Posted on January 25, 2023
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New Orleans District, announced today that a Record of Decision was signed by Maj. Gen. Diana Holland, Mississippi Valley Division Commanding General, on the West Shore Lake Pontchartrain (WSLP) mitigation feature. The Record of Decision found that the Maurepas Diversion meets the swamp mitigation need for the WSLP Project.
The executed Record of Decision will adopt the Maurepas Diversion as the swamp mitigation feature of the WSLP project to compensate for unavoidable impacts to swamp habitat. This decision comes after the Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (FSEIS), released in December 2022, determined it will not only restore the ecosystem around the WSLP project but also increase its resiliency. Following the FSEIS, Colonel Cullen Jones, New Orleans District Commander, recommended the Maurepas Diversion as the swamp mitigation feature for the WSLP project.
The Maurepas Swamp is one of the largest and last remaining tracts of coastal freshwater swamp in Louisiana. The Maurepas Diversion is a 2,000 cubic foot per second (cfs) freshwater diversion that would reconnect the Mississippi River to the Maurepas Swamp, strategically delivering nutrient-laden river water to restore a degraded Cypress-Tupelo swamp. The resources to be preserved with the selection of this alternative contribute significantly to the ecological sustainability and improvement of the aquatic resources in the watershed.
Additionally, as a mitigation alternative for the WSLP, this decision integrates the implementation of two key projects (WSLP project and the Maurepas Diversion) saving time and money for the overall implementation of both projects.
For more information on the West Shore Lake Pontchartrain project:
