Louisiana’s Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority (CPRA) has awarded engineering and design contracts for coastal restoration projects that will address injuries to natural resources caused by the Deepwater Horizon (DWH) oil spill.
The projects are funded through the Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) and are outlined in the State’s approved NRDA DWH Restoration Plan #1 and are also included in the State’s Coastal Master Plan.
The following contracts are awarded:
The Lake Borgne Marsh Creation Project (Increment 1) is located in St. Bernard Parish. The project would extend approximately four miles from Shell Beach on the southern rim of Lake Borgne to Lena Lagoon on the east. This project will dredge sediment from Lake Borgne to create approximately 1,548 acres of marsh. The Duplantis Design Group (DDG), a Louisiana owned company headquartered in Thibodaux, LA, was awarded this project. DDG is also subcontracting with national firm Coastal Engineering Consultants (CEC).
The Terrebonne Basin Ridge and Marsh Creation Project (Bayou Terrebonne Increment) is located in western Terrebonne Parish. The ridge restoration feature of this project will restore approximately 126 acres of earthen ridge and the marsh creation feature of this project will dredge sediment from offshore to create approximately 1,370 acres of marsh. HDR Engineering was the successful bidder on this project.
The Barataria Basin Ridge and Marsh Creation Project (Spanish Pass Increment) is located in Plaquemines Parish. The ridge restoration feature of this project will restore 120 acres of earthen ridge. The marsh creation feature of this project will dredge sediment from the Mississippi River, near Venice, LA, to create approximately 1,134 acres of marsh. W.F. Baird and Associates in cooperation with Louisiana based company, Royal Engineering, will be leading the engineering and design efforts associated with this project.
According to CPRA, the firms awarded contracts were chosen through a highly competitive selection process in which proposals were evaluated and scored according to criteria including specialization, personnel qualifications, capacity and other evaluation.