Louisiana Town Relocating Because of Climate Change
@DeborahDiane (40055)
Laguna Woods, California
June 10, 2017 3:34pm CST
A village in Louisiana has become one of the first places in the United States to be relocated because of climate change.
The town of Isle de Jean Charles is located in the Mississippi Delta area of Louisiana and because of rising sea water and the changing rivers and bayous, the Native American tribe which occupies the town has lost 95 percent of their land.
The federal government has awarded them approximately $50 million to relocate to another, inland location.
According to the videos below, every HOUR the state of Louisiana is losing about a football field piece of land to the ocean. The state is shrinking rapidly.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0YesWDF3qo
Is this just the beginning of the effects of climate change on coastal communities around the world, including the U.S.?
Watch the full documentary - http://bit.ly/1LU8pz7 Louisiana is currently losing around a football field's worth of land every hour to the encroaching ocean....
14 people like this
13 responses
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
11 Jun 17
@TheHorse - Of course! You must be right! I'll pretend this isn't happening!
2 people like this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
11 Jun 17
@LadyDuck - Ha Ha! Yes, I have a feeling that money is behind his insistence that there is no climate change.
2 people like this
@TiarasOceanView (70035)
• United States
10 Jun 17
Wow that is very significant.
It is part of the reason why I moved from the seaside further inland, though I did not want to.
2 people like this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
11 Jun 17
@TiarasOceanView - I think you were smart. I hear that a lot of people in Southern Florida are having trouble selling their houses because no one wants to be caught with the "hot potato" of a house that is disappearing into the ocean. I'm sure the federal government is not going to be able to bail out all the people who have a problem.
2 people like this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
11 Jun 17
@TiarasOceanView - Unfortunately, the people who currently own those homes are having trouble getting out, because no one wants to buy their homes. Recently I read that banks are reluctant to give buyers mortgages to buy those houses but, at the same time, the people who currently own the homes and have a mortgage are expected to keep paying on them. It is a mess.
2 people like this
@TiarasOceanView (70035)
• United States
11 Jun 17
@DeborahDiane Yes why I move with a backpack only. Material possessions weigh people down.
2 people like this
@changjiangzhibin89 (16534)
• China
11 Jun 17
The climate change and rising sea levels are the sharp warning the Mother Nature gives us .What we have done to Mother Nature now takes its toll on us! Ridiculously some people are still arguing about the climate change problem,even want to pull out of Paris climate accord.
1 person likes this
@changjiangzhibin89 (16534)
• China
12 Jun 17
@DeborahDiane Yes, it is time to protect our earth village ,it is all hands on deck.
1 person likes this
@TheHorse (205767)
• Walnut Creek, California
12 Jun 17
@DeborahDiane Agreed. And we have to plan to make our coastal cities safe for our great-grand-kids.
1 person likes this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
11 Jun 17
@changjiangzhibin89 - I agree that this is a warning which Mother Nature is giving us. It is ridiculous to keep arguing about it. We all need to work together to do everything we can to slow it down. We may not be able to stop it, but we could slow it down.
2 people like this
@LadyDuck (458091)
• Switzerland
12 Jun 17
@DeborahDiane I am seriously concerned about South Florida as well as about many Islands in the world.
1 person likes this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
13 Jun 17
@LadyDuck - Yes, I have heard that some of the small island nations are in danger of disappearing within the next decade or two. It is very sad.
1 person likes this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
11 Jun 17
@LadyDuck - This is the first town in the U.S. to experience this problem and, admittedly, it is on the outer reaches of the Mississippi delta. However, I am sure it will not be the last place to have a problem. Already there is a lot of concern about South Florida.
1 person likes this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
13 Jun 17
@just4him - It may be that they are lucky to have been the first place which needed relocating. Eventually, it could become so expensive and complicated, the federal government will no longer be able to do it. What will happen to people living near the coast, then?
1 person likes this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
13 Jun 17
@just4him - In the coastal areas of South Florida, I understand that some people are trying to relocate, but they are in the difficult situation of not being able to find someone else to buy their property, so they don't have the money to simply walk away from their home, especially if they have a mortgage on it. They just hope the process is as slow as possible. Unfortunately, it is happening much more quickly than many of them ever dreamed possible.
1 person likes this
@just4him (306239)
• Green Bay, Wisconsin
13 Jun 17
@DeborahDiane People will relocate instead of watching their property wash away.
1 person likes this
@Kuttu_007 (1940)
• India
13 Jun 17
How it's possible to relocate a town...??I didn't get it...
1 person likes this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
13 Jun 17
@Kuttu_007 - The town leaders were given $52 million to buy a new piece of land, build new homes and businesses, etc. Fortunately, it was a small town. Who knows what will happen when cities are involved.
1 person likes this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
14 Jun 17
@Kuttu_007 - There are several barrier islands around the U.S. which are facing the same problem in the next couple of decades, and no one wants to buy their homes. In addition, there are entire island nations in danger of disappearing forever. Among them are: The Seychelles, The Maldives, Solomon Islands and the whole Micronesia. I think it is going to be a very big problem and no one knows what to do about it.
