CWPPRA Programmatic Lessons Learned 24 Years of Coastal Restoration

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Cameron French
5 years ago
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1 CWPPRA Programmatic Lessons Learned 24 Years of Coastal Restoration Kevin Roy U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Ron Boustany Natural Resources Conservation Service

2 Coastal Wetlands Planning, Protection and Restoration Act Authorized by Congress in 1990 Sport Fish Restoration and Boating Safety Trust Fund Trust Fund is supported by excise taxes on fishing equipment, small engine and motorboat fuel taxes 18.5% dedicated to CWPPRA 70% LA CWPPRA 15% Coastal Wetland Conservation Grants 15% North American Wetlands Conservation Act (coastal) $80M - $90M each year for LA Projects are authorized for a 20-year life and cost shared 85% Federal 15% State

3 CWPPRA Task Force

4 Project Development and Selection Public meetings held for project nominations - agencies, public, landowners, local government ~ 70 projects nominated with preliminary costs/benefits Agencies and coastal parishes select top 20 projects CWPPRA Technical Committee selects 10 candidates for detailed evaluation of costs/benefits Phase 0 Task Force selects 4 projects for Phase 1 E&D Upon completion of E&D, project competes for Phase 2 (construction) funding

5 CWPPRA Project Types Marsh Creation Barrier Island Restoration Shoreline Protection Terracing

6 Marsh Creation 566 acres of marsh creation

7 Barrier Island Restoration 134 acres of dune and beach 264 acres of intertidal saline marsh

8 Shoreline Protection 21,000 ft of foreshore rock dike

9 Terracing 197,000 linear feet of earthen terraces

10 CWPPRA Report Card Total Funding (Fed+State) - $1.5B Total Expenditures - $922M Total Active Projects 150 Completed Projects 101 Projects Currently Under Construction 18 Project in E&D 31 Net acres restored/protected ~ 99,000 acres (all active projects)

11 Program Changes, Lessons Learned, and the Future Project Flexibility and Restoration Opportunities Program Flexibility Project Re-Scoping and Changing Restoration Plans Beyond the 20-year Life

quickly to allow project expansion from 1,200 acres to nearly 2,800 acres.

12 Project Flexibility Dredged material overestimated for original footprint State surplus funds added to project Fortunately, landrights, design, and permitting processes moved quickly to allow project expansion from 1,200 acres to nearly 2,800 acres. Lesson Early planning and design should incorporate the flexibility to take advantage of restoration opportunities.

Program Flexibility Design modeling indicated that outfall management features would be ineffective Project re-scoped to investigate features to improve siphon operation Instrumentation allowing

13 Program Flexibility Design modeling indicated that outfall management features would be ineffective Project re-scoped to investigate features to improve siphon operation Instrumentation allowing remote operation now being investigated Program is not so rigid to disallow significant project re-scoping. The flexibility to re-scope projects has allowed us to take advantage of numerous opportunities.

14 Changing plans And new directions

Coast 2050 Restoration Strategies Manage Atchafalaya Influence to Sustain Wetlands Improve Hydrology and Drainage Stabilize Navigation Channel Banks for Water Conveyance Maintain Shoreline Integrity

15 Coast 2050 Restoration Strategies Manage Atchafalaya Influence to Sustain Wetlands Improve Hydrology and Drainage Stabilize Navigation Channel Banks for Water Conveyance Maintain Shoreline Integrity Reduce Sedimentation in Bays Reef Building Manage Atchafalaya Influence Eastward Land Building in Timbalier Bay Conveyance Channel and Delta Lobe Maximize Land Building Protect Bay Shorelines HNC Hydrologic Control Land Building in Timbalier Bay by dedicated dredging Restore Barrier Islands Coastwide, Regional, and Mapping Unit Strategies provided a high degree of flexibility in project development

16 Restoration strategies very focused; Less flexibility in project development; Restricts project development under the CWPPRA program

17 Project Life Beyond 20 Years Projects are reaching the end of their 20-year authorized life Continue O&M or not? Liability, project closeout, program re-authorization? Task Force has developed a process to extend project life Considers costs and benefits of continuing O&M vs project closeout Project transfer to another entity NGO, landowner, State Allows worthwhile projects to continue providing benefits More consideration should have been given to project expiration in early years of CWPPRA

CWPPRA Future Legislation authorized through 2019 However, Congress has postponed renewing the Sport Fish Restoration and Boating Safety Trust Fund

18 CWPPRA Future Legislation authorized through 2019 However, Congress has postponed renewing the Sport Fish Restoration and Boating Safety Trust Fund Trust Fund renewed until October 2014 Hopeful that authorizing legislation will be renewed Proceeding under the assumption that authorization will be extended

19 For More Information LaCoast.gov

BREAUX ACT Coastal Wetlands Planning, Protection and Restoration Act. TASK FORCE MEETING 11 October Minutes

I. INTRODUCTION BREAUX ACT Coastal Wetlands Planning, Protection and Restoration Act TASK FORCE MEETING 11 October 2012 Minutes Colonel Edward Fleming convened the 82 nd meeting of the Louisiana Coastal