HLS 201ES-284 ORIGINAL
2020 First Extraordinary Session
HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 24
BY REPRESENTATIVE WHEAT
COASTAL RES/WETLANDS: Urges and requests the Coastal Protection and Restoration
Authority to work with the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries to develop
integrated coastal protection projects aimed at preserving and maintaining healthy
estuarine and essential fish habitat in and around Lake Pontchartrain
1 A RESOLUTION
2To urge and request the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority to work with the
3 Department of Wildlife and Fisheries to develop integrated coastal protection
4 projects aimed at preserving and maintaining healthy estuarine and essential fish
5 habitat in and around Lake Pontchartrain.
6 WHEREAS, the Lake Pontchartrain Basin comprises over ten thousand square miles
7of land in southeast Louisiana and Mississippi; and
8 WHEREAS, the Lake Pontchartrain Basin is one of the largest estuarine systems in
9the Gulf of Mexico containing over twenty-two essential habitats and encompassing both
10rural and urban land use in the most densely populated region in Louisiana, including metro
11New Orleans and the state capital, Baton Rouge; and
12 WHEREAS, the Lake Pontchartrain Basin is the heart of the region's commercial and
13recreational fisheries and the center of southeastern Louisiana's unique cultural heritage, and
14the estuary's habitats provide important ecological, cultural, and economic benefits to the
15entire region; and
16 WHEREAS, estuaries and coastal waters provide an essential habitat for seventy-five
17percent of America's commercial fish catch and eighty to ninety percent of the recreational
18fish catch while at the same time, estuaries protect landowners from flood waters and act as
19storm buffers, guarding residential areas from hurricanes; and
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HR NO. 24
1 WHEREAS, in 2019 high water in the state's rivers, particularly the Mississippi
2River, created a situation where the Bonnet Carré Spillway, located on the southwestern
3edge of Lake Pontchartrain, was open for one hundred twenty-two days diverting large
4amounts of fresh water into the brackish water of Lake Pontchartrain; and
5 WHEREAS, the Bonnet Carré Spillway was opened in 2016, 2018, 2019, and again
6in the spring of 2020, dumping fresh water into Lake Pontchartrain each time and causing
7extreme damage to the freshwater fisheries of the lake; and
8 WHEREAS, while acknowledging the necessity of operating the spillway for flood
9control as it was intended, we must also look at efforts to mitigate the damages done to the
10estuary and restoring the fisheries impacted by that operation; and
11 WHEREAS, past efforts to preserve and develop estuarine habitat have included the
12establishment of rock jetties to protect the shoreline which have the added benefit of
13harboring small fish and acting as a nursery for many species of fish and the establishment
14of artificial reefs through deploying reef balls that encourage the biodiversity and
15environmental quality of the lake through supplementing hard substratum; and
16 WHEREAS, efforts such as these would be of great benefit to the northwestern areas
17of the lake, the areas most directly affected by the influx of fresh water into the lake; and
18 WHEREAS, under the 2019 Fisheries Disaster funding from the National Oceanic
19and Atmospheric Administration, Louisiana has been allocated $58 million for fisheries
20recovery, some of which could be used by the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries and the
21Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority to improve essential fish habitat in Lake
22Pontchartrain, particularly in the western portion of the lake which is the portion first
23affected by the influx of fresh water from the Mississippi River; and
24 WHEREAS, in addition to the ecological aspects of the Pontchartrain Basin, there
25has been an increase in human population surrounding the lake which has increased the
26possibilities of flooding along the lakeshore with a concordant increase in economic impacts
27from such flooding, some of which could be mitigated through preservation and
28development of more estuarine habitat; and
29 WHEREAS, more frequent high water incidents are affecting the quality of life and
30having negative economic impacts on the residents and businesses located around the lake,
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HR NO. 24
1impacts that could be mitigated through the implementation of thoughtful, scientifically-
2based integrated coastal protection projects coordinated between the Coastal Protection and
3Restoration Authority and the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries; and
4 WHEREAS, Lake Pontchartrain is not frequently thought of in terms of coastal
5restoration but clearly lies in the coastal zone and is struggling with the same difficulties and
6adversity from the same set of factors as the rest of coastal Louisiana in the efforts to
7preserve and maintain both the ecological health of the area and the protection of the
8residents and businesses that reside near and benefit from the lake.
9 THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the House of Representatives of the
10Legislature of Louisiana does hereby urge and request the Coastal Protection and Restoration
11Authority to work with the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries to develop integrated
12coastal protection projects aimed at preserving and maintaining healthy estuarine and
13essential fish habitat in and around Lake Pontchartrain.
14 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be forwarded to the
15chairman of the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority and secretary of the
16Department of Wildlife and Fisheries.
DIGEST
The digest printed below was prepared by House Legislative Services. It constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument. The keyword, one-liner, abstract, and digest do not constitute
part of the law or proof or indicia of legislative intent. [R.S. 1:13(B) and 24:177(E)]
HR 24 Original 2020 First Extraordinary Session Wheat
Urges and requests the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority to work with the Dept.
of Wildlife and Fisheries to develop integrated coastal protection projects aimed at
preserving and maintaining healthy estuarine and essential fish habitat in and around Lake
Pontchartrain.
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