[{"_1":2,"_112":-5,"_113":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76,88,100],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6308620,"mediaKeyId","2420981-9d690f4c667982a5f0fb37c768a4fbf7","parentId",2420981,"title","CPRA reviews CWPPRA (\"Quipra\") program: history, selection process and recent approvals","audioSeconds",3178,"startMs",3361000,"endMs",6539000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2420981-9d690f4c667982a5f0fb37c768a4fbf7&start=3361&end=6539","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2420981-9d690f4c667982a5f0fb37c768a4fbf7/thumbnail_3361000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6308620/Louisiana/CPRA-reviews-CWPPRA-Quipra-program-history-selection-process-and-recent-approvals","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6308620-acb8150cc4e30d2e27d99fb768692260/orig.mp4?Expires=1771173417&Signature=mvYvs9FTTpQ~C-qrEnmf9Z0lHQ3UDHIUKcOnNbuSKpzei81krq3fGMUVEd74RCfXjJAp7FRO2R3Tjm3uSGGR12BWvd6Z-CZ8oQrE5DmBKadspDQYNJiq8B8fisQezB9SgJR4rfvJST3cHLRdRbeSnSm~1h9ZEjgtYLgbitI9QOtwEgYaR6U-q6A6~yFJwVRlh7zhx5QT4HP4NGuyPinuzY8YtekuH7OBNxic4gmgLe9RaexGM~QMiMY1IvzeNPmFOFUhiuPqEv7XIyMTWrWIpSMVGGHR5mYJHE30ZGMRf9Qqt5aW6mADEG66o2hLz0bn3iOeYOsZT7bfTwJg1cLJYQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Louisiana Legislature","date","2025-02-19T00:00:00Z","article","Neil (presenting) and Glenn Ladev outlined the state’s use of the Coastal Wetlands Planning, Protection and Restoration Act program (CWPPRA, commonly referred to in the meeting as \"Quipra\") and summarized how the program feeds the state’s coastal project pipeline.

Ladev described the program’s origin, funding mechanics, and selection process: CWPPRA is funded from a share of excise revenues dedicated to coastal restoration; CPRA said Louisiana receives the largest state share and that the program’s cost-share arrangement historically has required about a 15 percent state match on projects after the state completed a wetlands plan. Ladev told the board that, over the last decade, the program typically supports about $70,000,000 in construction per year, enabling two to three construction starts annually and that program monitoring and CRMS (Coastal Reference Monitoring System) operations are major program outputs funded by CWPPRA.

CPRA staff summarized the basin-based nomination process: in-season project nominations are reviewed regionally and then narrowed to a short list (about 20), after which the federal and state partners vote to select 10 projects for further feasibility and design work. The board packet showed that since CWPPRA’s inception some 238 projects have moved through the program; not all proceed to construction because conditions, authorities and feasibility can change. Ladev and staff highlighted recent task-force approvals: a combined St. Bernard parish project moved to engineering, Grand Cheniere marsh creation and terracing entered engineering and design, and several projects (Port Fourchon Marsh Creation, North Delacro Marsh Creation and Terracing, Bay Rackersee Marsh Creation and Ridge Restoration) were authorized to move to construction following updated designs and funding commitments.

During discussion board members — including voices from Southwest and South Central parishes — urged stronger parish-level engagement in project nominations and expressed concern about perceived imbalances where federal agencies outnumber parish representatives in regional rankings and votes. CPRA staff acknowledged the concern and said state staff will continue working with parishes on master-plan support and technical assistance and that the CWPPRA program and Corps are open to modernizing selection criteria and processes where feasible.

