The Lake Hermitage Marsh Creation – NRDA Early Restoration Project involves the creation of marsh within a project footprint known as the “Lake Hermitage Marsh Creation Project” developed for and funded through the Coastal Wetlands Planning, Protection and Restoration Act (CWPPRA) Program. This project substitutes approximately 104 acres of created brackish marsh for approximately 5-6 acres of earthen terraces that would otherwise have been constructed within the CWPPRA project boundary.
The Lake Hermitage Marsh Creation – NRDA Early Restoration Project will create approximately 104 acres of brackish marsh in lieu of the 7,300 linear feet of earthen terraces that was included in the final design of the base CWPPRA project. This additional marsh area will be constructed entirely within the base CWPPRA project’s terrace boundary. Sediment will be hydraulically dredged from a borrow area in the Mississippi River, and pumped via pipeline to create new marsh in the project area. Over time, natural dewatering and compaction of dredged sediments should result in elevations within the intertidal range which would be conducive to the establishment of emergent marsh. The 104-acre fill area will be planted with native marsh vegetation to accelerate benefits to be realized from this project.
The Lake Hermitage Marsh Creation – NRDA Early Restoration Project is located within the Barataria Hydrologic Basin in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana, to the west of the community of Pointe a la Hache, and northwest of the community of Magnolia. This basin was identified as a priority area for coastal restoration, and has been the focus of extensive study and project design and implementation.
Source: noaa.gov