Full document / COSOC-W-86-002 - the National Sea Grant Library

Estuarine andCoastal Management - Tools ofthe Abstract Only
Trade. Proceedingsof theTenthNationalConference
of TheCoastal Society. October 12-15.1986. New
Orleans.LA. Copyrightby TheCoastal Society
1987.
THE ATCHAFALAYA RIVER AS A RESOURCE
Johannes L. van Beck
Coastal Environments, Inc.
1260 Main Street
Baton Rouge, LA 70802
The overlapping delta cycles that formed and maintained Louisiana's coastal plain
became a process of the pastwiththecontrols placed on theMississippi Riveranditsmain
distributary, the Atchafalaya River. The resultant wetland losses, compounded by
subsidence, sea level rise, and furthermodification ofthe area'shydroiogic processes make
it increasingly necessary to rely on engineering works for the protection of coastal
development and the maintenanceofwetland resourcebase. The extent to which both these
objectives can be met will depend on the ability to integrate ecological considerations and
engineering. Present needs for improvement ofthe Atchafalaya Floodway system provide
a significant opportunity to develop this approach as a partial answer to Louisiana's
coastwtde problems.
The characteristics and problemsof the domain ofthe Lower Atchafalaya River
are almost prototypical for coastal Louisiana. The area combines the often conflicting
needs foruse of the riverasa sedimentand freshwater resource, maintenance of navigation
access and flood control, flood protection of coastal communities, and the reducuon of
water stresses in remaining bottomland hardwoods. Continuing subsidence and sea level
rise will ultimately requirethat flood protectionof the developed areabe accomplished
through levee construction and forced drainage. These costs can be reduced, however, by
maintaining a wetland buffer between the Gulf of Mexico and the leveed area. Wetland
restoration and maintenance would simultaneously serve the partialrenewal of the state's
mostimportant long-term resource. The utilization of the Atchafalaya River for that
purposeis thereforein the public interestforat leasttwo majorreasons. The opportunity to
do so is providedin principle by thecongressional mandate to develop a multi-purpose plan
for the management ofthe land and water-related resourcesof the Atchafalaya Basin, and
the urgency for the state of Louisiana to undertake the long-term protection and
management ofits remaining coastalresources.
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