Swamplands (and Swamp Things?): The Frightening Reality of Losing Them

This Halloween, let’s go deep into the Louisiana swamplands, where you might see a glowing orb that leads you to places unknown, but you will never return. Or maybe you will meet a ravenous rougarou looking for his next tasty meal.

One thing we know for sure is that if we don’t act now, we’ll lose tens of thousands of acres of the swampland that makes up a vital landscape. That is super scary.

The Maurepas Swamp, just north of New Orleans, is one of the largest forested wetland complexes in the nation. It offers a multitude of birds and other wildlife vital swamp habitat and protects communities nestled between New Orleans and Baton Rouge from storm surge. This swamp complex is facing multiple stressors, like sea level rise and severance from its source of freshwater and sediment, the Mississippi River.

Never fear, there is a major restoration project planned for the area. The River Reintroduction into Maurepas Swamp will reintroduce freshwater and sediment into the dying swamp, revitalizing over 45,000 acres of habitat. This project has broad support and a lot of momentum, but it still needs your help to make sure we save this swampland that protects thousands of people and countless creepy critters.  

Soon, the Army Corps of Engineers will open a public comment period that will be critical to implementing the swamp restoration project. We need to make sure the Army Corps chooses to save the rougarous and ghouls, and most importantly, supports the sustainable, ecosystem restoration that will help protect not-so-spooky wildlife and all of the communities in the region.

Stay tuned for ways you can support more swamplands (and more swamp things). Hopefully, we’ll be able to soon say, “It’s alive!” in Maurepas Swamp.

Learn more and sign up for how to support this project here.