You are here:
LOUISIANA ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH CENTER
Impact/Purpose:
Meadow, Louisiana.
The objectives of the conservatory have been met for the first year. Breeder blocks were maintained for outreach education and plant material conservation. Records are being kept on species maintained in the breeder blocks and garden area as recommended by the NRCS and U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).
The objectives of the conservatory are to: (1) collect, propagate, and maintain breeder blocks of Louisiana ecotypes for outreach education; (2) collect, propagate, and maintain breeder blocks of Louisiana ecotypes for prairie re-establishment; (3) develop foundational knowledge for future research concerning prairie conservation; and (4) enhance the ongoing, collaborative efforts of academia, government, and private agencies to reestablish the prairie.
Project 7: Density of Marsh Periwinkles and Fire Ant Mounds in Natural and Restored Marshes in the Sabine National Wildlife Refuge. The objectives of this project are to:(1) assess variation in periwinkle (snail) density among marshes differing in the degree of restoration; and (2) determine if there is a relationship between the densities of periwinkles and fire ant mounds.
Meadow, Louisiana.The objectives of the conservatory have been met for the first year. Breeder blocks were maintained for outreach education and plant material conservation. Records are being kept on species maintained in the breeder blocks and garden area as recommended by the NRCS and U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).
The objectives of the conservatory are to: (1) collect, propagate, and maintain breeder blocks of Louisiana ecotypes for outreach education; (2) collect, propagate, and maintain breeder blocks of Louisiana ecotypes for prairie re-establishment; (3) develop foundational knowledge for future research concerning prairie conservation; and (4) enhance the ongoing, collaborative efforts of academia, government, and private agencies to reestablish the prairie.
Project 7: Density of Marsh Periwinkles and Fire Ant Mounds in Natural and Restored Marshes in the Sabine National Wildlife Refuge. The objectives of this project are to:(1) assess variation in periwinkle (snail) density among marshes differing in the degree of restoration; and (2) determine if there is a relationship between the densities of periwinkles and fire ant mounds.
Louisiana continues to lose wetlands at an alarming rate. This crisis is of national significance and will have devastating impacts on Louisiana and the nation. Wetlands are lost as a result of subsidence, saltwater intrusion, sea level rise, herbivores, oil or chemical spills, and many other natural or man-induced factors. Highly productive vegetated wetlands are being converted to unproductive open water at the rate of a parcel the size of a football field every 30 minutes.
Approximately 35 square miles are being lost annually. The Governor’s Committee on the Future of Coastal Louisiana reports that without the wetlands, tens of billions of dollars will be lost to the state and nation. The benefits of wetlands include: storm protection, protection of oil and gas networks, protection of transportation networks, water quality, fisheries, protection of coastal communities and infrastructure, protection of unique world renowned ecosystems, and many intangible values.
The Louisiana Environmental Research Center (LERC) was created in 1990 to conduct basic research, accumulate and disseminate information, and create awareness through education of environmental issues and concepts related to wetlands restoration/remediation. LERC’s studies and research are directed at wetland restoration, ecology, and the environmental effects of oil spills.
Louisiana’s coastal area is generally divided into two geographic sections: the western area called the Chenier Plain and the eastern area called the Deltaic Plain. The Chenier Plain is domin
Description:
Project 1: Results from the 2-year project currently are going through a quality control and analysis.
Project 2: Data analyses are ongoing.
Project 3: The preliminary work for these experiments has been conducted, and the data will be collected during the next 6-8 months. We will collect R. maritima samples from different environments along the Gulf Coast and compare the genetic diversity using the ITRS regions mentioned above. In addition, we will begin to collect data to investigate the contribution of salinity and bottom substrate on the growth and proliferation of widgeongrass.
Project 4: Hematological and immunological data are still being collected and a full report of our results should be available in next year’s annual report.
Project 7: We will visit three sites (one natural and two restored marshes) and collect samples on three more dates.