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Regular Session, 2014
HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTI ON NO. 213
BY REPRESENTATIVES RICHARD, DOVE, AND GISCLAIR AND SENATORS
ALLAIN, BROWN, CHABERT, AND GARY SMITH
A CONCURRENT RESOLUTI ON
To urge and request the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to terminate all proceedings related
to the construction of mitigation in the Raceland area and to locate a place other than
Lafourche Parish and Terrebonne Parish as a source for dirt to be used in hurricane
protection efforts in Orleans Parish.
WHEREAS, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has been tasked by congress with the
responsibility of hurricane protection in Louisiana and the majority of the Corps' efforts are
currently focused on New Orleans and the surrounding area; and
WHEREAS, hurricane protection for that great city and the residents of the extreme
southeastern portions of Louisiana is of vital importance; and
WHEREAS, although levee construction, which is being conducted in the New
Orleans area, is a very important element of hurricane protection, it is not the only
component of hurricane protection; and
WHEREAS, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is proposing to construct three
mitigation projects in the North Raceland area; and
WHEREAS, these projects will have a detrimental effect on private landowners and
the sugar industry in Lafourche Parish; and
WHEREAS, barrier islands and coastal marshes provide essential and beneficial
protection from hurricanes and their impacts on the coast of Louisiana, with coastal
protection and restoration efforts being essential to the preservation of those barrier islands
and coastal marshes; and
WHEREAS, mining dirt from coastal areas that will then be used in the construction
of levees in the New Orleans area seems a bit like "Robbing Peter to pay Paul" since the
barrier islands and coastal marshes provide the first line of defense for New Orleans and the
parishes around Orleans Parish; and ENROLLEDHCR NO. 213
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WHEREAS, the place where the state has experienced the most dramatic coastal land
loss is in Barataria Bay, bordered on the west side by the parishes of Lafourche and
Terrebonne; and
WHEREAS, it is in those two parishes that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has
determined that they will be mining dirt for use on the hurricane protection levees around
the New Orleans area, a place that has already lost significant amounts of land and really
cannot afford to share its dirt with other locales; and
WHEREAS, it is incumbent upon the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to preserve the
health, safety, and welfare of the citizens and to consider the economic and ecological
impact of hurricane protection projects.
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of Louisiana does hereby
urge and request the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to terminate all proceedings related to
the construction of mitigation areas in the Raceland area and to locate a place other than
Lafourche Parish and Terrebonne Parish to be used as a source for dirt to be used in
hurricane protection efforts in Orleans Parish.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be forwarded to the
colonel in charge of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New Orleans District.
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATI VES
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE