JULY TID BITS 2011
FROM: R.Gibbens Robichaux
GIBROB ENTERPRISES
Claudia Naquin brought me several interesting photographs of the remaining street post signs in Thibodaux. Amazing. Nora O’connell has one in her backyard and we spoke of that in a previous column. Some of the ones Claudia gave are GREEN ST., W.FIFTH ST.,ST. LOUIS ST., WEST FOURTH ST,, GREEN ST. WEST SECOND ST., The history behind these is being researched. Go driving one day around town and check these out. Bring your camera.
The Firemen’s Fair was the most successful ever and all of our volunteers deserve so much credit for the work they did and of course the weather was perfect. Thanks again Firemen.
Lorraine Wise called about the pavilion picture last month. She said that the building behind what was the power house and the end of Green St. at the bayou was a farmer’s market. And who can forget the dances on Sunday night at the pavilion. Ah, memories!!!
A really interesting thing came across my desk about the Postal service in our area. From an article in the Bayou Catholic in 1985 this information was so interesting. A month after the first RFD route in the United States was established, a Rural Free Delivery route started in Thibodaux on Nov. 1, 1896. It covered what was called “bayou routes” north and south of Thibodaux. We’ve had a local post office service since 1827. Here are the names of the first five postmasters: J.J. Dozet (1827): John Sargent (1828): Alexander Lawson (1832): George W. Squires (1835): Newcomb Hunt (1838): In the 1900’s there were these familiar names: Stanley Boudreaux. (1916): Camille Hoffman (1942-1948): Peter O’Neil (1971):Prudent Faucheaus,Jr. (1975): Robin O.Long (1992):
Lawrence Robichaux (1999). The first post office was where the RED GOOSE is now on St. Phillip St.
TIDBITS loves daily numbers like in 1980 a new person is born in the United States every 8 seconds and one dies every 12 seconds. This has changed dramatically. They said at the turn of the century eleven years ago that our population would remain around 300 million but recently I read where we are over 310,000 and still rising. In 1930 there were 122 million people in the U.S. Time flies. Increase and multiply HE said.
Here are the listing of some of the old businesses in THIBODAUX provided by Prudent Faucheaux, Jr., Curtis Hue, Joann Robichaux and Charles Ray Hebert.
TIDBITS OF OLD THIBODAUX BUSINESSES:
GULF COAST OIL, PICOU HARDWARE,MEYER DRY GOODS,LEONARD TOUPS INS., LOUISE DRESS SHOP, ADAM AUTO, HANDLEMANN’S, LAFOURCHE DRUG STORE, LAFOURCHE DRY GOODS, DREXLER MOTORS, LAFOURCHE NATIONAL BANK, CITIZENS BANK, MORGAN AND LINDSEY, DIXIE HOTEL AND RESTAURANT, JFNNIE’S CAFÉ, DR. BEATROUS, THIBODAUX FEED STORE, GRAND THEATER, GUIDROZ HARDWARE, DR. A.P. RICHARD, DR. CHARLES BARKER, KNOBLOCH AND KNOBLOCH ATTORNEYS, JEFFRIESHOTEL, MUSSO SHOE STORE, ARCENEAUX BARBER SHOP, AUTOHOME BUICK.
By June Shaw
Q: When is the best time to be thinking about your retirement?
A: Sometime before your boss does.
For those who aren’t retired yet, here are some things you can do to practice for when the time comes.
Go after simplicity. Be a child again. Play.
Take a few minutes every day for playful activities. They needn’t be expensive or time consuming. Watch the clouds pass by. Remember when you were a child and stared at them to imagine what animals they looked like? Do it again.
Lie on the grass and gaze at the sky. Search for a four-leaf clover. Appreciate the feel of sunshine or a breeze on your face. Pause to drink in the delicate color and texture of a flower. Watch a butterfly. Tiny hummingbirds are flitting around. Watch them or other birds.
Sing. Turn up the stereo and dance around the house—with your partner or child or by yourself.
Color. Draw. Blow bubbles. Buy an inexpensive toy or game and enjoy playing with it again. Play Pick-up-sticks. Marbles. Darts or cards. Play pitch and catch with a large rubber ball. If no one is with you, bounce it against an outer wall. Having others to play with is fun but not necessary. You can do many fun things alone. How about Solitaire? Or jot a note to a friend.
Another thing that’s fun to do is take part in a reunion. A reunion re-unites people, and many large ones are taking place this summer. There are class reunions and family reunions and reunions of people who’d worked together or been in the service together or belonged to various other groups. Most of these large gatherings are lots of fun while you get together with people you’ve probably known well for years.
Some of my wonderful memories are from family reunions I’d been to for years. My mom’s sister, Velma, and her husband, Ruben Lagarde, would host them on the spacious grounds of their home in honor of my grandmother’s birthday. Although the Lagardes had no children, many of their siblings had large families. We kids enjoyed great times playing chase and softball and swinging on tires and hammocks.
I miss those family reunions but recently enjoyed another class reunion. What fun! It’s always terrific to get together with classmates we knew well and ask, “Who’s that coming in the door now?” And, “Are you sure? That doesn’t look like her. Let’s check the yearbook. Who’s got one?” And then laugh with people we knew well and hug them and dance and eat and can’t wait until we see them all again.
What actually happened the last time I’d gone to a class reunion was I looked around and thought Who are all these people really? I’d been to school with most of them for over a decade and thought I knew them well—but did I really?
That’s when I decided I would write a novel (which is always fiction, remember?) that would take place during a class reunion. I’d fabricate stories for a few former classmates who hadn’t seen each other in decades and then… why not put them aboard a cruise ship in Alaska for their reunion? Which was great fun, especially when I needed to do research. Two crew members that I interviewed for the book sent chilled champagne to my cabin. They seem to love giving me information about what happens during a cruise if someone onboard is believed to be murdered and then—Wait, those are some things that occur in my book which is about to be published. It’s called DEADLY REUNION, and it’s great fun.
Enjoy your summer! Reunite with someone.
June Shaw retired from teaching and writes a series of humorous romantic mysteries. Her third book, DEADLY REUNION, is being published. Cherry Books will host an after-hours Book Launch Party on August 16 from 5:30-7:30 with refreshments and prizes. RELATIVE DANGER and KILLER COUSINS, first books in her series, are available in print and as e-books. Readers describe her books as fun. www.juneshaw.com.
Lawns Require Summer Care
Lawns and the people who maintain them face a number of issues in mid- to late summer. A variety of lawn-care activities and pest problems need to be dealt with this time of the year.
Sodding
Whether you are repairing damaged areas of your lawn where grass has been lost or establishing a whole new lawn, this is a good time to lay sod. When laying a new lawn, kill off existing vegetation with glyphosate herbicide. Remove the dead vegetation because sod should be laid on bare soil. It’s best to lightly till or rake the area to break up the top crust before laying the sod. And work out a rough grade to move surface water away from buildings, especially the house.
If you are laying the sod yourself, select fresh-cut Louisiana-grown sod (or grown as close to Louisiana as you can find). Lay sod pieces tightly touching each other in a solid coverage pattern resembling that of a brick wall. A lawn roller (available at local rental companies) will level the lawn if it appears lumpy.
After installing the sod, water it for about 20 minutes daily for the first week to 10 days if it doesn’t rain. During the second week to 10 days, water about 30 or 40 minutes every three days as needed.
Wait until the grass looks like it needs to be mowed before mowing. Mow with a mower setting of 2 inches for centipede grass and 3 inches for St. Augustine. Healthy sod should not need immediate fertilization. About four to six weeks after installation (mid- to late August) may be a good time to fertilize.
Lawn diseases
Several lawn diseases are active in summer. Most are encouraged to attack when weather is hot and wet. A common lawn disease called brown patch (or large patch) is more active in spring and fall.
