After President Obama’s speech to the nation on the oil spill, Ducks Unlimited issued a statement urging the Administration to accelerate funding and restoration plans for the Gulf Coast. DU gave support for the coastal restoration plan notably known as Louisiana’s Comprehensive Master Plan for a Sustainable Coast. DU’s lead scientist for the Gulf, Dr. Tom Moorman, commented, “There are many projects for which design could be accelerated, and many that are on the shelf ready for implementation.”

Read full statement on DU website:
DU Urges President to Accelerate Funding, Implementation of Existing Gulf Coast Restoration Plans

By Lew Carpenter

Anglers understand the importance of Coastal Louisiana wetlands to both wildlife and people. For example, a recent virtual town hall hosted by National Wildlife Federation drew more than 9,000 hunters and anglers concerned about the tremendous ecological and wildlife impacts of the BP oil spill along the Gulf Coast.

The ongoing oil leak crisis compounds the rapid loss of wetlands and places a world-class fishing destination at risk. During a mid May poll about the Gulf oil leak, anglers proved they have a variety of concerns, which include recreational fishing bans, personal behavior and long term health of fish populations.

The poll, commissioned by Pure Fishing and facilitated by AnglerSurvey.com, showed the majority of anglers put conservation concerns first. More than 67 percent of anglers who participated in the poll said long-term health of fish populations —as a result of the oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico — was a major concern.

Those responding to the poll also revealed the Gulf crisis will change their angling behavior in many ways. Slightly more than 40 percent of anglers who planned to fish the Gulf, Florida Keys or east coast of Florida in the next 12 months anticipate their fishing activity in those areas will decrease as a result of the leak.

When asked if the number of trips they take to fish for certain species will change, a third to nearly half of anglers predicted a decrease in the number of fishing trips for saltwater species because of the Gulf crisis. However, anglers indicated freshwater fishing might be a viable alternative. Approximately 26 percent of respondents anticipated an increase in the number of trips to fish for largemouth bass and 27 percent expected to take more fishing trips for other freshwater species.

A concern about government restrictions that would ban fishing also was high on anglers’ minds, with 62 percent rating this as a major concern.

It’s clear that sportsmen place a high recreational value on Louisiana’s wetlands, and this catastrophic tragedy may be the catalyst to allow long-overdue restoration projects to move forward. Reconnecting the Mississippi River with the wetlands is the only answer to long-term health and sustainability of the wetlands, as well as the game fish dependent upon the habitat.

NWF’s Andy McDaniels briefs Outdoor Writers Association of America on organization’s response to BP oil spill

Rochester, Minn. (June 10, 2010) – The BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is an unfolding tragedy that is having profound impacts on people and wildlife, the National Wildlife Federation said at the annual gathering of the nation’s outdoor writers.

“We clearly have an epic catastrophe unfolding,” said Andy McDaniels, Coastal Louisiana outreach coordinator for the National Wildlife Federation. “The greatest coastal wetland system in America is at the height of spring wildlife nesting season, including species such as the Louisiana mottled duck. Wildlife in the region now faces the largest oil spill in the nation’s history. It is hard to imagine a more dire situation.”

The National Wildlife Federation briefed attendees of the Outdoor Writers Association of America annual conference on the tremendous ecological and wildlife impacts of the BP oil spill along the Gulf Coast—an area labeled a “Sportsman’s Paradise” because of the world-class fishing and hunting opportunities that draw hunters and anglers from around the United States to the region.

Louisiana’s coast sustains one of the world’s largest fisheries, produces the largest catch of redfish, hosts up to 20 percent of the nation’s wintering waterfowl, and is home to more than 400 species of birds, fish and wildlife. It is bracing for the worst oil spill in America’s history.

NWF has a team on the ground in Venice, Louisiana, leading boat tours of the region and has served as a focal point for volunteer activism and media inquiries.

“This river of oil is still flowing out of the Gulf [and] these toxins will stay in the marsh mud for years,” said McDaniels, who briefed reporters on the spill. “We need your help to turn this around.”

Coastal Louisiana was already in trouble prior to the spill. Levees built for flood control have straight-jacketed the Mississippi River. Instead of spreading nutrient-rich sediment that builds and sustains the delta and surrounding wetlands, the sediment funnels into the Gulf of Mexico. Canals dredged for navigation and oil and gas extraction have carved up the once-vast coastal wetland system. The canals accelerate saltwater intrusion, destroying the protective cypress forests and replacing brackish and freshwater wetlands with degraded salt marshes. Coupled with sea-level rise caused by global warming, Louisiana is losing the equivalent of about two football fields of land every hour. Since the 1930s, more than 2,300 square miles of Louisiana’s vital marshlands have disappeared. McDaniels made clear that restoration of Coastal Louisiana would be a priority NWF would aggressively pursue.

For more information , visit www.vanishingparadise.org.

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Vanishing Paradise is a project by the National Wildlife Federation to restore Louisiana’s waterfowl habitat by reconnecting the Mississippi River with the wetlands.

Immediate Release: June 10, 2010

Contact:

Andy McDaniels, mcdanielsa@nwf.org.