The Need
Over the last 20 years, there has been acute damage and land loss in the coastal regions and waterways in Louisiana. The number and intensity of hurricanes alongside the Deepwater Horizon oil spill and a history of canal construction have made lake and waterway restoration more important now than ever. Restoration of these vital waterways is critical to the health of the region - ecologically and economically. Storm surge-based flood depths are projected to increase in the future leading to higher sea levels, lower land mass, and the continued degradation of coastal wetlands that historically have acted as natural defenses.
Without restoration projects for Louisiana coastal and interior wetland waterways, the projected impacts include at least 1.1 thousand square miles of land loss and 15 billion dollars of damage annually.
Specifically to the Lake Maurepas area, years of levee construction along the Mississippi River have disconnected the swamp from its natural source of freshwater, nutrients, and sediment, causing significant degradation and a shift from cypress-tupelo swamp to marsh and open water. These changes also are impacted by past destructive logging practices throughout the swamp and region.
The Maurepas Swamp helps to protect communities from storm surge in St. John the Baptist, St. James, Ascension and Livingston Parishes.
Dominated by bald cypress and water tupelo trees, the Maurepas swamp complex is one of the largest forested wetlands in the nation. This isolation, coupled with rising salinities throughout the Pontchartrain Basin has left the swamp in a state of rapid decline – trees are dying, and young trees are not growing to replace them. The State of Louisiana's River Reintroduction into Maurepas Swamp project highlights the importance of the swamp and connected Lake and waterways by aiding the prevention of further wetland loss and the conversion of swamps to marshes.
The State has also prioritized protecting and restoring the waterways and coast through the Louisiana 2023 Master Plan for a Sustainable Coast (which includes a focus on flood projection, harnessing the natural processes of the system, protecting and restoring habitats that support an array of commercial and recreational activities and preserving the unique cultural heritage of the region).
Located directly west of Lake Pontchartrain, the Maurepas Swamp is an iconic Louisana swamp habitat and home to a wide range of wildlife species. One of the largest forested wetlands in the nation, the Maurepas Swamp represents a wealth of eco-tourism and recreational opportunities, including fishing, hunting, birding, kayaking and more for local residents and of-state visitors alike. There is a broad diversity of fish in the Lake, swamp and surrounding waterways and is a popular area during hunting season.
The resources managed by the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries generate substantial economic activity throughout the state. Each year anglers, hunters, wildlife watchers, and recreational boaters collectively spend billions of dollars within while pursuing the activities they are passionate about. Taken together, these natural resource-based activities led to a combined impact of over $9.4 billion on Louisiana’s economy in 2019. This economic activity contributed more than $4.1 billion to Louisiana’s Gross Domestic Product in that year, and the state and local tax impacts totaled more than $580 million.
