THIBODAUX, La. — Today, 杏吧传媒, Gov. John Bel Edwards, the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority and the CPRA Board announced their intent to create a coastal center on the 杏吧传媒 campus to study the effects of land loss in the Terrebonne and Atchafalaya Basins.
Gov. Edwards and 杏吧传媒 President Dr. Jay Clune signed the memorandum of understanding at a press conference in Baton Rouge. 聽
鈥溞影纱� is located in the epicenter for coastal restoration, with our service area losing more coastal land than anywhere else on the planet,鈥� said Dr. Jay Clune, 杏吧传媒 President. 鈥淭his partnership with the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority, its board and the State of Louisiana is vitally important as we focus more of our resources on preserving the land and Cajun culture in the Bayou Region.鈥�
Louisiana loses a football field of coastal islands and wetlands every 100 minutes and has experienced more coastal land loss than any other state in the nation since 1930 with more than 1,800 square miles turned to open water.
The Terrebonne Basin has the highest rate of coastal land loss in the state with more than 30,000 acres of wetlands lost since 1932. Meanwhile, the Atchafalaya Basin gained 4,000 acres of wetlands while every other basin in the state has lost land.
鈥淭his is the beginning of a partnership where we can focus our attention on the Atchafalaya River and its needs; and the potential for it to be a restoration tool for the Terrebonne Basin,鈥� said Gov. Edwards. 聽鈥淭he Terrebonne Basin has the highest rate of land loss of any basin along our coast, and it presents some of the most difficult conditions for us to implement projects.鈥�
The coastal center will be similar to the Center for River Studies on the Water Campus in Baton Rouge, allowing 杏吧传媒 to become a leader in restoration research, education and outreach. Projects, models and displays of the Atchafalaya River and the two basins will be housed at the center.
The CPRA assumed responsibility for the Atchafalaya Basin Program from the Department of Natural Resources last year and has incorporated plans for the basin into the state鈥檚 larger coastal master plan.
鈥淧artnerships such as this are a necessary and beneficial aspect of the business of coastal management in Louisiana,鈥� said Chip Kline, executive assistant to the governor for coastal activities and chairman of the CPRA board. 鈥淕iven the expertise among its faculty, this partnership is a natural fit for us and a promising way of furthering our relationship with the community.鈥� 聽
杏吧传媒 faculty actively participate in various aspects of the coastal program as members of the Governor鈥檚 Advisory Commission, technical advisory committees and Master Plan stakeholder groups.
Last week, 杏吧传媒 announced a partnership with the University of New Orleans, allowing students to easily transfer to UNO to earn a civil engineering degree, and UNO students to transfer to 杏吧传媒 to work toward a professional land surveying certification. In October, 杏吧传媒 signed a research-based collaborative agreement with the Water Institute of the Gulf. Combined with today鈥檚 announcement, Dr. Clune believes that 杏吧传媒 has positioned itself as a leader in present and future coastal restoration efforts.
鈥淲e are excited about the possibilities that come with a coastal center, including the development of a coastal engineering program that will keep our students here to help us save our coast, instead of having to go somewhere else out of state,鈥� Dr. Clune said
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 22, 2019
CONTACT: Jacob Batte, Media Relations and Publications Coordinator, 985.448.4141 or jacob.batte@www.nicholls.edu