$255 Million Approved for Louisiana Coastal Conservation
Landrieu secured funding in 2005 Energy Bill.
WASHINGTON - Louisiana is the first state approved to receive funding from the Coastal Impact Assistance Program (CIAP) for coastal protection and conservation, United States Senator Mary L. Landrieu, D-La., announced today. As a member of the Senate Energy Committee, Sen. Landrieu secured the funding in the Energy Policy Act of 2005.
"As the first state to win approval from the Minerals Management Service to receive CIAP funding, Louisiana has proven that we are committed to smartly restoring and protecting our coast," Sen. Landrieu said. "There is no better hurricane protection system than a healthy and vibrant coastline. This approval is a key step in the process to restore Louisiana's wetlands, and I look forward to disbursement of the funds in the next few weeks. It has taken many years for our state to begin receiving its fair share, but we are ready to start putting this funding to good work."
Created by the Energy Policy Act of 2005, the Coastal Impact Assistance Program disburses $250 million annually for four years, 2007 -- 2010, to six eligible Outer Continental Shelf oil and gas producing states -- Louisiana, Alabama, Alaska, California, Mississippi and Texas. The funding includes $127.5 million to Louisiana for each of the fiscal years 2007 and 2008, totaling $255 million. Additional allocations of the six-state total will be made for years 2009 and 2010.
Language that Sen. Landrieu insisted including in the legislation requires that 35 percent, or $44.6 million, be distributed directly to 19 coastal parishes. The State of Louisiana worked with these coastal parishes to prepare a draft Louisiana Coastal Impact Assistance Plan that identifies restoration, conservation, and infrastructure projects to be supported by the State and each coastal parish for the four years of CIAP funding. The Plan also documents State and parish CIAP goals and objectives; the public process for nominating CIAP projects; the decision-making process for selecting CIAP projects; how the State and parishes will manage, implement, and monitor CIAP projects; and how the State and parishes will comply with relevant Federal, State, and local laws in the implementation of those projects.
The Plan, today approved by the U.S. Minerals Management Service (MMS), includes 168 projects that embody principles of sustainable coastal restoration and protection. Some projects will be implemented with the State's share of the CIAP funds, some will be constructed with the parishes' share of those funds, and some will be jointly supported with State and parish CIAP funds. Louisiana's plan is so far the only plan to be approved by MMS.
Late last year, the President also signed into law the Domenici-Landrieu Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act, which will provide billions of additional dollars over the next decades for coastal restoration and hurricane protection projects.
The table below details the parish-by-parish distribution of CIAP funding. The remaining 65 percent, or $82.9 million, of the annual total will be released by MMS to the state which intends to distribute the funds in part through a grant program announced today.
Louisiana Coastal Parishes
CIAP Fiscal Year 2007 and Fiscal Year 2008 Allocations
| Parish | Percent of Allocation | Total Allocation |
| Assumption | 3.28% | $1,464,263.20 |
| Calcasieu | 4.95% | $2,209,951.24 |
| Cameron | 6.58% | $2,939,072.41 |
| Iberia | 5.04% | $2,250,670.86 |
| Jefferson | 8.55% | $3,815,520.53 |
| Lafourche | 5.26% | $2,348,997.75 |
| Livingston | 3.70% | $1,652,927.20 |
| Orleans | 8.45% | $3,773,991.48 |
| Plaquemines | 10.20% | $4,554,253.97 |
| St. Bernard | 5.17% | $2,307,278.02 |
| St. Charles | 3.53% | $1,577,519.47 |
| St. James | 3.08% | $1,374,598.90 |
| St. John the Baptist | 3.32% | $1,479,903.09 |
| St. Martin | 3.60% | $1,607,963.60 |
| St. Mary | 4.21% | $1,880,298.83 |
| St. Tammany | 4.97% | $2,217,097.81 |
| Tangipahoa | 3.75% | $1,675,530.05 |
| Terrebonne | 7.54% | $3,364,675.17 |
| Vermilion | 4.81% | $2,147,250.92 |
| Total | 100.00% | $44,641,764.50 |