Take-all root rot, caused by the soilborne fungus Gaeumannomyces graminis var. graminis (Ggg), is a summer disease of all warm-season turfgrasses we grow. As the name implies, this is a root disease that can be quite destructive. The following information is provided by Don Ferrin, an LSU AgCenter specialist in the Department of Plant Pathology and Crop Physiology.
Initial symptoms of take-all root rot are a general yellowing, thinning or drought-stressed appearance of the turf. The overall density of the root system is greatly reduced. As the disease progresses, irregular patches of dead grass develop, and diseased roots appear dark-colored and tend to be short and brittle. Careful examination of stems that grow along the surface of the ground and the bases of the leaf sheaths with a good hand lens will usually reveal the black, fungal fibers Ggg on their surfaces.
The management of take-all root rot relies primarily on the use of good management practices to reduce stress on the turf and alter the soil environment to make it more suitable for root growth and less suitable for the pathogen. The first step is to alleviate the stresses that triggered the disease. These stresses can include soil compaction, improper watering, improper soil pH, improper mowing height and the overuse of herbicides.
None of the fungicides that are readily available to homeowners are particularly effective in controlling this disease by themselves once the disease has become established. However, commercial products like the strobilurins (azoxystrobin and pyraclostrobin) and to a lesser degree the triazoles (triadimefon and propiconazole) may aid in control when they are used as part of an integrated management program. Current recommendations are to make two applications in the fall (mid- to late September and again in mid- to late October) and one application in the spring (mid- to late March). Each application should be watered in with at least 1/4 inch of water to move the fungicide into the root zone where it is needed to protect the roots.
Weed problems
Many of the herbicides we use during the cooler spring or early summer period are more likely to discolor lawn grasses if they are used when weather is hot. However, there are a few options.
You can use any of the selective lawn weed killers now if you spot treat (make sure the label states it is safe to use on the type of grass you have and will control the particular weeds that are in your lawn). That means applying the herbicide spray just to patches of weeds rather than the entire lawn. It may take more than one treatment for effective control. So if needed, make sure you do follow-up applications following label directions.
If weeds are generally scattered throughout the lawn, applying the herbicide over the entire lawn will give best results. Two that can be applied despite the heat are imazaquin (Image – controls a variety of broadleaf weeds and sedges like nutgrass) and penoxsulam (Green Light Wipe Out for Tough Weeds in Lawns or Ferti-loam Dollarweed Control Plus – labeled to control a variety of broadleaf weeds).
Providing the proper care for your lawn will keep it looking its best and go a long way in preventing problems with diseases and weeds. “Louisiana Lawns Best Management Practices” is a for-sale publication ($5) produced by the LSU AgCenter. It has detailed information on proper fertilization, watering and mowing. And it includes an excellent pest management section with photos of common weeds, insects and diseases to help you diagnose problems. You can purchase it online at the LSU AgCenter Online Store at https://store.lsuagcenter.com.
CHAMBER INSIGHT JULY
Thank goodness for the recent rain, but now we have to find a way to turn off the heat. As we move into the hottest part of the year, we urge all of our residents to be vigilant relative to the conditions outside. If you love to work and play outside, make sure you drink a lot of water and take numerous breaks during activities.
That being said, we are taking every effort to continue to prepare for what we hope is a very quiet hurricane season for the entire Gulf Coast. While all is serene in the gulf, please take some time to prepare plans for your family in the event we are not that lucky this year.
We have begun the process of preparing our first budget. This budget will set forth our capital outlay and operations plans for the year 2012. Although we have not formally amended our charter yet, I will urge the Council to call a pre-budget meeting that will allow our citizens, business leaders and the Council members themselves to become an integral part of the budget planning process. As soon as a date is set, we will notify our citizens and businesses of the date and time.
