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February 22, 2012, Louisiana Times-Picayune
by Patrick A. Barnes
With Restore money, Louisiana should strengthen coast and provide job training
From oiled marshes and decreased oyster harvests to rising poverty rates and loss of livelihoods, Louisiana has suffered in many ways from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Soon, we will have a chance to repair and restore both our environment and our economy, as the Restore Act sends billions of dollars in Clean Water Act fines to the Gulf Coast states.
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by Jefferson Parish President, John F. Young
from the Jefferson Parish, Louisiana Newsletter
Coastal Restoration Provides Multiple Benefits for Louisiana
R estoring our coastal treasures can help tackle many economic goals, including drawing more visitors, promoting thriving fisheries and making our communities more resilient in the face of future storms and sea level rise.
Professional geologist Patrick A. Barnes authored those words in his opinion letter to, and recently published by the Times Picayune. A prominent business and community leader in Southeast Louisiana, Mr. Barnes’ missive is as much an economic blueprint as it is a prognosis for our long-term prosperity. Simply put, robust coastal restoration efforts continue to be both the catalyst and linchpin that can effectively "address the economic and environmental challenges and opportunities we face as a state and a region." |
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Saving for a Dry Day
Experts are probing deep underground for natural sites that will hold hundreds of millions of gallons of water.
Kevin Spear | Sentinel Staff Writer
Posted April 24, 2006
If it's wise to save money for rainy days, then maybe there's some wisdom in saving rain for days when you're poor -- water-poor that is.
It's an idea that's taking hold in fast-growing Central Florida to prevent future water shortages: collecting water during rainy season, storing it and then using it during the dry season.
But it's not an easy task.
Storing any significant amount of water could require hundreds of giant tanks or very large reservoirs. There is a cheaper and more effective way, environmental authorities say.
In Orange, Seminole and Volusia counties, experts are probing deep underground for formations of porous rock that will hold hundreds of millions of gallons of water.
The water would be treated to drinking quality and injected into a well. The underground rock would keep the water in place so it can be retrieved later through the same well.
That's "aquifer storage and recovery" in expert jargon. More important than what the technology is called is what it can do.
"You can store massive amounts of water," said Ronald Ferland, an Orlando environmental consultant for a storage project in east Orange County...Read more... |
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