WSC-Category 1: From natural wetland to murky water: Cross-disciplinary analysis of a drowning urbanized coast

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Climate driven sea-level rise and an intensified hydrological cycle are threatening water resources in the New Orleans metropolitan area and surrounding Mississippi River Delta. Variable river discharge and sea level rise can promote cycles of degradation by increasing flooding potential and salinity in regional waterways. Reversing the onset or progression of degradation will involve managing freshwater supply (including reintroduction of freshwater and sediment into wetlands), enabling the sequestration of nutrients that can potentially restore highly valued habitat, and removal of toxins that challenge human and ecosystem health. Science and engineering alone will not be sufficient to implement effective management plans. Well-defined policy and legal frameworks will be essential for progressive management interventions. Similarly, engaging local stakeholders to enhance awareness of concerns about water sustainability will be necessary to ensure ecological and community resiliency under future climate conditions. The purposes of this incubation project are to develop a strong organizational framework, to enhance existing research capacity and infrastructure, and to obtain critical baseline data that will set the stage for the development of a comprehensive understanding of water quality and management issues in the Mississippi River Delta region. A demonstration project illustrates integrative coastal water management in the study area. This project focuses on management of water quality in an urban-influenced wetland hydrologic system. The research team assesses government jurisdiction and property rights related to data on historical and current water and environmental conditions. The research provides a baseline understanding of water quality issues at the study site. The study also use focus groups consisting of local stakeholders to collect data on the historical context and perceptions of environmental change and to inform the development of tenable policy solutions. These efforts involve a working group composed of experts and community partners. The goals of the working group are to enhance water resources data management to promote institutional management and community awareness in the proposed study area, and to identify key challenges and priority research areas that are most likely to offer practical solutions for water sustainability in vulnerable coastal environments.