces would
be constructed within various locations totaling approximately
36,610 feet or 523 acres of terrace field. All containment
dikes would be gapped or degraded no later than three years
after construction to facilitate the development of tidal marsh
functions supportive of estuarine species. The terraces would
be planted as well as 50% of the created marsh acres to
expedite colonization and enhance stabilization.

Region 1, Pontchartrain Basin, St. Tammany Parish, located
approximately three miles southeast of Slidell, Louisiana. A
substantial portion of the project is located on Big Branch
National Wildlife Refuge.

This project was approved for Phase I Engineering and
Design in January 2016.

This project is on Priority Project List (PPL) 25.

The Fritchie Marsh Creation and Terracing sponsors include:

• Federal Sponsor: National Marine Fisheries Service
• Local Sponsor: Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority

 

East Leeville Marsh Creation and Nourishment

There is widespread historic and continued rapid land loss
within the project site and surrounding areas resulting from
subsidence, wind erosion, storms, and altered hydrology.
The wetland loss rate for is -1.53%/year based on USGS data
from 1984 to 2015. Furthermore, the limits of Southwestern
Louisiana Canal are difficult to determine in some areas
because land loss is causing the coalescence of the canal
with adjacent water bodies. Natural tidal flow and drainage
patterns which once existed are currently circumvented by
the increasing area of open water. Data suggests that from
1932 to 1990, the basin lost over 245,000 acres of marsh, and
from 1978 to 1990, Barataria Basin experienced the highest
rate of wetland loss along the entire coast.

The project goal is to create approximately 358 acres and
nourish 124 acres of saline marsh east of Leeville.
After consideration of three potential alternatives, features
and an alignment were selected to establish an arc of
wetlands along the north side of Southwestern Canal,
Lake Jesse, and the west side of South Lake. This is to
begin rebuilding the structural framework of wetlands
east of Leeville and provide protection for Leeville from
southeasterly winds and tides. A robust engineering and
design cost was included for full flexibility during Phase 1
to expand the project if cost allows or to assess alternative
configurations, if necessary. The proposed features consist of
hydraulically mining sediment from a borrow source in Little
Lake west of Leeville and pumping dredged material to
create and nourish marsh east of Leeville. The disposal areas
would be fully contained during construction and gapped
no later than three years post construction to facilitate
establishment of tidal connection and function. Additionally,
a portion of the created marsh acres would be planted with
smooth cordgrass following construction to help stabilize the
created platform by increasing the rate of colonization.

This project is located in Region 2, Barataria Basin, Lafourche Parish (primary)
Region 3, Terrebonne Basin, Lafourche Parish.

This project was approved for Phase I Engineering and
Design in January 2016.

This project is on Priority Project List (PPL) 25.

The East Leeville Marsh Creation and Nourishment’s sponsors include:

• Federal Sponsor: National Marine Fisheries Service
• Local Sponsor: Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority

Cheniere Ronquille Barrier Island Restoration

This area is undergoing shoreline erosion, interior wetland
loss, overwash, and breakup. The Gulf shoreline erosion rate
has doubled from 1988 to 2006. Project area marshes also
are being eroded at -11.8 ft/yr between 2003 to 2006 as well
as being converted to open water from internal breakup.

Restoration would expand the Gulf shoreline structural
integrity and associated protection by tying into two recently
constructed projects to the east and address one of the
remaining reaches of the Barataria/Plaquemines shoreline.
The design includes fill for a beach and dune plus 20-years
of advanced maintenance fill, as well as fill for marsh
creation/nourishment. The location of the type and amount
of sediment needed to construct this project already has been
identified under the East Grand Terre Project that is presently
under construction. Approximately 127 acres of beach/dune
fill would be constructed and approximately 259 acres of
marsh creation/nourishment would be constructed. Intensive
dune plantings would be conducted by seeding and installing
approved nursery stock. About half of the
marsh platform would be planted with cordgrass and
portions of the dune, swale, and marsh would be planted
with appropriate woody species. Containment dikes would
be breached no later than year three to allow tidal exchange
with the created marsh.

