"Prairie marshes" associated with the 3,000 km'^ (1,200 mi ) of chenier plain have 

 an old and firmer foundation (Coleman 1966). Subsidence is not q% important in the 

 ecology of these marshes as it is in the newer formation to the east (O'Neil 1949). The 

 region is subjected to uninterrupted wave attack that rapidly erodes the shoreline. Like 

 the deltaic plain, it is also facing a serious land loss problem. 



ECONOMICS OF ENDANGERED MARSH: LOSS OF MORE THAN JUST LAND 



Built by the Mississippi and eroded by natural processes often accelerated by man, 

 Louisiana's marshes nevertheless nurture and support a vast natural resource that is 

 threatened by the cumulative effects of marsh deterioration. 



Since the late I930's the wetlands complex has experienced rapid economic growth 

 and development. Much of this growth is a result of the hydrocarbons extracted onshore 

 and, more recently, offshore. Oil and gas account for a multibillion dollar industry. 

 Agriculture, seafood, trapping, and recreation are multimillion dollar industries. In 

 addition, Louisiana's largest city and the Nation's leading seaport. New Orleans, is 

 directly or indirectly tied to the economics of the marsh. Land loss affects each industry 

 differently, but in the long term, it is not in the State's best interest, since it will have a 

 cumulative effect on Louisiana's economy. 



To understand the complexities of the land loss problem as it relates to the 

 cultural/economic intricacies of the wetlands, six topics will be discussed: New Orleans, 

 trapping, fisheries, recreation, hydrocarbons and land use. 



New Orleans: The Sea Level City 



When people think of Louisiana, they think of New Orleans. The city is synonymous 

 with the State. It is Louisiana's largest city and has recently become the country's 

 largest seaport. Like the rest of south Louisiana, New Orleans is a product of the 

 Mississippi. From early cotton packets, to modern petrochemical industries that flank its 

 course from Baton Rouge to New Orleans, the Mississippi provided the principal impetus 

 for regional growth. 



To make New Orleans the city that it Is required extensive drainage and 

 reclamation programs. When the area was surveyed in 1720, each block was circled with 

 canals. These channels established New Orleans' dependence on a drainage network. 

 Levee construction began as early as 1718. Ten years later, a manmade embankment 1.6 

 km (I mile) long protected the "Vieux Carre." By 1735, it totaled 64 km (40 mi) (Davis 

 and Detro 1980). In 1743, an ordinance required property owners to complete their 

 levees or forfeit their lands (Schneider 1952). It was apparent that this settlement would 

 always face drainage problems, a battle yet to be won (Samuel 1959). 



To insure that settlers confronted the drainage problem. Governor O'Reilly, in 

 1770, issued regulations: "To every family coming to settle in the province, a tract was 

 to be granted... on condition that the grantee should within three years, construct a 

 levee. ..finish a highway..., with parallel ditches towards the levee,..." (Martin 1882). 

 These regulations guaranteed Louisiana's lowlands would be adequately drained. As a 

 result, drainage and reclamation has become an integral part of New Orleans' growth. In 

 the process, the "Crescent City" is the only North American city that has, for more than 

 two and a half centuries, fought a continuous battle with flooding. 



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