The Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority (CPRA) has been awarded over $122 million through a RESTORE Act Direct Component programmatic grant to support construction of the first phase of the Calcasieu-Sabine Large-Scale Marsh and Hydrologic Restoration project.
According to CPRA, this award represents a significant step forward in delivering long-planned restoration across the 65,000-acre Cameron Creole Watershed (CCW), located within the Calcasieu-Sabine Basin in Cameron Parish. This region is vital to both Louisiana’s ecological resilience and the economic stability of Southwest Louisiana.
Governor Jeff Landry said: “This funding allows us to move from planning to construction on one of our most critical restoration efforts. We will now be on the ground, moving dirt, restoring wetlands, and building real protections for the people, communities, and industries that depend on a strong, resilient coast.”
The Calcasieu-Sabine Basin has experienced dramatic land loss, with more than 128,000 acres of wetlands lost since 1932. Projections show that an additional 110,000 acres would be lost over the next 50 years without intervention.
CPRA said that this project will progress in stages, focusing on large-scale restoration, improved marsh hydrology, and sustainable ecosystem health.
The program aims to reduce wetland loss by addressing inundation stress and improving marsh drainage to sustain vegetative productivity and ecosystem health.
Utilizing RESTORE grant funds, CPRA will begin the first phase of the project by constructing seven lake-rim gravity drainage structures with backflow prevention along the southeastern rim of Calcasieu Lake. These structures will capitalize on natural water level fluctuations, such as low tides and cold fronts, to improve drainage and alleviate persistent inundation stress in the CCW.
Additional phases of the project include improvements of up to 18 miles of conveyance channels to reestablish hydrologic flow and strategic marsh creation and nourishment using dredged material to restore up to 2,000 acres of wetlands.