This marsh creation project is located in eastern New Orleans on the narrow landbridge that separates Lake Pontchartrain from Lake Borgne. Salinities have increased in this area due to local subsidence and canals and along with waves, have resulted in the rapid retreat of the shoreline and expansion of ponds and lakes within the marsh. This project will create and restore this marsh land-bridge using sediment, restoring significant fish and wildlife habitat and a crucial line of defense from storm surge for 1.5 million people in the parishes surrounding Lake Pontchartrain.

Fish and Waterfowl Benefits

This project is a critical landscape feature that includes the Bayou Sauvage National Wildlife Refuge, the largest urban refuge in the nation. The refuge provides opportunities for sportsmen to fish and crab and for youth to hunt waterfowl. The landbridge also helps buffer storm surge for the nearby Big Branch National Wildlife Refuge where people crab, hunt deer, small game and waterfowl, and fish in the marshes, bayous and in Lake Pontchartrain for speckled trout, bass, redfish and other popular species.