Gulf Coast Companion Reader
Here’s a small handful of pertinent news stories about topics we’ll discuss on our Gulf Coast Institute. This is definitely not a comprehensive overview, but hopefully it introduces you to some of the main topics. Don't feel compelled to read all (or any!) of them in advance of our Institute, but do feel free to peruse them at your leisure.
This page will remain active after the Institute is over, so you'll be able to return to it in the future.
Bonnet Carre Spillway, Freshwater Diversion and Impacts
A Louisiana spillway helps flood-proof New Orleans. It's killing Mississippi's seafood industry - Boyce Upholt, The Counter
Dolphins, endangered sea turtles, oysters dying as fresh water invades Mississippi Sound - Anita Lee, Biloxi Sun Herald
Gulf Coast leaders form coalition to protect Mississippi Sound after spillway openings - Alex Rozier, Mississippi Today
Environmentalists plan suit over harm to endangered species from Bonnet Carre spillway - Mark Schleifstein, NOLA.com
Mississippi officials file federal lawsuit over Bonnet Carre spillway openings - Associated Press
Coastal Land Loss & Attempts to Rebuild It
Louisiana's Disappearing Coast - Elizabeth Kolbert, The New Yorker
Scientists: Saving the coast does not necessarily mean destroying fisheries - John Snell, Fox 8, New Orleans
Mississippi River diversions led to land loss, not growth, study says - Mark Schleifstein, NOLA.com
In first for energy industry, Freeport-McMoRan to settle Louisiana lawsuits aimed at restoring coast - Tyler Bridges, NOLA.com
Oil & Gas & The Gulf Coast
Oil & Gas Industry Set To Release An Extra 220 Million Tons Of Greenhouse Gases By 2025 - Katie Watkins, Houston Public Media
Louisiana leads nation in natural gas as net exports double, Lake Charles metro sees most gains - Kristen Mosbrucker, The Advocate
Company plans $800 million LNG plant at Port Fourchon - Keith Magill, Houma Today
Natural Gas or renewables? New Orleans' choice is shadowed by Katrina - Ivan Penn, The New York Times
The Gulf "Dead Zone"
The Gulf of Mexico's expanding dead zone - Lulu Garcia-Navarro, NPR
Midwest farm runoff creates headache for Louisiana shrimpers - Travis Lux, New Orleans Public Radio
Gulf dead zone smaller than expected - Travis Lux, New Orleans Public Radio
Gulf Coast Fisheries
It's 'Going to End with Me': The Fate of Gulf Fisheries in a Warming World - Meera Subramanian, Inside Climate News
The Danger Downstream - Spike Johnson, Pulitzer Center for Crisis Reporting/PRI's The World
Fisheries And Fishermen Hard Hit By Decline Of Oysters On Gulf Coast - Debbie Elliott, NPR
BP Oil Spill Aftermath & Impacts
Nine years of research on BP spill, dispersants documents potential human health effects - Mark Schleifstein, NOLA.com
Invisible oil’ discovery shows BP Deepwater Horizon spill was larger than previously thought - Christopher Carbone, Fox News
BP oil spill cash rebuilds eroded Louisiana pelican island - Janet McConnaughey, Associated Press
Climate Adaptation in Native Coastal Communities
Fighting coastal erosion, a Louisiana tribe banks on oyster shells - Harrison Golden, WVLA News 33
As people move north, state makes effort to protect coastal cultures - Teagan Wendland, New Orleans Public Radio
Louisiana unveils ambitious plan to help people get out of the way of climate change - C. Flavelle/M. Rojanasakul - Bloomberg
Petrochemical Industry Risks & Accidents
'I thought somebody attacked us': Gessner chemical explosion devastates west Houston neighborhoods - Sarah Smith, Nancy Sarnoff, Yi-Chin Lee, Jay R. Jordan, The Houston Chronicle
Your eyes start itching': pollution soars in Houston after chemical industry leaks - Oliver Millman, The Guardian
Ahead of explosion, Port Neches plant reported an increase of rogue emissions of explosive gas - Kiah Collier, The Texas Tribune
Agriculture, Aquaculture & Habitat Conservation
Tasty crustacean is new cash crop - Shelby Webb, The Beaumont Enterprise
Flower Banks National Marine Sanctuary - Gulf Coral Reefs
Report: Gulf Coast coral likely to face massive die off by the end of the century - Katie Watkins, Houston Public Media
Expanded protection of coral reefs in Gulf of Mexico may not be ready for approval until 2020 - Alex Stuckey, The Houston Chronicle
The Coral reefs you never heard of, in the path of Trump's drilling plan - Marianne Lavelle, Inside Climate News
Storm Surge & Sea-Level Rise
Surge Protectors: Hurricane Ike awoke region to flood threats - Reeve Hamilton, Brian Thevenot, The Texas Tribune
‘Ike Dike’ creator says proposed coastal barrier must be altered to satisfy residents - Nick Powell, The Houston Chronicle
Coastal residents remain wary of barrier proposal despite Army Corps revisions - Nick Powell, The Houston Chronicle
Marine Labs on the water's edge are threatened by climate change - John Schwartz, The New York Times
Environmental Racism in the Capital of Oil & Gas
As Houston plots a sustainable path forward, it’s leaving this neighborhood behind - Raj Mankad, Grist/The Texas Tribune
Harris county may turn to federal courts to crack down on Valero's air pollution violations - Perla Trevizo, The Houston Chronicle
No one should have to breathe these chemicals. - Ana Parras, op-ed, The New York Times
What's the Matter with Lake Charles? - Pearson Cross, The Independent
Houston Responds as Climate Impacts Hit Home
Hurricane Harvey was the most-extreme weather event to strike U.S. last decade - Aristos Georgiou, Newsweek
Houston partners with global cities on 'living with water' flooding report - Jen Rice, Houston Public Media
Houston's resiliency plan a 'good first step,' expert says - Jen Rice, Houston Public Media
Hopes rise that proposed solar farm will transform former Sunnyside landfill site - Perla Trevizo, The Houston Chronicle
These oil companies are leading the industry's green transformation - Daniela Sirtori-Cortina, CNN.com