Project will help restore, preserve and protect America's energy coast

NEW ORLEANS, Nov. 24 /PRNewswire/ -- Forty-three percent of threatened and endangered species in the United States depend on wetlands during some stage of their life cycle. Despite their recognized value to the environment, more than 80,000 acres of wetlands continue to be lost in the U.S. each year. In an effort to protect Louisiana's coast from future natural disasters and habitat loss, Entergy Corporation (NYSE: ETR) has partnered with Restore America's Estuaries, the Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana and Jefferson Parish on a new wetlands preservation project.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20091124/DA16405-a)

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20091124/DA16405-b)

The Coastal Bayou Segnette Cypress Planting project, funded through Entergy's Environmental Initiatives Fund, will re-establish cypress trees that provide critical habitat for migratory birds and provide storm protection for Jefferson Parish residents. The project will also promote coastal protection concepts outlined in Louisiana's Comprehensive Master Plan for a Sustainable Coast.

Some of the key benefits of the Coastal Bayou Segnette Cypress Planting project include enhanced habitat quality, decreased erosion along Louisiana's coast and positively impacting climate change by sequestering carbon dioxide.

"Since 1932 we've lost over 1,900 square miles of Louisiana wetlands, and we continue lose 25 square miles of wetlands annually - an area roughly the size of Washington, D.C.," said Brent Dorsey, Entergy's director of corporate environmental programs. "Protecting our coast is very personal to us because both our employees and many our customers are first-hand witnesses to the ramifications of sea-level rise and erosion."

Bayou Segnette is located in the Barataria Preserve south of New Orleans in the Jean Lafitte National Historical Park. The preserve's 20,000 acres include bayous, swamps, marshes and forests that are home to alligators, reptiles, amphibians and a wide variety of other coastal species, including more than 300 species of migratory birds, shore birds and ducks that will benefit from the Coastal Bayou Segnette Cypress Planting project.

"Estuaries are our coastal natural treasures and provide a critical habitat for essential marine and aquatic species," said Jeff Benoit, president of Restore America's Estuaries. "In many ways, the Louisiana coast and its estuaries are the first line of defense and a measuring stick for the predicted impacts of climate change."

"Not only will the tree growth from this project sequester carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, the trees will also protect adjacent marshes from being lost and releasing carbon into the environment," said Dorsey.

"Entergy has been a great corporate partner on our community-based restoration programs," added Steven Peyronnin, executive director of the Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana. "This project is a perfect example of what we can accomplish in Louisiana when good corporate citizens work with conservation organizations and local partners to restore our coast and protect our communities."

Entergy has contributed $280,000 from its Environmental Initiatives Fund to Restore America's Estuaries since 2007, including $60,000 for the Coastal Bayou Segnette Cypress Planting project.

Established in 2001, Entergy's Environmental Initiatives Fund is dedicated to strengthening the company's clean energy portfolio, driving greater energy efficiency and actively participating in greenhouse gas offset markets.

Entergy Corporation is an integrated energy company engaged primarily in electric power production and retail distribution operations. Entergy owns and operates power plants with approximately 30,000 megawatts of electric generating capacity, and it is the second-largest nuclear generator in the United States. Entergy delivers electricity to 2.7 million utility customers in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. Entergy has annual revenues of more than $13 billion and approximately 14,700 employees.

Entergy's online address is www.entergy.com.

SOURCE Entergy Corporation

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