The project is located in Region 2, within the Barataria Basin
portion of Plaquemines Parish.

This project is on Project Priority List (PPL) 19.

The Cheniere Ronquille Barrier Island Restoration project sponsors include:

• Federal sponsor: National Marine Fisheries Service 
• Local sponsor: Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority

Keep up with this project and other CWPPRA projects on the project page.

 

Terrebonne Bay Marsh Creation-Nourishment

Emergent marshes north of Terrebonne Bay have been
eroding as fast or faster than almost any other marshes
along coastal Louisiana. As these marshes convert to
shallow open water, the tidal prism will increase which will
in turn increase the frequency and duration of tides north
of Terrebonne Bay. This increasing tidal prism is likely
to increase the future interior marsh loss rates for those
marshes directly north of Terrebonne Bay. These marshes are
important for their habitat values as well as serving to slow
the progress of highly saline waters that threaten the lower
salinity marshes north and west of Madison Bay and in the
Lake Boudreaux basin. The
continued loss of these marshes has directly contributed to
the ongoing flooding problems of many communities along
Bayou Terrebonne including the town of Montegut.

The primary goal of this project is to fill shallow open water
areas and nourish marshes north of Terrebonne Bay/Lake
Barre thereby reducing the tidal prism north of Terrebonne
Bay and
interior land loss from tidal scouring. Specific Goals: 1)
Create 365 acres of intertidal marsh in shallow open water
and nourish 299 acres of fragmented marsh within the
project area reducing
water exchange between Terrebonne Bay and interior lakes
during tidal and small storm events. 2) Reduce erosion along
16,000 ft of the northern Terrebonne Bay shoreline.

The proposed features of this project consist of filling
approximately 365 acres of shallow open water and
nourishing approximately 299 acres of very low or
fragmented marsh with material hydraulically dredged from
Terrebonne Bay/Lake Barre. Containment dikes will be
degraded/gapped within 3 years of construction to allow
for greater tidal and estuarine organism access. This project
could be one part of a phased comprehensive plan to protect
the northern shoreline of Terrebonne Bay and the interior
marshes from further erosion and reduce the tidal prism.
The project would result in approximately 353 net acres of
marsh over the 20-year project life.

This project is located in Region 3, Terrebonne Basin,
Terrebonne Parish, along the northern shoreline of Lake
Barre/Terrebonne Bay near Bayou Terrebonne continuing
east a short distance past Bayou Chitique.

This project is on Project Priority List (PPL) 20.

The Terrebonne Bay Marsh Creation-Nourishment project sponsors include:

• Federal sponsor: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
• Local sponsor: Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority

Keep up with this project and other CWPPRA projects on the project page.

 

CWPPRA

Are you aware of CWPPRA’s Programmatic Benefits?

• Proven Track Record of Project Construction– Over 25 years, 210 approved projects benefiting more than 1,344 square miles (800,000 acres); 108 constructed (16 under construction).
• Responsive– CWPPRA projects are constructed in 5 to 7 years.
• Interagency Approach– Cost-effective projects developed by an experienced interagency team (5 Federal, 1 State agencies).
• Community Involvement– Local governments and citizens contribute to project nominations and development.
• Predictable Funding– Federal Sport Fish & Boating Safety Trust Fund funding to 2021 through fishing equipment taxes and small engine fuel taxes.
• Fiscally Responsible– CWPPRA projects are cost-effective.
• Science Based– CWPPRA’s monitoring program (Coastwide Referencing Monitoring System-CRMS). Demonstration projects “field-test” restoration techniques for future restoration project success.
• Complementary– CWPPRA projects complement other large-scale restoration efforts (i.e., Coastal Impact Assistance Program, State Master Plan, BP DWH Oil Spill Early Restoration and the RESTORE Act).

