News

The state’s cornerstone coastal restoration project has been delayed. The announcement was made in Baton Rouge at the monthly Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority Board meeting.

If constructed, the Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion would build land by diverting some of the muddy Mississippi River water through a controlled structure along the river levee, and into nearby marshes.

Despite continued pushback from commercial fishing groups, state officials are eager to get the project built quickly. Last year, the state signed an agreement with the federal government that would speed up the timeline for the project by about two years.

After a couple years of billing issues, the Sewerage and Water Board (SWB) said last fall that citizens owed the utility about $23 million dollars. Now, it turns out that number is even higher.

At a city council committee meeting on Tuesday, council member Joe Giarrusso revealed that the number is currently closer to $130 million.

Be in the audience on Thursday, April 4, when WWNO’s Coastal Reporter Tegan Wendland interviews author Nathaniel Rich about his new book, Losing Earth: A Recent History.  Rich argues that by 1979 we knew nearly everything we know today about climate change, and how to stop it. In Losing Earth, Rich chronicles the next decade’s desperate campaign by a small number of scientists, politicians, and others to act before we lose the chance to save the earth.

A new study from Tulane University’s Education Research Alliance looks into how charter school reforms impacted New Orleans' expulsion and suspension rates. Researchers found that the reforms increased expulsion rates in the first few years after the state took over the city's schools, but that after mounting public pressure and a lawsuit, expulsion rates dropped back down.

Join WWNO's Coastal Desk and Canoe & Trail Adventures for a canoe and kayak trip down Cane Bayou on the Northshore!

One of the coolest things about the Louisiana coast is the way it gradually transitions from cypress swamp into open marsh, and you'll see it firsthand on Cane Bayou. WWNO and Northshore-based outfitter Canoe & Trail Adventures are teaming up to present this this paddle tour, led by a master naturalist, who will tell us all about the plants, animals and history of this slice of Louisiana's unique coastal ecosystem.

Last year's trip sold out in advance so make sure to sign up soon!

It is said that St. Patrick's Day may be the most widely celebrated national festival. Commemorating the Feast Day of St. Patrick, March 17th is honored as a national holiday in Ireland, Northern Ireland, and several Canadian provinces.