Boil water advisory in Terrebonne
March 19, 2016
FISHING CHAMPION
March 23, 2016
The state’s lead man on coastal restoration outlined the Coastal Restoration and Protection Authority’s plans for the local area in the coming year.
Johnny Bradberry, appointed to head the CPRA by Gov. John Bel Edwards in January, spoke to the South Central Industrial Association last Tuesday. He reviewed the agency’s upcoming budget and its priorities heading forward.
The agency has a $735.8 million budget for fiscal year 2017, according to Bradberry. Of that, about $210.7 million will be spent on projects in the Tri-parishes, including $197.6 in Terrebonne and Lafourche.
Bradberry said the CPRA will have to prioritize its money management, as the state’s current fiscal crisis could shorten its own budget. According to Bradberry, his agency normally gets about $30-$35 million annually from state mineral resource revenues. This year, because of low oil prices, that figure dropped to $16 million. In FY 2017, the CPRA projects to get $13 million.
The dropping revenues mean the CPRA has less money to find matching federal dollars for projects.
“I can’t spend federal dollars to match federal dollars; it just doesn’t work that way. So, we’ve got to protect that flow of cash coming into the Coastal Trust Fund,” he said.
Bradberry credited state Rep. Jerome Zeringue, himself a former head of the CPRA, and other local delegates for protecting the CPRA’s dedicated funds from $750,000 in cuts during the state Legislature’s recent special session. Zeringue said one victory will likely not end of the battle to protect the CPRA’s coffers.
“I think there are going to be challenges and people who are looking at this funding as a way to use it to address the state’s budget problems,” he said. “This is a crisis far more than the budget crisis that we need to address in terms of loss of our coast and the significance that it plays not just to our region, but to the state and to the nation.”
Bradberry also emphasized the CRPA will have a sense of urgency under his leadership, which will manifest itself in striking a balance between conducting research and implementing plans.
“We’ve got a window of opportunity that we have to deal with in this situation we’re in,” he said. “By that I mean, there are some opportunities and some projects across the coast that if we don’t take advantage of now, in terms of the money we have and getting them done, they’re going to be irreversible.”
CPRA Chairman Johnny Bradberry speaks at the South Central Industrial Association membership meeting. Bradberry said the agency will be spending almost $200 million on coastal restoration efforts in Terrebonne and Lafourche parishes next year.
