Gov. John Bel Edwards challenged Louisiana officials this week to restore at least 20,000 acres of eroded wetlands by 2020, The Courier reports. Edwards issued the challenge to dozens of public officials and coastal advocates who gathered at LSU on Tuesday for the last of a two-day conference.
“We all know some will ask why spend the money in the first place if the coast is in so much trouble?” Edwards said. “The answer is because we have communities there now and industries and cultural resources and I am open to creative solutions. We all have to be.”
The summit was sponsored by the state Coastal Restoration and Protection Authority and the America’s Wetland Foundation to discuss goals as the state prepares to update its Coastal Master Plan, set to go before the Legislature in the spring.
Edwards suggested the $50 billion estimate for projects in the plan may not be enough. Officials estimate that $10.7 billion will be available over the coming 15 years, including money from fines paid by BP for the 2010 oil spill as well as increased oil revenue from drilling in federal waters off the state’s coast.
