Coastal backers lobby Washington
Print
Email
Save
Reprints
Twitter
Share
Del.icio.us
Digg
Facebook
Reddit
WASHINGTON — Louisiana coastal restoration advocates were in Washington on Wednesday calling on the Obama administration to remove what they called bureaucratic federal roadblocks to their efforts.
Representatives of the America’s Wetland Foundation participated in a forum that focused on the federal maze of conflicting agencies and policies affecting coastal restoration in Louisiana, Texas, Mississippi and Alabama.
Sidney Coffee, a senior adviser for the foundation who led the state coastal restoration efforts under former Gov. Kathleen Blanco, said agencies ranging from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to the Environmental Protection Agency operate in “silos,” not working with each other.
“You just can’t get from point A to point B with these conflicts,” Coffee said. “We simply cannot make real progress.”
Gerry Galloway, a former corps brigadier general who teaches at the University of Maryland, said problems are also caused between local and federal jurisdiction on projects.
“There is a lot of activity, but it’s not being brought together,” Galloway said. “That’s a challenge and one that continues.”
The forum coincided with release of a report by America’s Energy Coast, a nonprofit coalition of state leaders, oil companies and environmental organizations, called “Region at Risk: Preventing the Loss of Vital National Assets.”
The foundation and coalition planned to deliver its findings to the Council on Environmental Quality, an arm of The White House that coordinates federal environmental efforts and works with federal agencies.
The council was established in 1969 as part of the National Environmental Policy Act. Forum participants said the NEPA is not working as it was intended.
The council needs to quicken the exchanges and decisions between federal agencies, said Karla Raettig of the National Wildlife Foundation. An attorney, Raettig has represented environmental groups in Louisiana addressing NEPA.
Agencies have to reconcile policy while taking into account laws ranging from the Clean Water Act to the Magnuson-Stevens Fisheries Conservation and Management Act, Raettig said.
“The real issue here is that decisions have to be made,” Raettig said. “The agencies don’t want to make the hard call.”
 | ||||
| Most Popular | Most Emailed | Hot Topics | ||