As we continue to address the many items included in my 4-year plan, I am pleased to say that with the assistance of my staff and the City Council we have accomplished so much more than I could have ever anticipated in the 7 months that we have been in office. I certainly attribute this to outstanding leadership from our department heads and an extremely effective sense of cooperation from the City Council and their staff. Due to the fact that our communications and focus are on similar goals and objectives, I sincerely believe that we will continue to effectively administer your city government.
In conjunction with the many concerns of the leadership of our Chamber, we have begun the task of searching for funding sources which will provide a much needed comprehensive evaluation of the City’s approved land uses with our local Zoning Ordinance. It is common knowledge that the provisions of our Zoning Ordinance need review. Even though the City Council and Planning & Zoning Commission are working diligently to administer these provisions, it is my opinion that they simply don’t have the proper tools to do so. Therefore, between myself, the leadership of the Chamber and the City Council, we must take an aggressive approach to providing the Planning & Zoning Commission and Board of Adjustment a feasible land use plan that will provide for continued growth for both our residential and commercial zones alike.
Finally, I want to thank our local veteran’s organizations for the outstanding “Let Freedom Ring” program they organized for the Fourth of July. Their patriotism, pride and unselfishness continue to be exhibited beyond their years of military service. We were so fortunate to have these heroes be responsible for defending our freedoms. Now we are even more fortunate to have them as members of our community!
I learned a new meaning for an old word the other day. Groundswell used to refer to rapid spontaneous growth. I discovered that is also refers to a social trend in which people use technologies to get things they need rather than from traditional institutions. I guess the Chamber is now in the groundswell as we are finally on Facebook and Twitter (follow us)!
As technologies continue to immerge, we have to change the way we reach out to our audiences. Customers don’t differentiate based on the size of a business, but they now expect companies to connect with them and provide the information that they need, when they need it! That is why it is so important to stay up to date, and to be reachable no matter what size business you own or operate, or the hours that your doors are open.
I thought a website was enough of an on-line presence, but I have come to realize not all Internet users, use it in the same way! It’s kind of like the old adage, “not everyone learns in the same way.” Well, not everyone gets their information in the same way any longer.
This groundswell movement values what small businesses do best – intimacy, attentiveness and knowing what your customers want. I have learned that by using social technology tools, you can reach more potential customers without losing your identity or changing the way you do business – you just reach a much larger audience.
The “groundswell” is here to stay so we may as well embrace it and get connected!
I did a little research to see which mediums people currently use for their entertainment and/or information and found that in a typical week, the average adult spends:
- 1.5 hours using consoles or handheld video games
- 2.1 hours reading magazines
- 2.3 hours playing video games on a computer
- 2.6 hours reading newspapers
- 5.5 hours using the Internet for work purposes
- 6.6 hours listening to the radio
- 7.1 hours using the Internet for personal purposes
- 12.7 hours watching television
That’s a total of 40.5 hours of which using the Internet is a total of almost 13
hours each week! I suppose we better be out there where people can find us when they are looking for products and services, because they are out there often!
Although we do not have dates yet, the Chamber will begin to offer a series of social networking workshops. Check our website or follow us on Facebook and Twitter for more information as it becomes available!
Posted in Business, Chamber of Commerce, Family | 
facebook, social technology, social trend, technology tools, work purposesBy: Annette Fontana
Have you taken a vacation or break from work this year? Half of the year has passed and now may be a great time to take a break and refuel to continue to make 2011 a success.
I recently took a week off of work to go on my yearly family summer vacation. The days prior to leaving were stressful, scrambling to make sure work was caught up until I would return into the office. When there were no scheduled family activities, which were few since we were in Disney World, I found myself wanting to do nothing but sit back and relax. Although I enjoyed being away from the office and spending time with my family, I was ready to get back home to my normal routine. After a week in Disney, I needed a vacation from the vacation.
There are many studies on stress from work and the negative effect it has on health, relationships and our daily lives. It is not until we actually take some time away from the workplace that we realize how much a vacation was necessary. Plan your vacation time so that you can relax and truly escape from work. Have a time each day that you call into the office or check emails. If you have to take work with you, do it for a short period at a time that doesn’t take away from your fun or relaxation such as early in the morning when the rest of the family is still sleeping. The most important thing to do on your vacation is to not feel guilty about being away from work.