CWPPRA has been and will continue to be the primary source of practical experience, learning, and agency expertise regarding coastal restoration in Louisiana.

 

Island Road Marsh Creation & Nourishment

The Terrebonne Basin is an abandoned delta complex, characterized by a thick section of unconsolidated sediments that are undergoing dewatering and compaction, contributing to high subsidence, and a network of old distributary ridges extending southward from Houma. Historically, subsidence and numerous oil and gas canals and pipelines in the area have contributed significantly to wetland losses. Since 1932, the Terrebonne Basin has lost approximately 20% of its wetlands. One-third of the Terrebonne Basin’s remaining wetlands are estimated to be lost to open water by the year 2040. There has been a significant reduction in the marsh platform in the vicinity of Island Road (1.60%/year based on USGS data from 1984 to 2011) that has provided some historical wave energy protection. Island Road is the only land access to the Isle of Jean Charles located west of Pointe Aux Chenes which serves unique Native American and minority communities that historically relied on fishing for their livelihood.

The restoration concept provides for the creation and/or nourishment of approximately 383 acres of emergent saline marsh that will form a land bridge along portions of the perimeter of Cutoff Canal, Twin Pipelines Canals, and Island Road.

The proposed project’s primary feature is to create 364 acres and nourish 19 acres of saline marsh. Sediment will be hydraulically pumped from a borrow source near Lake Felicity. Containment dikes will be constructed around the marsh creation area to retain sediment during pumping and will be degraded and/or gapped no later than three years post construction. Half of the newly constructed marsh (182 acres) will be planted following construction to stabilize the platform and reduce time for full vegetation.

The Island Road Marsh Creation & Nourishment project is located in Region 3, Terrebonne Basin, Terrebonne Parish.

This project is on Priority Project List (PPL) 23.

The Island Road Marsh Creation & Nourishment project sponsors include:

• Federal Sponsor: National Marine Fisheries Service
• Local Sponsor: Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority

Keep up with this project and other CWPPRA projects on the project page.

 

No Name Bayou Marsh Creation and Nourishment

The project area is located in the Cameron-Creole Watershed Management Area which protects approximately 64,000 acres in the watershed. It includes a 16.5 mile levee along Calcasieu Lake and five large concrete water control structures to manage the unit and prevent the effects of saltwater intrusion, by managing salinity, tidal exchange, water levels, and estuarine organism movement into and out of the watershed. The Calcasieu Ship Channel, immediately west of the project area, provides an avenue for the rapid movement of high-salinity water into the marshes around Calcasieu Lake. This movement increased salinity in the area, resulting in plant death and marsh loss. The weakened marshes located between the East Fork of the Calcasieu River and Calcasieu Lake has also been decimated by hurricanes. Marshes that once provided a buffer to the southwest rim of Calcasieu Lake are now shallow open water areas.

The proposed project’s primary feature is to create and/or nourish approximately 533 acres of saline marsh (502 acres created, 21 acres nourished and 10 acres of creeks/ponds) south of Calcasieu Lake. In order to achieve this, approximately 3.5 million cubic yards of sediment will be hydraulically pumped from the upland disposal areas of the Calcasieu River immediately adjacent to (across East Fork), and into the shallow water marsh creation area to an elevation of 1.4 ft NAVD 88. Clean out approximately 5,000 LF of the Cameron Creole Watershed Levee borrow channel to facilitate water movement into the newly created area. Containment dikes will be constructed around the marsh creation area to keep material on site during pumping. Once pumping has been completed, the containment dikes will be degraded to the current platform elevation and gaps will be excavated. Additionally, 251 acres of vegetative plantings will occur within  the newly created areas. Approximately 10,000 linear feet of tidal creeks and two 2.5 acre ponds will be constructed to help facilitate hydrologic flow of water in and out of project area.

