Coastal Desk

This week on the Coastal News Roundup -- how weather radar can be used to count migrating birds. Plus, the state looks to increase the size of a major (and controversial) coastal restoration project.

WWNO’s Travis Lux talks about the week in coastal news with environment reporter Sara Sneath from Nola.com | The Times-Picayune.

This week on the Coastal News Roundup, WWNO’s Travis Lux talks with Mark Schleifstein, environment reporter for Nola.com/The Times-Picayune, about a big new oil find in the Gulf of Mexico. Plus, the latest on a lawsuit related to Hurricane Katrina damages.

The following transcript has been lightly edited:

This week on the Coastal News Roundup, WWNO’s Travis Lux talks with columnist Bob Marshall from Nola.com | The Times-Picayune. They reviewed some of the big environmental news of 2018 -- and look ahead toward the likely stories of 2019.

The ribbon of marshland between New Orleans East and Slidell is referred to as the New Orleans East Landbridge. The strip of land protects people from storm surge. Like other parts of the coast, it’s eroding - and as sea levels rise, that could make flooding worse on both the north shore and the south shore of Lake Ponchartrain.

The state of Louisiana is often the entity advocating for specific coastal restoration projects, but now the city of New Orleans is getting involved. WWNO’s Travis Lux spoke with New Orleans Coastal Program Manager Anne Coglianese about the Landbridge restoration, and the city’s involvement.

The Trump administration is proposing changes to how a big environmental law -- the Clean Water Act --  is enforced. That could have implications for many of Louisiana’s wetlands, and the state’s efforts to restore the eroding coast.

To better understand what the proposed changes could mean for Louisiana, WWNO’s Travis Lux spoke with water law expert Mark Davis, who leads the Tulane Institute on Water Resources Law and Policy.