Flood Washington: Demand a Commitment to Louisiana's Coast and Communities

We're on record now - shooting for 300,000 comments to remind President Bush of his promise to do whatever it takes to make New Orleans rise again. Ambitious? Foolish? Who knows - but it will be a massive increase over our past action campaigns. Of course most of our campaigns aren't about issues that regularly decorate the front page of the NYT. Or covered on 60 Minutes (even in a 1/2 assed way). 300,000 comments is about one for every displaced Louisianan. It's also about the size of a decent MoveOn.org campaign. But they've got 7 million people on their list - we've got a lot less.

So, we're gonna need help - lot's of help. Been to New Orleans before? JazzFest? Mardi Gras? Essence Fest? Voodoo Fest? French Quarter Fest? Shrimp and Petroleum Fest? Some lame convention? Well then, most likely you know why we care whether New Orleans actually rises again. And if we get some tiny percentage of all the tourists who have been through our fine town in the past 5 years to take a moment and call the White House, or their Senator or Representative - we would see a federal commitment the next day.

Instead, we've got the former head of the FDIC failing to give the necessary reasurances.

Exactly three months ago, Hurricane Katrina swept ashore just east of New Orleans, devastating the Gulf Coast with her strength. Many exhaled in relief, as it seemed New Orleans had been spared the worst of Katrina's impacts. The next day, as our levees gave way, it was clear that the worst lay ahead for one of our country's most important cultural and historical cities.

The slow motion tragedy that unfolded in front of the eyes of the world was horrible to watch, yet impossible to turn away from. Now, our city is dry but the future of New Orleans is in doubt, as it becomes clear that our levees were not able to withstand the storms for which they were designed.

A less-known component of New Orleans’ insecurity is the crisis facing our coastal wetlands. Although we know that each mile of coastal marsh diminishes a foot of storm-surge from hurricanes such as Katrina, coastal Louisiana continues to lose a football field’s worth of wetlands every 35 minutes to erosion, jeopardizing the nation’s oil infrastructure, Gulf seafood production, and, most visibly, our coastal cities. A comprehensive plan to reintroduce the land-building power of the Mississippi River into our dissolving coastal marshes has been written, but lies in Washington, unfunded and not prioritized.

New Orleans and South Louisiana must have category 5 hurricane protection. This protection must integrate an effective levee system with marsh restoration and protection of coastal forests. If businesses are to have the confidence needed to return and revitalize the city that gave the world Louis Armstrong, seafood gumbo, and America's best Mardi Gras, we must give New Orleans the protection it deserves.

Click here to demand a commitment to Louisiana's Coast and Communities!

Aaron Viles is the GRN's Campaign Director