Ladev closed by stressing the program’s monitoring role and its importance to the state coastal program, and by noting that the task force approved multiple projects in the most recent meeting and that regional nomination windows are currently under way.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","House CPRA 02/19/2025","oneSentenceSummary","CPRA staff reviewed the Coastal Wetlands Planning, Protection and Restoration Act program (commonly called CWPPRA or Quipra), its funding structure, selection process and recent approvals for engineering and construction-phase projects; board members raised parish representation and selection-process questions.","taxTitle","2025 Legislature LA, Louisiana","taxId",78558,"location","Louisiana","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6308624,"Restore or Retreat volunteers plant mangroves and cordgrass on West Grand Terre; Port Fourchon terraces receive 12,000 mangroves",442,2477000,2919000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2420981-9d690f4c667982a5f0fb37c768a4fbf7&start=2477&end=2919","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2420981-9d690f4c667982a5f0fb37c768a4fbf7/thumbnail_2477000.jpg","/articles/6308624/Louisiana/Restore-or-Retreat-volunteers-plant-mangroves-and-cordgrass-on-West-Grand-Terre-Port-Fourchon-terraces-receive-12000-mangroves","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6308624-4729a1fb900f10fbad27184aaf774903/orig.mp4?Expires=1771173417&Signature=grS7fR8dkPzWd9itNKCMgi5oPlZFf0nvA6IjWabM4Es7guVq7aem~xgsGzlcbgtFRrsXuRLJhSn6HvrKIDBrKAV3UEEYohDjsUB1kyMmBr37pw0gmvvTwvhLSIQZMJPY77CwEqpdWMOFb5Ig4rA~xSTypdVf978289YFDUVdZh3IgrXWvLiHe1O0MH7pBMXgfP8jdFxm7oxIHfyrtyBwhYQ3ArtVGub~pCUq91OftJxhQRVuLZzDLvSB4VzafwWtjxR6OJXJ2w9FA~ZADcHMWRGWSefFq9Li-m1qpL2RNTS5Cp9ap52rGh3IvpGzu2wn2iT8GIkrY-4tgA8P9akhug__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Representatives Joseph Ojouron and Polly Glover of Restore Retreat updated the CPRA board on Feb. 19 about two volunteer-led restoration efforts in the Lower Barataria Basin: plantings on West Grand Terre (Grand Terre Island area) and a mangrove-planting effort at Port Fourchon terraces.

Restore Retreat described an initial, 2022 planting of about 10 acres that used black mangrove and vermilion smooth cordgrass. The more recent October 2024 activity was a second-phase planting in which 37 volunteers planted approximately 8,200 plants across a test array that included sand oaks (test plots on dunes), vermilion smooth cordgrass and black mangroves. Restore Retreat said funding for that October planting came from three sources: a CPRA Partnership Trust Fund grant, a Restore America's Estuaries/Citgo grant, and a private vegetation donation from an entity identified in the transcript as “5 S.”

Polly Glover described a post-winter field check after an unusual winter event and said roughly 80% of the vermilion smooth cordgrass appeared to have survived while about 50–60% of black mangroves showed signs of stress at that time; staff and volunteers planned a follow-up visit in April. Restore Retreat noted that West Grand Terre has historical and ecological significance, including past use as a site for a marine lab and Fort Livingston; the group said volunteer planting and marsh fill behind rock revetments are intended to stabilize the island and improve habitat for shorebirds and fisheries.

Restore Retreat also described the Port Fourchon terraces and living-shoreline work: 22 earthen terraces totaling approximately 87,000 linear feet of terracing. In early December volunteers, working with Ducks Unlimited and private partners, planted roughly 12,000 mangroves over three days. Woodside Energy provided a $100,000 grant to purchase mangroves for the Port Fourchon activity; other collaborators included Ducks Unlimited, a company named MANG (a private mangrove-planting company), Wisner Trust and Quality Printing (volunteer shirts). Restore Retreat said construction delays postponed a planned second-phase planting and that the organization is tentatively planning those additional plantings for the first week of April, weather permitting.

