Get AI Briefings, Transcripts & Alerts on Local & National Government Meetings — Forever.
Legislators create Atchafalaya Basin task force, add Basin Keeper to advisers and repeal older oversight rule
Loading...
Summary
The committee adopted SCR 29 to create a joint legislative task force on Atchafalaya Basin water quality, added Atchafalaya Basin Keeper via amendment 2541, and passed SCR 38 to repeal joint rule 7; witnesses raised concerns about sedimentation, flood capacity and agency oversight.
The Senate Natural Resources Committee voted to report favorably two related resolutions addressing the Atchafalaya Basin on April 22. Senate Concurrent Resolution 29 would create a joint legislative committee (task force) to study water quality, sedimentation and related ecological and flood concerns in the Atchafalaya Basin. An amendment (No. 2541) was adopted to add the Atchafalaya Basin Keeper to the list of organizations from which the task force will seek input.
Senator Kleinpeter, who introduced SCR 29, said sedimentation coming from the north has reduced water quality and contributed to hypoxia and diminished fish sizes. "The water quality is the biggest issue in the basin," he told the committee, urging a forum where legislators, CPRA, the Corps of Engineers and other agencies can meet and make recommendations.
Public witnesses emphasized urgency. Jody Mesh, a lifelong commercial fisherman and local official, described how spoil banks block flow and reduce crawfish and fish production, and credited local gap‑cutting projects with improving catches. "The sedimentation has built up in that basin unbelievably," he said. Dean Wilson, executive director of Atchafalaya Basin Keeper, told the committee the basin's capacity to pass design flood volumes has declined since the early 20th century and said the group recently filed a lawsuit against the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority (CPRA). Wilson asked why SCR 38 would be applied retroactively and warned the panel must retain oversight powers to call in agencies in emergencies.
Bridal Spore, staff attorney for Atchafalaya Basin Keeper, requested clarity that the new task force would preserve the oversight committee's authority to compel agency participation in urgent matters; the author said he would address that concern. Both SCR 29 (as amended) and SCR 38 passed the committee by voice vote/no objection.
Next steps: SCR 29 (task force) and SCR 38 (repeal of joint rule 7) were reported favorably and will move forward for further consideration.