1 person likes this
@Kuttu_007 (1940)
• India
13 Jun 17
@DeborahDiane omg...this is the first time Iam hearing this ...I think it won't be a big problem for the inhabitants..
1 person likes this
@snowy22315 (169966)
• United States
13 Jun 17
It's sad to see that, but I think many more will be displaced due to climate change.
1 person likes this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
13 Jun 17
@snowy22315 - I agree that more people will be displaced due to climate change in the future. Could be expensive and disruptive.
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
13 Jun 17
@jstory07 - I have read the same thing ... that there are a number of islands around the world that are shrinking as the ocean rises. Some of them could eventually be underwater.
@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
17 Jun 17
A football field piece of land lost to the ocean: Soon there will be no Louisiana!
1 person likes this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
18 Jun 17
Yes, a football field size piece of Louisiana disappears every HOUR. That is so shocking. You would think the people in the South would be up in arms trying to prevent climate change. Instead, the attitude of many of them is just the opposite. I don't get it.
@Tampa_girl7 (48958)
• United States
13 Jun 17
I didn't realize this. How frightening. We are only three hours from the coast.
1 person likes this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
14 Jun 17
@Tampa_girl7 - It is scary. @LadyDuck just pointed out to me that rising sea levels have become a serious problem for a number of island nations, including The Seychelles, The Maldives, Solomon Islands and the whole Micronesia.
1 person likes this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
13 Jun 17
@Tampa_girl7 - I think a lot of people do not realize what is going on with rising ocean waters. Things are changing much faster than they would if the change was natural. We will only have decades, rather than centuries, to make the necessary infrastructure changes.
1 person likes this
@crazyhorseladycx (39515)
• United States
10 Jun 17
part 'f climate change 's the earth doin' 'ts 'thingy', 's such's been happenin' since way 'fore mankind came to be. that bein' said though, we humans'n our greed 've sped 'p the process significantly. $50 million don't go too far these days, does 't? movin' these folks inland 'll keep 'em safe fer how long 'fore that land too disappears?
i did need to find the humor'n this, ms. d-d. folks've always said that cali'd go first 'n here louisiana 'tis tryin' to steal that limelight. alrighty, not funny 'n i'm off to grab a hankie.
1 person likes this
@crazyhorseladycx (39515)
• United States
11 Jun 17
@DeborahDiane how many homes were lost due to that, hon? don't reckon i'd heard 'f such. mankind learnt nothin' from the original settlers 'f these lands. jest saw real estate 'n figured how to manipulate such to their whim 'n pocketbook - the latter 'f which they lined whilst others've paid the price.
florida, new jersey, florida 'n so many other places 've filled swamps'n removed mother natures protective layers to prevent massive floodin'. they build towns immediately 'round lakes/rivers/streams 'n then when mother nature unleashes her fury (bein' dramatic), such aint purty. more erosion occurs 'n o'er time jest gets worse.
i agree, we've lots to do 'n need to get started now.
1 person likes this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
11 Jun 17
@crazyhorseladycx - I agree that one of the problems is that people have built homes in areas which were not well suited for building. This is an entire town. I saw photos of a number of small businesses, including a McDonalds which is now flooded. Part of the problem is this town belongs to a native American tribe, and this was the land they were given by the government under a treaty, so they had to make due with what they had. Now the government is having to move them. Very unfortunate.
1 person likes this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
11 Jun 17
@crazyhorseladycx - I can see the humor in this, too. In fact, California just grew in size by three acres because of a mud slide along the central coast! (LOL) I agree that $50 million doesn't go too far and I also wonder how long their new location will last before that land disappears. Most of Southern Louisiana is pretty much at sea level. I also agree that climate change is natural, but we humans are speeding up so much, it will be hard to keep up. Instead of gradually adjusting and relocating communities, we will have a lot to do in the next 50 or 60 years.
1 person likes this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
11 Jun 17
@MALUSE - So far, I have not seen an official comment from government officials, even though these people are being paid by the federal government to relocate. It will interesting to see what they say. It will also be interesting to see how many other communities they are willing to relocate before they give up protecting people in the future.
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
11 Jun 17
@DianneN - You are right. Trump believes it is a hoax, despite the fact that the federal government is paying for this move. I have also seen those deltas. They are not an ideal place for construction. However, this is a Native American town and this is the land they were given as their reservation. Now, they are getting permission to move somewhere else. The Southern tip of Florida is the next area expected to have problems. Already I have heard that some banks do not want to give mortgages to new buyers in those areas. Scary situation for the people who live there and own those houses now.
1 person likes this
@DeborahDiane (40055)
• Laguna Woods, California
12 Jun 17
@DianneN - Most of our coastal areas are beautiful, but we need to take steps to protect them. I'm glad to hear that Miami is taking preventive measures. We need more intelligent elected officials who want to do the same.
1 person likes this
@DianneN (246849)
• United States
12 Jun 17
@DeborahDiane Very true! Miami has been taking preventive measures. I hope it helps, because Miami is absolutely beautiful.
1 person likes this
