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October 20, 2003 Contact: Louisiana’s Cameron Creole Watershed – Marsh Terracing Project has received The 2003 Coastal America Partnership Award today at Cameron Prairie National Wildlife Refuge in Bell City, Cameron Parish. Emil Frankel, Assistant Secretary for Transportation Policy, U.S. Department of Transportation, presented the award to the multi-agency, community projectpartners. Working cooperatively on this project were representatives from 16 local, state, and national organizations including the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development; the Federal Highway Administration; the Cameron Parish Police Jury; Ducks Unlimited; the staff of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Cameron Prairie National Wildlife Refuge;and the North American Wetlands Conservation Council. Others involved were the Louisiana Department of Natural Resources; Gulf Coast Soil and Water Conservation District; Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry; Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries; Miami Corporation; North American Land Company; Shell Oil Company Foundation; U.S.Geological Survey; Natural Resources Conservation Service; and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. "The Bush administration is committed to environmental stewardship as one of its top transportation priorities," Frankel said. "Flexible federal programs allow states to develop creative solutions like the one we are celebrating today, and we intend to do even better. Our six-year surface transportation legislative proposal will help us work with states to protect, preserve and restore our coasts and wetlands." After improvements to Louisiana Highway 27 that made the road safer and improved it as a hurricane evacuation route, the Cameron Creole Watershed – Marsh Terracing Project was conceived. Compensation for displaced wetlands created by highway improvements evolved into a much larger marsh restoration project than originally planned. Theduck-wing marsh terracing will also reduce coastal wetlands loss from erosion and provide nesting sites for wildlife, such as the mottled duck and American alligator. Accepting the team plaque for the Cameron Creole Watershed – Marsh Terracing Project was Dr. Kam Movassaghi, Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development Secretary. Columbus Brown, Special Assistant to the Southeast Regional Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Frankel presented each of the organizations involved with a plaque and a letter from President George Bush. “This project is an example of how public agencies and private groups can work together for the benefit of all,” said Dr. Movassaghi, “The resulting collaboration yielded a better result for the money spent than a multitude of smaller projects individually pursued for the same money. The ultimate winners are Louisiana and the nation. We are delighted we had the opportunity to participate in this coastal marsh restoration project.” "I commend the great cooperation and hard work of the 16 state, federal and private organizations who have come together to improve our marsh wetlands and protect wildlife at the Cameron Creole Watershed-Marsh Terracing Project," said Senator John Breaux (D-LA). "Our Louisiana wetlands boast some of the world's most unique wildlife, and thanks to this coalition we can protect this Cameron Parish habitat for generations to come." Louisiana has lost more than 1,500 square miles of marsh during the last 70 years – the highest coastal wetlands loss rate in the Nation. Man-made navigation channels have contributed to changes in the landscape’s natural water-flow patterns, allowing salt water into the marsh which results in the death of its vegetation. These areas, stripped of submerged aquatic vegetation, become turbid, open water areas that are being eroded by wind and wave action. About 25 to 35 square miles of the coast’s wetlands are being replaced each year by open water habitat. Such impacts were causing
the erosion of the East Cove Prairie Unit of the Cameron Prairie National
Wildlife Refuge. Because Louisiana Highway 27 is one of the state’s
emergency coastal evacuation routes, existing ditches that contained
wetlands needed to be replaced by shoulders along the road. To compensate
for the loss of wetlands, it was decided to restore the deteriorating
marsh area of the East Cove Unit that is close to Highway 27. Since March 2002, about 27
linear miles of V-shaped terraces, planted with plugs of smooth cordgrass,
have been constructed. From the air the terraces resemble duck wings.
The successful project that began on the refuge has expanded to other
public and private lands within the area. These terraces buffer wind
and wave action, and calmer water encourages the growth of submerged
aquatic vegetation that is vital to wetlands. Wintering, migration,
and breeding habitat is restored for migratory birds. The Coastal America Partnership was established in 1992 to protect, preserve, and restore our coastal watersheds by integrating federal actions with state and local government and non-governmental efforts. The federal partners include the Departments of Agriculture, Air Force, Army, Commerce, Defense, Energy, Housing and Urban Development, Interior, Navy, State, Transportation, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Executive Office of the President. Through multi-agency teams, thepartnership process enables national policy issues to be identified and resolved, regional plans and strategies to be developed, and local projects to be implemented. To recognize outstanding partnership efforts, Coastal America established a national awards program in 1997. Cameron Prairie National Wildlife Refuge is one of America’s 542 national wildlife refuges. The National Wildlife Refuge System, America’s only system of lands dedicated to wildlife conservation, celebrates its 100th anniversary in 2003. The refuge system was established in 1903 by President Theodore Roosevelt at Pelican Island, Florida. It was expanded in 1904 with the establishment of the second national wildlife refuge at Louisiana’s Breton Island. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service is the principal federal agency responsible for conserving,
protecting, and enhancing fish, wildlife, and plants and their habitats
for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages
the 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System that encompasses
542 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other
special management areas. It also operates 69 national fish hatcheries,
64 fishery resource offices, and 81 ecological services field stations.
The agency enforces federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered
Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores national significant
fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat, such as wetlands,
and helps foreign governments with their conservation efforts. It also
oversees the Federal Aid program that distributes hundreds of millions
of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state
fish and wildlife agencies.
Presidental Letter to the Members of the Cameron Cerole Watershead Marsh Terracing Project Team - (pdf)
For more information about the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, visit our home page at http://southeast.fws.gov/ or http://www.fws.gov/. NOTE: You can view our releases or subscribe to receive them -- via e-mail -- at the Service's Southeast Regional home page at http://southeast.fws.gov. Our national home page is at: http://news.fws.gov/newsreleases/. Atlanta, GA 30345 |
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