Matt Rota

Well the folks at LUMCON have finished their annual measurement of the Dead Zone that forms in the Gulf each year. On the surface, it looks like good news: it is much smaller than was predicted (see my previous blog on these predictions).However, according to the researchers, while the areal size of the Dead Zone […]

It looks like we’re in for another big one. In July, the USGS reported that the nitrogen pollution delivered to the Gulf is among the highest measured. Recently this was followed up by three predictions regarding the size of the 2009 Gulf Dead Zone. One prediction made by Scavia and Liu predicts that the Dead

Groups: Government Must Focus Resources on High Priority AreasWASHINGTON, April 1, 2009 For the first time, the U.S. Geological Survey has identified the top 150 polluting watersheds in the Mississippi River Basin that cause the annual 8,000 square-mile “Dead Zone” in the Gulf of Mexico. Based on the USGS report released today, members of the

Last week, Aaron and I both attended the “Diversions Summit” called by the Corps of Engineers to discuss reintroducing the Mississippi River into the wetlands of southeastern Louisiana. While there was some great research and some great ideas proposed, I left the conference wondering “what next?” When I spoke at the conference, I emphasized the

This past I was invited to speak before a Joint Committee hearing at the Louisiana Legislature. The agenda was vague, but I was excited to speak before pretty much all of the Legislative Committees that oversee some aspect of coastal restoration and protection. As is stated in this Times-Picayune article, the Army Corps of Engineers

Back in July, I blogged that the second largest Dead Zone ever measured had developed in the Gulf.Though the Dead Zone was almost 8,000 square miles, you might be surprised to know thatLouisiana does not officially acknowledge that this polluted area exists!The New Jersey-sized Dead Zone is a real problem that threatens Louisiana’s fishing economy

Once again, the Dead Zone has reared its ugly head in the Gulf of Mexico. Last week, Dr. Nancy Rabalais from the Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium (LUMOCON) made her annual cruise to measure the Dead Zone and despite high seas caused by Tropical Storm Dolly, the Dead Zone measures about 8,000 square miles this year,

Since its creation in 1775, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has constructed 11,000 miles of navigation channels, built 8,500 miles of levees and floodwalls, raised 500 dams, and deepened more than 140 ports and harbors. As is the case for most Americans, my very life depends on the abilities of the Corps. In a

The other day, I was looking through the New Orleans Corps of Engineers Website, exploring their Regulatory Department. This is the department that is supposed to enforce the Clean Water Act by making sure our nation’s waters and wetlands are not unnecessarily harmed by those that want to dredge, fill, or develop them. However, it