Someone explain the sand berm construction to me

I'm not going to disagree with your opinion. The barriers may catch some oil but the damage to our coast will also be done.

I believe our local politicians know this. I think that it is a step in the right direction for these reasons.
1). Its an action that will be a step in the direction of restoring and rebuilding the habitat.

2). It will help protect The areas south of I 12 from storm surge.

3). It will retard coastal erosion.

4). It is an action......as opposed to the inaction we have seen so far by BP and The Feds to protect our coastline.


I have pledged $100.00 to a plaquemines fund that is being created in an effort for the action to begin. I did this on rodnreel.com.....reports section. Venice is where I fish.

As far as screwing up the water......its already screwed up.

Does saltwater not harm the freshwater marsh?

Intrusion of saltwater and lack of fertile nutrients from the Mississippi kill off many wetlands

I'm just giving a laymen's version of it. Not gonna get all technical tonight

quote:

---

1). Its an action that will be a step in the direction of restoring and rebuilding the habitat.

2). It will help protect The areas south of I 12 from storm surge.

3). It will retard coastal erosion.

---

My problem is that it seems like the state is using the oil spill as an excuse to get the barrier island construction they've been wanting for years on BP's dollar. BP's responsibility is to try and clean up the oil, not protect wetlands from hurricanes.

quote:

---

My problem is that it seems like the state is using the oil spill as an excuse to get the barrier island construction they've been wanting for years on BP's dollar.

---

How else are you gonna keep the oil out from interacting with our fragile ecosystems?

quote:

---

Even if they OK the berm plan it will probably take a week to mobilize the equipment to do it then take a month to build a hundred miles of berm. By then the damage will already be done.

---

It might save another month of oil interaction

This oil leak will continue for the next couple of months

quote:

---

Does saltwater not harm the freshwater marsh?

---

Yes it does. The cutting of all the oil field canals helped saltwater to penetrate further up into the estuary.

You said:

quote:

---

the salt water kills the marshes on our coast line

---

I'm guessing you just slightly misstyped. Various species are salt tolerant such as Spartina alterniflora (smooth cordgrass) and avicennia germinans (black mangrove) thus when you fish around grand isle you see spartina and black mangrove marshes, etc...you move up the estuary you get your spartina patens, juncus, etc... With a predominately freshwater marsh (typha, bulltongue, etc..and a good high water event (like 4 days of strong east winds) or a tropical storm) can knock back the vegetation a little.

Initially I thought your coastline would imply saltwater. However there are brackish and freshwater veg right near the mississippi river and Gulf and the same thing for Atchafalaya and Wax Lake.

The plan was also proposed by a group of interested parties from Louisiana three weeks ago, now. Inaction from whoever the hell is actually calling the shots here has delayed it to this point. This is why Plaquemines Parish and Jefferson Parish are preparing to start their own efforts with their own money by the end of this week, with or without paperwork from the feds.

The damage is already being done. More damage will be done. Three less weeks of it could have been done, if something had been done. The oil is still leaking out of the well. There's over a months worth of oil that leaked that's out there and will be impacting coastal areas for years.

For what it's worth, they're planning on leaving gaps in the berms that can be covered by boom and skimmers and whatnot and allow tidal waters to flow. But the berms reduce the amount of open water that they have to cover without having that beach-front area that doesn't require boats patrolling the area constantly, and lets them focus those real-time active efforts on fewer areas.

At least it would be doing something.

So i ask to be educated on berm construction and the pros/cons of it and that makes me a dumbass and disgrace?
frick you

Ecosystems will adapt to what they have. If you build a berm they can adapt to the new tidal flows. Just as they have adapted from all the dredging of the canals by the same oil companies. What they cannot adapt to is oil in the water. Oil can destroy the ecosystem while the other option would just possibly change it.

I see zero problem with having BP pay for it. The coastline has been ruined by the canals dug for the most part. The biggest question is if LA has been wanting this done for years then why is it just now being studied?