Business owners and managers should also encourage employees to take their earned time off. This may create a more pleasant workplace which can increase employee productivity and effectiveness. Scheduled time off of work or holidays gives everyone in the workplace something to look forward to.
If a vacation is not in your budget or you just can’t get away for longer than a couple of days, you may want to consider a “Staycation.” Spend time around your home relaxing, enjoying your hobbies or completing that project that was started but never finished.
Our area is rich in culture and has many local landmarks that are only a short drive away. The Thibodaux Chamber has information on attractions that you can enjoy in the Thibodaux and Lafourche. Parish area. Going on a swamp tour, visiting a historical or plantation home or taking a charter fishing trip are only few ideas on how to enjoy the local area. If you are interested in staying close to home, stop by the Thibodaux Chamber Office and the staff would be glad to provide you with the all information you need to enjoy the Thibodaux area. Life is short, take some time off of work to enjoy your family and see the world.
Annette Fontana can be reached by email at amfontana@charter.net or by phone at (985)449-7500.
Posted in Chamber of Commerce, Family, Health | Health, health relationships, Human resources, relaxation, time off, vacation timeAlthough the redistricting process has been a major focus of the Louisiana Legislature, the daunting task of dealing with an almost 2 billion dollar budget deficit is looming.
Governor Bobby Jindal is required to present the Executive Budget for fiscal year 2011-2012 by March 11, 2011 to the Joint Legislative Committee on Budget Issues. The regular session begins on April 25, 2011 and the solutions for overcoming the budget shortfall include the basic ideals of raising taxes, cutting spending, creating or using one time revenues or eliminating tax exemptions.
State Treasurer John Kennedy recently spoke at the Thibodaux Chamber’s quarterly luncheon on February 24, 2011 and provided some solutions to reduce the shortfall of our state budget. He contends that we do not need to raise taxes only manage our money better.
Treasurer Kennedy proposes over $2.6 billion in savings through his various recommendations which include making available statutorily protected funding, reducing the number of state employees and collecting monies owed to the State.
Treasurer Kennedy’s budget recommendations that affect health care include various reductions and reform to the state Medicaid program and improving the charity hospital system. More of Treasurer John Kennedy’s recommendations on balancing the budget can be found on the Louisiana Treasury website.
Many of the ideas offered by Treasurer Kennedy are also recommended by Blueprint Louisiana, a Louisiana non-profit organization who focuses on Louisiana issues and challenges.
Blueprint Louisiana has also recommended solutions to solve budget deficit and the potential savings amount. The recommendations of Blueprint Louisiana provide an estimated $972 million to $1.64 billion in possible savings and new revenue.
A few of Blueprint Louisiana’s suggestions include revising outdated sentencing and parole guidelines, redefining the role of the legislature in setting tuition rates and making significant changes in the State’s health care policies.
A specific discussion of Louisiana Blueprint’s recommendation can be found on their website at www.blueprintlouisiana.org
Governor Bobby Jindal has announced his support for budget flexibility legislation to help protect health care and higher education. Specifically, the Governor supports the State having access to interest generated by statutory dedications during a deficit.
This would allow access to the interest to help reduce the cuts in health care and higher educations as opposed to the interest just accumulating. He additionally wants the State to have access to dedicated funds that are no longer necessary or no longer serve their intended purpose.
One source indicates that Governor Jindal also supports a one time sale of certain state property, including selling state prisons to create revenue. However, opponents argue that selling property in a bad economy to produce one time revenue is not the answer.
As you can see there are many recommendations to deal with our budget issues. Regardless of what the legislature decides, it is apparent that changes are needed to affect the upcoming fiscal year and thereafter.
Annette Fontana can be reached by email at amfontana@charter.net or by phone at (985)449-7500.
