American Press
The Gulf of Mexico poses a constant threat to communities in coastal Louisiana.
And, for most of history, people couldn’t do much about it.
Although scientists still haven’t found a way to prevent hurricanes, they can protect land from flooding and predict when a storm will come.
Efforts to safeguard coastal Louisiana ramped up after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005, prompting the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority to develop a 50-year coastal master plan.
Speaking at a meeting Wednesday in downtown Lake Charles, Justin Ehrenwerth — CEO of Baton Rouge-based research group Water Institute of the Gulf, which helped develop the master plan — called the plan the “best in the country,” if not the best in the world.
He praised local groups like the Calcasieu Parish Police Jury and the Port of Lake Charles, as well as Water Institute vice chairman Rick Richard, for helping make the plan a reality and continuing to aid the institute’s efforts.