BP Oil Spill Is Central Factor in Louisiana's Hurricane Protection Says Business Council of New Orleans & the River Region

NEW ORLEANS, May 27 /PRNewswire/ -- With the Deep Water Horizon Oil Spill now at 38 days and counting, people in SE Louisiana are frustrated at the slow pace of the response operation. And with the fifth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina on August 29, 2010, today's frustration hearkens back to another man made disaster that also threatened Louisiana's very core.

Following the annual press briefing to announce Flood Protection and Hurricane Preparedness for the Greater New Orleans Region, the Business Council of Greater New Orleans and the River Region, which has coordinated the hurricane briefing for the past three years, concluded the presentation with a forceful appeal to the federal government.

Merritt Lane, president and CEO of Canal Barge and chairman of the Business Council's Task Force on Flood Safety, explained, "The Joint Communication Advisory Committee (JCAC) is a live example of the Business Council's bringing disparate agencies together for the common good. The same kind of spirit of collaboration is what we, as the Business Council, are advocating today."

According to Gregory Rusovich, chairman of the Business Council of Greater New Orleans and the River Region, "It is imperative that the White House provide strong leadership to ensure that every department and agency of the federal government work as a team to forge and execute a coherent, aggressive plan of action. We need multiple parties in various disciplines-the best and brightest this country, indeed the world, has to offer− communicating, engaging, and providing solutions. And then we must have a clear chain of authority by which to get valuable ideas in the hands of decision makers.

"This crisis has national significance and requires urgent action. Leadership must come from the White House."  

An assessment published by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service estimates that Louisiana loses a football field of wetlands every hour. As the oil continues to contaminate the barrier islands and marshes that are the state's first defense in flood protection, the entire region is at risk, not only from a geographic shift, but also from an economic and tourism threat.

According to the Louisiana Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board, Louisiana ranks behind only one state -- Alaska -- when it comes to total commercial seafood production. Louisiana is the number one producer of shrimp, blue crab meat, and oysters, and according to the National Fisheries Institute, Louisiana supplies more than three-fourths of the domestic shrimp commercial production.  The state is the number one domestic producer of crude oil and second highest producer of natural gas, according to the Louisiana Oil and Gas Association. New Orleans is routinely ranked as one of the top 25 travel destinations in the United States and top 100 in the world, per Trip Advisor ®.

Rusovich said, "The BP Oil Spill is of catastrophic proportions not only for Louisiana and its neighboring coasts, but also for the nation."

Lane remarked, "We're dealing with an incident of unimaginable proportions, and it is critical that we use all available resources to respond to it. We call on our country's leaders to ensure that the Coast Guard and all other federal departments and agencies work together and constructively engage state and local officials and citizens, many of whom know the wetlands and waters better than anyone.

"The Business Council stands ready to assist in any way possible to facilitate cooperation and collaboration that taps into every possible idea, evaluates each of them objectively, and then translates viable ideas into action-immediately. The urgency of the effort to stop the source of the pollution and to protect our coastline cannot be underestimated. We need action, not rhetoric."

Rusovich and Lane praised the Louisiana Congressional delegation, Governor Bobby Jindal, and state and local officials who have worked tirelessly to provoke results and solutions. Rusovich remarked, "They won't give up and they won't give in."

The statement by the Business Council will be delivered to President Obama during his visit to SE Louisiana Thursday, May 27.

Founded in 1985, the Business Council of New Orleans & the River Region is a collaborative effort of engaged business leaders who believe New Orleans is a rewarding place in which to live and work. The Business Council focuses on public policy issues that affect New Orleans' quality of life and prospects for the future.

SOURCE Business Council of New Orleans & the River Region