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April 3, 2013
Most people don’t know what the abbreviation LUMCON means, and, for those with curious minds, the Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium in Cocodrie will host one of its bi-annual open house events from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, April 13.
“Everything is free and open to public,” said Holly Hebert, LUMCON’s public information specialist and senior data manager. “We will have a scavenger hunt and get people into the labs where they will be able to examine things under microscopes. Visitors will also be able to talk to all of our researchers and faculty and ask them questions.”
LUMCON was created in 1979 to oversee and conduct some of the state’s marine research and education programs, and the W. J. DeFelice Marine Center, which houses the program, was built in 1983. In the decades since, the coastal laboratory facility has provided a place for state universities and permanent faculty and staff to conduct their work.
“The overall objective of the open house is to make the public aware of LUMCON and what we do, our mission of research and education,” Hebert said. “We want people to learn about our programs and what we do here.”
While many of the event’s activities, including airboat rides, will be geared toward children, the main focus of the open house will be a 12:30-1:30 p.m. presentation on Louisiana’s master plan for coastal restoration.
“There are a lot of people out there who don’t necessarily understand the plan,” Hebert said. “We will have a panel discussion with experts who will give insight on the plan. They will explain what the plan means to the people of south Louisiana, especially the people of Terrebonne and Lafourche parishes. They will also take questions from the crowd after the discussion.”
Panel members will be Natalie Peyronnin with the Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority, David Muth with the National Wildlife Federation, Jenneke Visser, associate director of the Institute for Coastal Ecology and Engineering and associate professor of the school of geosciences at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette and Alex Kolker, a coastal geologist at LUMCON.
“Alex has done lots of work with land loss, and Natalie isgiving an introduction of how the plan was developed and its key elements,” she said. “Jenneke will discuss development and insight of the plan.
“This will be my first time speaking at our open house,” Kolker continued. “This is the first time the state has been to LUMCON to talk about the plan, and it will be good for people to know about the plan and how it will impact their lives. This is a huge part of our coastal future.”
Kolker said he thinks many of the guest’s questions will focus on what will and will not be part of the plan, including levees, marsh creation river diversion, barrier islands and areas not targeted for restoration efforts, and how it was decided which areas would and would not be part of the plan.
“People will be informed about the impacts of restoration on certain areas of the coast, including flood protection and infrastructure,” Kolker said. “So many people depend on the coast, and we need to find coastal sustainability. The coast moves around, and we know that we can never sustain some areas. Some areas will grow and some will decay. It’s a natural process, and we need to learn how to sustain the economy and communities with a changing coast.”
Those from Cocodrie will learn about what the plan includes for that area, including proposals for marsh creation in Terrebonne Bay, levees near Chauvin and Dulac and barrier island restoration at Timbalier Island, Isle Derniere and other islands on the south end of Terrebonne Bay.
“The open house is a great opportunity for people at all levels to come down and learn about the coast,” he added. “Guests will learn about our wonderful coast in a fun way.”
While Kolker will discuss the plan, Visser will field questions about how science was applied to form the master plan.
“This plan is a model for the state’s restoration project for the next 50 years, and people want to know how this will affect them in their lifetime,” Visser said. “We evaluated different restoration projects and established objectives, and the plan is not based on who lives in an area and where that area is.”
Elizabeth Click, left, a junior at South Terrebonne High School, Dr. Gary Lafleur Jr., an associate professor of biological sciences at Nicholls State University, Sarah Simoneaux, a junior at South Terrebonne High School, Tori Hebert, a sophomore at Terrebonne High School, Callee Rome, a senior at Louise S. McGehee, and Kaylee Gleason Senior at Live Oak High School conduct beach during the Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium Estuarine Awareness and Discovery camp. LUMCON will host its open house from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, April 13.
