LOUISIANA WETLANDS ...

“Louisiana’s wetlands are twice the size of the Everglades National Park, funnel more oil into the United States than the Alaska pipeline, sustain one of the nation’s largest fisheries, and provide vital hurricane protection for New Orleans. And they’re disappearing under the Gulf of Mexico at the rate of 33 football fields a day.”

--National Geographic Magazine, October, 2004

The above quote is not a misprint - 33 FOOTBALL FIELDS PER DAY! Sliding off into the Gulf of Mexico.

The price to correct this situation is $14 BILLION DOLLARS. And to date, Louisiana has lost more than 1.2 million acres of coast.

Most of the rest of the country thinks this is singularly a LOUISIANA problem. Most say that Louisiana taxpayers can foot the entire bill for correcting this situation. Yeah, right - can YOUR state afford $14 Billion dollars for anything? No? Well neither can Louisiana.

Finally, the Bush administration is starting to come around - but they need to do more.

If YOU think that the erroding Louisiana coastline is not YOUR problem - consider the following ...

1. The Port of New Orleans is at the center of the world’s busiest port complex — Louisiana’s Lower Mississippi River. Its proximity to the American Midwest via a 14,500-mile inland waterway system makes New Orleans the port of choice for the movement of cargoes such as steel, grain, containers and manufactured goods.

2. The Port of New Orleans is the only deepwater port in the United States served by six class one railroads. This gives port users direct and economical rail service to or from anywhere in the country.

3. The Port of New Orleans isn't the only port in jeopardy with the loss of the wetlands. Louisiana has FIVE other deep water ports and the combined tonnage of shipping through these ports ranks NUMBER ONE in the nation.

4. If the recent approval of the CAFTA treaty is going to increase trade between the United States and Central America - the VAST bulk of that increase will transit through New Orleans.

5. Louisiana currently has 17 operating oil refineries that account for 16 percent of the nation's oil refining capability. At a time when most American's are complaining about the price of gas - while at the same time refusing to authorize building any more refineries in THEIR state - Louisiana refineries have continued to "chug away" at pouring gas into the U.S. economy. If any new refineries are ever built in the U.S. - many of the first ones will probably be here in Louisiana. If you want to compare Louisiana to California - California, which has MUCH larger land mass -- has 21 refineries (4 more than Louisiana) - they also rank #1 in the nation for gas consumption.

6. Eighteen percent of U.S. oil production originates in, is transported through, or is processed in Louisiana coastal wetlands with a value of $6.3 billion a year.

7. Almost 24 percent of U.S. natural gas production originates in or is processed in Louisiana’s coastal wetlands with a value of $10.3 billion a year.

8. Louisiana's commercial and recreational fisheries produce 25 to 35% of the nation's total catch.

I could go on - but those are the high points. Note that I didn't even get into any of the "green" reasons why the wetlands need to be preserved. For the liberals out there - I probably should have done that. However, I'm a conservative and I care more about concrete economic issues that are relevant to our national survival. And the fact is, these wetlands are critical to our NATION's survival. Look at the numbers folks! This is where the oil is! And if you eat or drink anything but water today - the chances are certain - you're going to put something in your mouth that was handled by a "Coon Ass" down here in Louisiana at one time or another.

And I won't get into the Internet porn industry either - but Mardi Gras in New Orleans is a big producer of that stuff too.

Hey folks, I'm not a Louisiana native - I've only lived here a year and if the place washes away - I can move somewhere else. And I don't care about the "Sportsman Paradise" stuff either. I could care less how many species of protazoa will go extinct from the loss of these wetlands. I'm concerned here as an AMERICAN - because the U.S. can't afford the economic loss that would come with losing these wetlands.

What can you do? Email your Congressman and Senators and tell them to stop considering throwing money at wasteful things like stem cell research and the "big dig" in Boston. Tell 'em to fund the restoration of these wetlands -- NOW!

They also need to know that, unfortunately, the politicians in Louisiana are pretty much crooked. There are a few good ones - the Republicans like Dave Vitter and Gov. Blanco. The guys at the working level though - will steal you blind! So don't just GIVE Louisiana a bunch of money because it'll be squandered and you'll get nothing in return for it. DEMAND FEDERAL OVERSIGHT! This is a national problem and it should be managed by the federal government - probably the Corps of Engineers.