I recently got my copy the Louisiana Fact Book 2011, published by the Council for A Better Louisiana (CABL). CABL is a non-profit organization that works to improve the quality of life for Louisiana citizens.
The “Fact Book” is only 20 pages, but it is cram-packed with good information. There is a lot of doom and gloom contained within the pages, considering the state of the budget, higher education, health care and the economy.
However, I am choosing not to talk about the doom and gloom. I want to talk about a few facts pointed out in the book that sets Louisiana (and the Houma-Thibodaux MSA) above the rest.
Did you know that our region has the third highest per capita income in the state and that we are number one in job growth in the state?
How about the ports in our state? Louisiana has five of the busiest ports in the United States, with number one being the Port of South Louisiana located along the Mississippi River. It is also the largest tonnage port in the Western Hemisphere!
Although Louisiana generally has a high crime rate (number one in murders), Houma-Thibodaux has the lowest rate of crime in the state.
It pays to have some fun every once in a while. Did you know that recreational fishing produces a $1.7 billion impact on the state? Who would have thought?!
Louisiana’s citizens are also a generous bunch of folks. We rate 7th in the nation in supporting charitable organizations (there are 20,000 of them in the state).
There’s a lot of talent to be found here. Twelve writers with connections to Louisiana have won the Pulitzer Prize for literature. Additionally 52 performing artists have won Grammys, with most of those representing Louisiana’s culture including jazz, blues, rhythm and blues, Cajun and Zydeco music. Sixteen performers have been inducted into the rock and Roll Hall of Fame!
I didn’t need CABL to tell me this, but they confirmed what I already knew – we like to eat! We spend $5 billion each year eating at restaurants! (That doesn’t even begin to count what we spend in our kitchens!)
90% of the crawfish harvested in the U.S. comes from Louisiana, (and I suspect most of that is from south of I-10) and 89 million pounds of shrimp are caught each year in the state.
Besides our love of eating, Louisiana folks love to pass a good time! There are over 400 festivals in the state each year (that’s where we eat all of the crawfish and shrimp!).
Other people like us too! About 24 million people visit Louisiana each year, resulting in a $9.4 billion economic impact.
The Louisiana Fact Book, 2011 contains a lot more interesting information than I have space to write about. You really should get a copy. You can get one (for free) from CABL. Call them at 225-344-2225 or go to their website: www.cabl.org
MARCH 2011 TIDBITS
Here it is time for Mardi Gras, Easter and then the Firemen’s Fair. April 24th is Easter Sunday, one day earlier than the latest it can be. Also my wedding anniversary which was in the middle of the last century ( no date given, no age given).
I remember my daughter writing to me and TIDBITS in March 2001 making note of 03/02/01 and I asked her if she remembers 8/8/88 and 9/9/99 and then just the other day I realized that my wife’s birthday was 11/21 and her address on Canal St. was 1121.
Took that long to realize that coincidence. And then last year 8/9/10 and coming up is 9/10/11. Who remembers 1/2/34. I do!!!!
TIDBITS went back to the column of March 29,2001 and it had so many facts I thought I would repeat it this month.
“My M and M reporters (Mike and Marion Dennis) help me look back 50 years and see what restaurants and hotels and businesses we had in Thibodaux during the 1940’s. Here are some they remember.:
The Tavern, Boo Boo’s, The Blue Fox, The Green Lantern, Dixie Hotel, Angelo’s, Jutz’s, Boudreaux’ Coffee Shop,
The Three Sisters Café, Tony’s (with bowling alleys), The Park Inn, The 69, Cabin Boy, Bilello’s, and of course Percy’s which was by the Grand Theater.” Any of my readers who remember others, e mail me at gibrob1@yahoo.com.
From the March 2001 TIDBITS: “One Christmas morning at the co Cathedral, Monsignor Amedee woke up and the Life Center was being flooded by a broken pipe. This was in 1989.
He called Pat and Carroll Barrilleaux and they spent most of Christmas Day repairing the problem. I visited with them and learned that their father, John Barrilleaux, started the plumbing business in 1933 right there on West 7th St. where it still is.
