Tulane Institute on Water Resources Law and Policy
NEWS RELEASE
SIGNIFICANT FUNDING STILL NEEDED FOR LOUISIANA’S COASTAL MASTER PLAN:
Even after Deepwater Horizon settlement, state lacks sufficient funds for coastal protection and restoration.
For Immediate Release
Contact:
Mark Davis
Tulane Institute on Water Resources Law and Policy
504-865-5982/504-919-8324 or at msdavis@tulane.edu
Dean Boyer
Tulane Institute on Water Resources Law and Policy
504-865-5980 or at nboyer1@tulane.edu
New Orleans, LA
November 5, 2015
Louisiana’s 2012 Coastal Master Plan needs significant additional funding to meet its objectives. According to "Turning Coastal Restoration and Protection Plans into Realities: How Much Is Currently Funded?" ("Financing the Future II"), a publication of The Tulane Institute on Water Resources Law and Policy released Thursday, November 5, 2015, that deficit will likely be upwards of $ 70 billion.
The 2012 Coastal Master Plan carries a $50 billion price tag, identified as the minimum needed to curb land loss. The first installment of Financing the Future showed that the costs for all necessary projects, including some not covered by the state’s Coastal Master Plan, would likely be closer to $100 billion when adjusted for inflation. Financing the Future II examines the currently identified funding sources, including the Deepwater Horizon settlement, oil revenue sharing, and federal/state wetlands programs. Financing the Future II tallies up those sources and demonstrates that the state can only count on roughly $21 billion in funds.
“The dollars available are real and significant but they won’t be enough to see the work through. That is not a criticism it is a fact, and one that needs to inform civic and governmental action if we are serious about saving this place,” says Institute Senior Research Fellow and study co-author, Dean Boyer.
This funding gap evinces the need for creative approaches to project finance. It also clearly demonstrates how crucial it is for the future of southern Louisiana that funds earmarked for Coastal Master Plan projects not be diverted elsewhere. The next installment in the Financing the Future series will look at potential funding sources and strategies for leveraging existing funds.