During board discussion several members praised Restore Retreat’s volunteer model and asked about volunteer sign-up; Restore Retreat said the organization posts event information at restoreretreat.org and on social media.","Restore Retreat reported two volunteer-led coastal restoration efforts: October 2024 plantings on West Grand Terre (about 8,200 plants) supported by CPRA Partnership Trust Fund and other donors; and a Port Fourchon terrace and living-shoreline planting that placed roughly 12,000 mangroves over three days funded in part by Woodside Energy.",{"_33":89,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":90,"_41":91,"_43":92,"_45":93,"_47":94,"_49":95,"_51":96,"_53":97,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":98,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":99,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6308629,"U.S. Army Corps updates CPRA on Lower Mississippi comprehensive study; chief’s report targeted for Dec. 2027",1122,1575000,2697000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2420981-9d690f4c667982a5f0fb37c768a4fbf7&start=1575&end=2697","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2420981-9d690f4c667982a5f0fb37c768a4fbf7/thumbnail_1575000.jpg","/articles/6308629/Louisiana/US-Army-Corps-updates-CPRA-on-Lower-Mississippi-comprehensive-study-chiefs-report-targeted-for-Dec-2027","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6308629-1e98c9471dbd969df7aec6fe2eb440a3/orig.mp4?Expires=1771173417&Signature=VgzXC-7GqPP2jFkS2uwrG8sCu5ufkb~aY6gUDZQEPvXQB4q3dL2iltoJ5PxbmJiDYUBqNiWWeAXC3rLv8ZpnMDIblBl550kt~UPNDQYF7-RaHHfPV0Kc-iTYykLzQ0banHvMDXuqb54d6PObHtFrfv-fMHj4~wIB1~CIYAd92Xc3EuE7n6dttf-rZk-ekX9URPllMTewMsf-An4URlxhhlMd4bDgxd3jTat~SNQQJxsjgguhNVgiwb4c06KRvic4cxfICehdtRSu-Vc49~JohYKzoYcoLkeDTUFwbXc-k5vYRK4eN~rRQlQDKlpBAV3bFtm5MPKk7~kDOBB~V-vE4Q__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Colonel Colin Jones of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers told the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority board on Feb. 19 that the Lower Mississippi River Comprehensive Management Study is progressing through alternatives development and stakeholder engagement toward a chief’s report planned for December 2027.

Jones said the study — authorized in the Water Resources Development Act of 2020 (section 213) — covers the river from Cape Girardeau, Missouri, to the Gulf of Mexico, roughly 975 river miles. He told the board the Corps received additional authorization in WRDA 2022 (section 8343) to proceed with 100 percent federal funding for the study and that the program has a $25,000,000 appropriation intended to support a five-year study aiming for actionable recommendations, including operational modifications and potential construction proposals.

The Corps reported extensive public and interagency engagement: an inventory of existing studies and models, a governance structure that meets quarterly with state and federal partners, and more than 32 public meetings across the seven-state study area. Jones said the Corps is building hydrologic and sediment models for both the Lower Mississippi and the Atchafalaya to test a range of measures. Early modeling has flagged “dynamic operation” of the Old River Control Complex as a promising measure to evaluate whether different flow splits between the Mississippi and Atchafalaya might yield flood-risk, environmental or navigation benefits; Jones said any such operational changes would require detailed evaluation and could lead to updates to water-control manuals.

Jones emphasized that the scale of the effort requires broad collaboration. He named the New Orleans District as lead and said the study team is coordinating across six Corps districts, three divisions and multiple federal agencies, alongside 44 federally recognized tribes; he also noted state partnering groups that include CPRA representatives and said those groups meet in April and October. The Corps has posted a public scoping report that summarizes comments received to date and is maintaining a stakeholder database via the study website for routine updates.

Board members asked several technical and policy questions. Colonel Jones and Corps staff said they have built an initial funding profile for the study, that existing appropriations should carry work into the summer but the Corps has requested an additional $4,000,000 for FY2025 and indicated a capability of $7,000,000 in FY2026 to sustain the schedule. Jones said the $25,000,000 study budget is scoped to be sufficient for completion of the study but that additional funds would be required to implement any tiered follow-on investigations that the study might recommend.

Other topics discussed included dredging options for ecosystem restoration, modification of dredging and flow management to improve long-term sustainability, the Corps’ ongoing saltwater-mitigation review for the Mississippi River Ship Channel (including the underwater saltwater sill), and the Neptune environmental-structure work (planned updates to maintain lower flow regimes like those seen in 2019). Jones repeatedly encouraged state and local partners to provide input early in the alternatives process so the Corps can incorporate those concerns into modeling and environmental review.