I talked at length with Tommy, Carroll’s son, and this pleasant fellow told me how the freeze of 1989 took so long to recover from. Someone had even called and offered them $100 to come put their water back on for Christmas dinner.
Bubba Arabie who had been working there for 20 years recalled crawling under a house and finding a possum who had expired some weeks before. Ugh!! Plumbers are a necessity in our way of life.
Tommy confronted a huge rattlesnake under a house. He had a huge wrench and proceeded to kill the snake but never forgot that incident. The family has been in the plumbing business for over 75 years.”
Don’t forget the Firemen’s Fair on April 28th,29th. 30th and May 1st. And the St. John’s Gumbo every Monday in Lent starting March 14th and the St. Joseph Co Cathedral Gumbo every Friday in Lent starting March 11th. Enjoy.
TIDBITS LICENSES OF THE MONTH:
SAW PUP TRY SAM TAX
Posted in Chamber of Commerce, Family, Personal Interest, Retire Thibodaux, Thibodaux | Thibodaux, TidBitsIn response to the deadly BP Deepwater Horizon explosion and subsequent environmental crisis in the Gulf of Mexico, leaders in Washington and the entire nation appeared committed to making our coast whole again. The creation of the federal Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Task Force by the White House with native New Orleanian and EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson as its chair further illustrated that commitment. The Task Force held its second public meeting in New Orleans last month, and Restore or Retreat was able to provide comments to the Task Force during their time here. A document outlining a restoration strategy is anticipated this fall, but look for the Task Force to solicit additional opinions and comments from our area during this self-proclaimed “bottom-up” process during the spring and summer.
As a consequence of the spill, significant funding is expected to be made available through Clean Water Act penalties and financial damages awarded through the Natural Resources Damage Assessment (NRDA) process. If these funds are fairly allocated to each State impacted (80% to the Gulf Coast as requested in federal legislation), they may provide a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for Louisiana to make significant strides in restoring our irreplaceable region. A group of several women from the Bayou Region will once again travel with the Women of the Storm to Washington, DC, at the end of March to educate members of Congress on the impacts of the spill and the importance of dedicating these funds to restore our coast. We will keep you posted on how you can help support that cause as well.
Besides following federal legislation to dedicate funding to the Gulf Coast, the community can stay involved closer to home by participating and providing input into the Natural Resources Damage Assessment process (NRDA.) Under the Oil Pollution Act, NRDA provides for a public restoration planning process for the development of a project-specific restoration plan. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and other federal and state agencies will hold a series of meetings across the Gulf coast to get public input on what types of restoration should be undertaken to compensate for impacts to natural resources that were exposed to oil from the Deepwater BP oil spill. A public meeting will be held in Houma on Thursday, March 24, at 5:30pm at the Houma Civic Center to collect input from the Bayou Region. Also, project ideas can be submitted online at http://www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov . Project ideas will be evaluated when a Deepwater Horizon restoration plan is developed (likely in early- to mid-2013).
Restore or Retreat will remain actively engaged in the day-to-day effort to aggressively implement sustainable restoration projects for our area, as we have been prior to the spill. For nearly 11 years, ROR has been working diligently to advocate on the state and federal level for comprehensive, sustainable restoration projects our area desperately needs and deserves. Because of this working knowledge of the problems and opportunities with the Barataria and Terrebonne Basins, ROR is taking the lead to organize leaders within the Barataria and Terrebonne Basin to develop a regional restoration initiatives and policy changes needed for our region as a support tool for the State as we begin the long recovery process. We hope to present this information to the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority when they come to the Bayou Region on Wednesday, March 16, at 9:30am at Government Tower in Houma. The public is welcome to attend this meeting.
We always appreciate the opportunity to update the community on the latest coastal news. Please visit our website for the latest news on our upcoming Annual Meeting, to sign up for our e-newsletter and more— www.restoreorretreat.org
