CPRA to reallocate funds to Maurepas Swamp project

The Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority (CPRA) is seeking public comment on the reallocation of funds to Maurepas Swamp project.

CPRA proposes to reallocate $60 million in Spill Impact Component funding to the River Reintroduction to Maurepas Swamp project and expand the geographic scope coastwide for all components of the System-Wide Assessment and Monitoring Program (SWAMP) under CPRA’s Adaptive Management Program without any associated change in funding.

The $60 million for the CPRA’s River Reintroduction into Maurepas Swamp project would come from a previously-approved allocation for the CPRA-Parish Matching Opportunities program.

The Maurepas project will divert Mississippi River water into the Maurepas Swamp to restore processes that enhance ecosystem health and reduce future loss of approximately 45,000 acres of bald cypress-water tupelo forest. It is a critical component of the State’s Coastal Master Plan.

Additionally, a portion of the Maurepas project area overlaps the $700 million West Shore Lake Pontchartrain Hurricane and Storm Damage Risk Reduction Project to reduce flood risk to over 60,000 people in St. Charles, St. John the Baptist, and St. James Parishes. The commonality provides a key opportunity to save money by consolidating the engineering, design, and construction of the overlapping portions of the two projects.

The proposed second Amendment to the State’s RESTORE Act State Expenditure Plan is open for public comment for a minimum of 45 days, until December 6, 2021.