No Name Bayou Marsh Creation and Nourishment is located in Region 4, Calcasieu-Sabine Basin, Cameron Parish.

This project is on Priority Project List (PPL) 24 and was approved for Phase I Engineering and Design in January 2015.

No Name Bayou Marsh Creation and Nourishment project sponsors include:

• Federal Sponsor: National Marine Fisheries Service
• Local Sponsor: Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority

Keep up with this project and other CWPPRA projects on the project page.

 

Freshwater Bayou Marsh Creation

This area was damaged by Hurricanes Rita, Gustav, and Ike. Currently, Freshwater Bayou threatens to breach into the large interior open water and establish a hydrologic connection that previously did not exist. This would exacerbate the environmental problems affecting marshes in this area. Additionally, interior marsh loss has increased and organic soils are being exported into Freshwater Bayou. Interior marsh loss will increase without construction of the proposed project.

The project goals include: 1) creating/nourishing marsh and associated edge habitat for aquatic species through pipeline sediment delivery via dedicated dredging from the Gulf of Mexico or beneficial use of maintenance dredging from the Freshwater Bayou Canal; 2) restoring a wetland buffer between the large open water areas in the Mermentau Basin and Freshwater Bayou. Project features include creating and/or nourishing approximately 401 acres of marsh using dredge material.

The project features are located in Vermilion Parish, Louisiana in an area west of Freshwater Bayou and north of the Freshwater Bayou Locks.

This project is on Priority Project List (PPL) 19. 

The Freshwater Bayou Marsh Creation project sponsors include:

• Federal Sponsor: Natural Resources and Conservation Service
• Local Sponsor: Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority 

Keep up with this project and other CWPPRA projects on the project page.

 

South Lake Lery Shoreline and Marsh Restoration

According to USGS-land loss analysis, much of the southern and western shorelines of Lake Lery and the surrounding wetlands were heavily damaged in 2005 by Hurricane Katrina. In the years following this storm, wind induced waves within the lake have begun to cause further damage to the lake’s shorelines. Currently the shorelines have become so damaged that the interior emergent marshes that are still intact are being exposed to the damaging waves. This has caused an increased loss of emergent marsh habitat. Even with the benefits of the Caernarvon Diversion Structure, without some type of restoration in this area, these marshes may not be able to fully recover.

This is a marsh creation and shoreline restoration project. The marsh creation aspect of the project would utilize a hydraulic dredge to extract material form Lake Lery water bottoms and pump that material into contained marsh creation cells which are located south of Lake Lery. This will initially create and/or nourish approximately 496 acres of marsh (356 Net Acres at Target Year 20). The shoreline restoration project component would have a barge-mounted dragline excavating material from the bottom of Lake Lery and placing that material along 35,831 ft. of the southern and western Lake Lery shorelines. This restored shoreline would have a 50 foot crown width and be built to a height considered high intertidal marsh.

The lake side shoreline would have a 5:1 side slope which would be planted with smooth cordgrass and bullwhip. This would initially create 55 acres of marsh (50 Net Acres at Target Year 20) along the Lake Lery shoreline. Total created/restored marsh acreage for this project is 551 acres (406 Total Net Acres at Target Year 20).

The project area is located in Region 2, within the Breton Sound Basin portion of Plaquemines Parish. The project is specifically located south of the Caernarvon Freshwater Diversion Structure and west of the town of Delacroix, southeast of New Orleans.

As of April 2016, this project is under construction with most of the lake shoreline restoration nearly completed on the southern shoreline. The western shoreline restoration feature is currently underway. There is one marsh creation cell that is nearly completed. A larger dredge will be arriving soon and marsh creation will accelerate. This project is on Priority Project List (PPL) 17.

The South Lake Lery Shoreline and Marsh Restoration project sponsors include:

• Federal Sponsor: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
• Local Sponsor: Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority

Keep up with this project and other CWPPRA projects on the project page.