Six Feet of Water in Evangeline

Dear folks, as many of you know, I grew up near the Atchafalaya Basin in Southwestern Louisiana.  My family home is in Franklin, La., a small town along the Bayou Teche.  Neither of my parents were born there.  My dad lived amongst the lakes of Northern Wisconsin and my mother grew up on the Caribbean.  I was raised in Franklin and that area still has a strong hold on my heart.  Of course, I was there when Hurricanes Katrina and then Rita hit our towns.  Yes, it was devasting.  I lost my mother shortly after the hurricane.  That was the worse thing that could have ever happened and so it's very difficult for me to even talk about that time.

I remember growing up with the knowledge that our area would be sacrificed for the City of New Orleans, should there be a substantial flood.  It was always in the back of my mind but when one is young, you think everything will last forever, people never die and the Mississippi ain't gonna change its course!  Wrong. 

The water is cresting the banks along the Morgan City seawall.  Franklin, the Parish seat of St. Mary Parish, is 30 miles away. The Corp of Engineers is considering opening the Morganza spillway.  If that happens the entire area is in danger of being flooded and a place I've known and loved will be changed in untold ways. 

I am glad that from my early beginnings, I connected to the earth and tried in my own way to photograph as many of the areas as I could.  I also interviewed many of the folks who grew up on houseboats and who lived on the land.  In my own way, I've tried to hold on and preserve just a bit of a wonderful culture.

The water is rising.  The rains continue to fall.  Mother Nature continues her work.  I remember standing on the front porch looking at the full moon through the branches of the old Mimosa tree.  Mama said, Mari, the moon will always be there but someday the old tree will get old and die.  We all have our seasons. 

As it happened, Mama and the Mimosa left together.  Yet, the moon still shines as bright as ever and will always be there controlling the tides.  Thank you for reading this. Salud. 

For more information on Louisiana's Wetlands, please click on this link:     I have also cut and pasted some information from that link here:

Louisiana River Control

America's WETLAND is the name of the geographical zone that includes Louisiana's coastal wetlands. In spite of its extreme importance to the well-being of the United States, it has suffered from a lack of identity relative to national recognition of the Everglades and Chesapeake Bay.

In many ways, America's WETLAND stands alone in its importance:

• America's WETLAND is an area of world ecological significance.
  • America's WETLAND is home to 79 rare, threatened, and endangered species.
  • America's WETLAND, the heart of the Mississippi Flyway, is the wintering ground for 5,000,000 ducks and other waterfowl each winter.
  • America's WETLAND is the North American gateway to hundres of millions of Neotropical birds migrating to their nesting grounds each spring and back home each fall.
• America's WETLAND is the largest and most threatened coastal wetland ecosystem in the continental United States.
  • America's WETLAND is 5727 square miles in size.
  • America's WETLAND contains 40% of all tidal marshes in the continental U.S.
  • America's WETLAND is experiencing 90% of all coastal marsh loss occuring in the U.S.
• America's WETLAND provides vital hurricane protection to the 2 million citizens living in the area.
  • Rebuilding America's WETLAND (Louisiana's coast) should be part of any comprehensive coastal protection plan
    • The belt of coastal wetlands - America's WETLAND - act as a buffer that reduces the impact of storms on coastal cities and facilities important to the well-being of America.
    • A sustainable barrier island zone, if reestablished, protects the integrity of the coastal wetlands behind them
• America's WETLAND is the most economically valuable coastal wetland ecosystem in the continental United States.
  • America's WETLAND produces 30% of all coastal fishes in the continental U.S.
  • America's WETLAND contains 7 of the top 10 ports for landings of commercial fisheries in the entire U.S.
  • America's WETLAND is the passage point for 30% of all oil and gas entering the U.S.
  • America's WETLAND is home to the NUMBER ONE port system in the U.S. - The Port of South Louisiana.
• America's WETLAND is home to one of America's most remarkable cultures - that wonderful mix we call Louisiana's Gumbo Culture, so named because it is formed by mixing a vast assortment of cultures and allowing them to merge their best qualities, just like the marrying of an array of seasonings in Louisiana's unique cuisine.

For these reasons and more, America's WETLAND is of strategic importance to the nation's economy, environment, and culture. The protection of America's WETLAND is important to the well-being of all Americans, and by extension, to the entire world.

The loss of America's WETLAND is at a crisis stage. Crises call for immediate response. It is imperative that all Americans understand their connections to values that originate in America's WETLAND - and take action to conserve and restore those values.