Colonel Jones closed by directing stakeholders to the study website and stakeholder listserv (via the QR code he displayed) for updates and public- engagement opportunities.","The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers described the scope and progress of the Lower Mississippi River Comprehensive Management Study, including modeling, public engagement and possible operational changes to Old River Control; the study is authorized by WRDA and funded at $25 million over five years.",{"_33":101,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":102,"_41":103,"_43":104,"_45":105,"_47":106,"_49":107,"_51":108,"_53":109,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":110,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":111,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6308634,"CPRA reports new construction starts, Bayou Lafourche pump upgrades and public comment on annual plan",1390,151000,1541000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2420981-9d690f4c667982a5f0fb37c768a4fbf7&start=151&end=1541","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2420981-9d690f4c667982a5f0fb37c768a4fbf7/thumbnail_151000.jpg","/articles/6308634/Louisiana/CPRA-reports-new-construction-starts-Bayou-Lafourche-pump-upgrades-and-public-comment-on-annual-plan","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6308634-006a202c9977cdb29e57e5082849ffbb/orig.mp4?Expires=1771173417&Signature=dz93wE2XH0nrVvfCSOPE6m4ekduwS11BuEnk5NeNe-GLnDx~o5xE4iDDCetdFSEbEhnrlvujPIUFlks9BsgjNaRS~WVxUSIeopJqvBQMr9YjQl2KCZbbjBACLoiL5M4feOLVsz1ghF1jHqMme2h8jDyw3o-76f7QwCqZA8tEwZwFRFV0whEKw69Tdjybqz001~BCaOB4Vt5QNJEPV4SjZlomU31PGNvz53Fw8WCSbzkAyyJP~nL60H~QUfCEfHwAwWq7hPS-GavlWgcwzs59Bzih7uLoFVY7ou-VPYIwhKuv1xj0AA1Mrq55-Cq-39jxu0ChJioiaP6fJkkKWafNFA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Glenn Ladev, executive director of the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority (CPRA), told the board on Feb. 19 that multiple restoration and protection projects moved into construction this month and that CPRA is collecting public comment on its draft annual plan.

Ladev said CPRA recorded two new engineering-and-design starts this month and that the agency is “back up to 109 active projects,” including 37 projects in construction, 68 in engineering and design and four planning studies. He highlighted the LaBranche Shoreline Protection Project in St. Charles Parish, a roughly $25,000,000 effort to install about 13,000 linear feet of rock dike and associated dredging; construction began in January, Ladev said. He also described the Grand Bayou Ridge and Marsh Creation Restoration Project in Plaquemines Parish, which began construction Jan. 12 and has a construction contract with Wicks Marine with an estimated cost of about $62,400,000 for approximately 356 acres of marsh creation and about 10,657 linear feet of forested ridge.

The director gave a detailed update on several other efforts: the Terrebonne HNC Bird Island restoration (rock dike work complete and dredging to follow), river reintroduction pumping capacity improvements for Bayou Lafourche (phase 2 pumping upgrades to add about 1,500 cubic feet per second and later dredging), and a Bayou Pigeon boat-launch recreation project in the Atchafalaya Basin that will add seven boat slips and improved parking. Ladev said the Bayou Lafourche Freshwater District is leading the pump improvements with CPRA and the state Department of Environmental Quality supporting via a revolving loan program.

Ladev also reported a $5,000,000 grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation for the Chandelier Island restoration project and summarized volunteer and outreach activities, including a Super Bowl living-shoreline volunteer build in Lafourche Parish with NFL Green and a large high-school career outreach event at the LSU Center for River Studies.

On the draft annual plan, Ladev said CPRA held three in-person public meetings (Lake Charles, Houma and Jefferson) and one virtual meeting, with roughly 200 total attendees and 43 comments received as of the Feb. 19 board meeting. The public comment window was described to the board as closing in late March; staff said the draft annual plan will return to the CPRA board for consideration on April 16 and, if approved, be presented to the legislature. Ladev urged submission of comments via email (coastal@la.gov), the CPRA website, or mail before the stated deadline.

The presentation closed with reminders about the Atchafalaya master-plan project solicitation (deadline Feb. 28), the rescheduled federal “fly-in” advocacy trip being coordinated by Neil McMillan, Coastal Day at the Legislature on May 12 and the State of the Coast Conference in May 2025.

CPRA staff answered no board questions on the implementation update at the time of the presentation.","Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority staff reported new construction starts including shoreline protection at LaBranche, the Grand Bayou Ridge marsh-creation project, Bayou Lafourche pumping improvements and outreach milestones; public comment period for the draft annual plan is open through late March.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

CPRA reviews CWPPRA ("Quipra") program: history, selection process and recent approvals

Restore or Retreat volunteers plant mangroves and cordgrass on West Grand Terre; Port Fourchon terraces receive 12,000 mangroves

U.S. Army Corps updates CPRA on Lower Mississippi comprehensive study; chief’s report targeted for Dec. 2027

CPRA reports new construction starts, Bayou Lafourche pump upgrades and public comment on annual plan