Coastal erosion and rising waters challenge Louisiana every year. With flooding getting worse and land sinking into the sea, residents have had to adapt and fight through various means.
But coastal problems don’t just affect humans – they put many Louisiana native animals in danger as well.
Louisiana is home to over 400 bird species, according to Audubon Louisiana, an organization dedicated to restoring habitats and educating on birds.
“South Louisiana is a major nesting grounds for a number of species of birds; more than 325 of them travel along the Mississippi flyway each year,” said Director of Communications and Marketing for Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana (CRCL) James Krast.
While many of the various species are affected by eroding coast lines in their own way, one that has been at the forefront of it all is the state bird: brown pelicans.
In the mid-1960s, the brown pelicans were almost wiped completely due to the harmful pesticide Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (more commonly known as DDT) being used in the mid-1900s, according to the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF). While not harmful to people, the pesticide proved deadly for the pelicans.
In the late-60s, LDWF started the process of reintroducing brown pelicans to the Louisiana coast to save them.
The settlement of choice was Queen Bess Island, a remote island just northeast of Grand Isle in the Jefferson Parish, that earlier this year was finally declared restored by Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards and the Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority (CPRA).
“I think they’ll like what we’ve done with the place,” said Gov. John Bel Edwards in a press release.
A call for action occurred when after a survey, it was concluded that Louisiana lost about 50% of its regular Brown Pelican colonies, according to the CPRA.
Through the project, land size has seen a jump from 5 acres to 37 acres, according to the LDWF, a major change for an island that produces 15 to 20% of the Louisiana’s bird nesting activity. It also serves as a nesting habitat for 10 other bird species including tri-colored herons and great egrets, according to the LDWF.
The $18.7 million restoration comes as a result of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico that harmed America’s coast, including Queen Bess Island. This island was completed just in time for the 10-year anniversary of the spill.
“The island was already slowly deteriorating, but the effects of the oil spill were catastrophic to the site,” said CPRA Board Chairman Chip Kline in a statement.
The Deepwater Horizon oil spill was the final push for the island that was already losing ground after years of coastal erosion.
“Louisiana coast has the highest rate of land loss,” said CPRA Public Information Director Chuck Perrodin.
To combat this, programs are set up to literally rebuild the island pretty much from the ground up. This is a process known as “dredging.”
“We do dredging which is the process of sucking up sand, pumping it out, and rebuilding land,” said Perrodin. “We have done about 47,000 acres of coastal land in its time of operation.”
For Queen Bess Island, there was already an existing land that has just been, essentially, submerged into the coast. CPRA oversaw the production of the land which included enhancing the land with depositing of sediment.
“The coast is built like a layer cake of sediment,” said Perrodin.
The highest portion of the island is on the southwest side and sits about four feet above sea level, according to CPRA. It gradually slopes down to a marsh area.
The foundation is not the only thing provided for these birds and their refurbished nesting habitat. The project plan outlined by CPRA includes the addition of rock reinforcement, vegetation, breakwaters, and bird ramps.
A ring of rock reinforcements serves as another layer of protection for the birds residing on the island, according to CPRA. Breakwaters can provide help as well as slowing down coastal erosion from waves.
Vegetation provides additional habitat improvement for the nesting birds and will be kept up with for years to come, according to CPRA.
Limestone bird ramps are a new feature to the island and their purpose, according to CPRA, is to help the young, flightless birds safely have access to the surrounding waters.
Queen Bess Island has been deemed a Louisiana state wildlife refuge by the LDWF, which ensures it another level of protection for the island and the birds.
Various regulations for the island have been enacted by the LDWF including no hunting, no human access (including fishing in surrounding waters) from February 1st to September 1st , and no disturbance or removal of vegetation.
Queen Bess Island is not the only island to get a new life through restorations. Whiskey Island and Raccoon Island are two in Terrebonne Parish, Louisiana that have been subject to revamping in order to protect land and habitats.
Raccoon Island, according to the Coastal Wetland Planning, Protection, and Restoration Act (CWPPRA), was losing land that was threatening local bird habitats.
Both have been restored, according to Terrebonne Parish’s Department of Coastal Restoration and Preservation Director Mart Black.
The Louisiana coastline is home to organisms of all kinds and through continuous restoration efforts are working to be protected.
But while many of relocation ideas in place or in the works, coastal animals are unplanned for.
“Many songbirds as well as ducks and geese spend their winters in south Louisiana,” said Krast. “Other birds spend their entire lives here. Animals other than homo sapiens — no. I know of no other relocation plans.”