Mississippi Sound Coalition working to stop Mid-Breton sediment diversion project in Louisiana

BAY ST. LOUIS, Miss. (WLOX) – The Bonnet Carre Spillway opened 13 times in 2019. Low salinity caused marine life in the sound to die, leaving fishermen with no catch.

Cary Trapani said fishing in Bay St. Louis hasn’t been the same since all the freshwater flowed into the Mississippi Sound, killing shrimp, crabs, and oysters.

“Our way of life was devastated,” Trapani said. “The salinity level was so low. It couldn’t sustain life or the main fish or the oysters or what have you.”

Trapani learned that officials in Louisiana want to rebuild marshlands as part of a Mid-Breton Sound sediment diversion project.

That’s why he met with the Mississippi Sound Coalition and the University of Southern Mississippi on Tuesday, to find ways to prevent this from happening.

“Freshwater will take over the sound which would change everything,” he said.

The proposed Breton Sound Project aims to rebuild Louisiana marshlands and divert more fresh water. Mississippi Sound Coalition Manager Gerald Blessey believes this will do more harm to marine life in the Sound.

“If you want to restore Louisiana, don’t do it with diversion water, dredge the Mississippi River,” Blessey said. “Everything that must have some saltwater and cannot live with too much pollution will be gone.”

The Coalition is also concerned about studies from the University of Southern Mississippi that show if the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers would open the spillway more over the next 15 years, causing algae blooms again, beaches to close, and impact tourism, as well as the seafood industry.

153 bottlenose dolphins died after the 2019 spillway openings. The Mississippi Sound Coalition said that was the highest one-year loss ever, even when compared to the BP oil spill.

Blessey said he and the Mississippi Sound Coalition will be following these Breton Sound projects in Louisiana as well as working to prevent harmful impacts to the Mississippi Sound.

“Protect Louisiana from flooding and protect the Mississippi Sound from being destroyed and by the way, protect the Louisiana fisheries from being destroyed like they are in Plaquemines Parish and St. Bernard Parish,” he said.

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