Delta Dispatches

Ten years after the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill, restoring the Mississippi River Delta and its surrounding coastline isn’t just about recovering the wildlife and habitats harmed from the 2010 oil spill; it is ultimately about the opportunity to envision a more sustainable and resilient delta for future generations. On today's show, Simone and Jacques discuss where we are ten years later and highli...

Thanks for listening to the latest episode of Delta Dispatches. This week we replay a recent episode with the filmmakers Dom and Nadia Gil with Encompass Films to discuss "Last Call for the Bayou" their 5 short documentaries about Louisiana's land loss crisis. Their documentary series is now available to watch free online here: https://watch.smithsonianchannel.com/details/series/last-call-for-the-...

On today's show, Simone and Jacques chat with several guests who provide recommendations on coastal resources and content that people can access during this time of quarantine and self-isolation. First, they interview Chris Cook, lighthouse director with Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation, who highlights educational tools parents can use to occupy kids who are at home. Then, Helen Rose Patterson,...

Thanks for listening to the latest episode of Delta Dispatches. In an interview recorded last week, Jacques and Simone sit down with Chip Kline, Executive Assistant to the Governor for Coastal Activities and Chairman of the CPRA Board. They talk about the CPRA’s 2020 goals, the Governor’s recent Coastal Priorities speech, sediment diversions, the Bonnet Carre Spillway, river management, hypoxia an...

Welcome to Delta Dispatches with Jacques Hebert & Simone Maloz! This week on the show, they talk with Tyler Buckingham, one of the co-hosts of the American Shoreline podcast! Delta Dispatches is a proud part of the American Shoreline Podcast Network, which is focused on preserving coastlines around the world. We also check in with James Karst, Director of Communications and Marketing at the Co...

Thanks for listening to the latest episode of Delta Dispatches. This week Jacques talks to the owners of two eco-tourism companies. First, he speaks with Barbara Johnson, founder of the Great Delta Tours. Barbara has been a respected practitioner, civic leader and consultant in New Orleans for more than 30 years. Tours by the Great Delta Tours cover coastal restoration and bird and wildlife viewin...

Today on Delta Dispatches, Jacques and Simone start the show talking about the hottest debate in coastal Louisiana: is dipping crawfish a crime against humanity or merely deeply unsettling. Once that’s settled, they talk to Stacy Ortego with the Louisiana Wildlife Federation to talk about the progress made on one of our favorite restoration projects: the River Reintroduction into Maurepas Swamp. F...

Thanks for listening to the latest episode of Delta Dispatches. This week we’re talking to Samantha Carter, Outreach Manager for the National Wildlife Federation and she’s here to talk about the third annual Cook-off for the Coast! This free event, taking place at Docville Farm on February 8th from 11-3! Come enjoy great (free) food, music, kids events, and more! The event will benefit the Chandel...

Welcome to Delta Dispatches with solo host Jacques Hebert. Today’s first guest is Erik Johnson, Director of Bird Conservation of Audubon Louisiana. Erik talks about the restoration of one of Louisiana’s most important pelican rookeries, Queen Bess Island. They also discuss some of the great work Audubon Louisiana is doing across the coast including an upcoming beach-nesting bird volunteer opportun...

Thanks for listening to the latest episode of Delta Dispatches. This week Jacques and Simone are joined by filmmakers Dom and Nadia Gil with Encompass Films to discuss "Last Call for the Bayou" their 5 short documentaries about Louisiana's land loss crisis. The films are currently being shown at festivals around the country. One film, "On a Wing and a Prayer" was released online by CNN's "Great Bi...

Thanks for listening to the latest episode of Delta Dispatches. On the first episode of 2020, Simone and Jacques speak with Brad Barth, Operations Assistant Administrator for the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority (CPRA). Brad talks about one of Louisiana’s cornerstone restoration projects: the Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion. The CPRA recently completed modeling that showed this projec...

On this special year-in-review episode of Delta Dispatches, Jacques and Simone look back at a busy year for coastal restoration in Louisiana. They’re joined by friends and guests from the past year starting with Chip Kline, chairman of the Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority (CPRA), Lauren Averill, Jefferson Parish Coastal Zone Director, and ASPBA Central Gulf Coast Board member...

Thanks for listening to the latest episode of Delta Dispatches! Today we talk to one of our favorite guests, Dr. Alisha Renfro! Alisha talks to Simone about how a crevasse at Fort St. Phillip is one of the few areas of Louisiana that's growing new land. Alisha also talks about the important River Reintroduction into Maurepas Swamp project, which is up for public comment now. On the second half the...

Welcome to the latest episode of Delta Dispatches. Today hosts Jacques Hebert and Simone Maloz are joined by frequent guests Dr. John Lopez of the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation and Dr. Alisha Renfro of the National Wildlife Federation. In this episode, we talk about the science of coastal restoration including 2019's high river, the impacts of the Mississippi River Gulf Outlet (MRGO), the up...

Welcome to Delta Dispatches, with your hosts Jacques Hebert, and Simone Maloz. Today we're talking to future leaders in coastal restoration! Today’s first guest is Milan Mardia, senior at Jesuit High School. Milan has presented to the CPRA Board about educating younger generations of coastal advocates and is learning how A.I. (artificial intelligence) could enhance how we approach coastal projects...

Simone is joined by Dr. Robert Habans, Economist with The Data Center and Dr. Loren C. Scott, President of Dr. Loren C. Scott and Associates, Inc. to discuss new economic reports with relevance on Louisiana's coast. Kristin Tracz, Program Officer with the Walton Family Foundation, joins as a guest co-hosts!

Welcome to Delta Dispatches, with your host Jacques Hebert. Today’s guests are Jessica Mallindine, Marine biologist at the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) Marine Minerals Program, along with John Filostrat, Regional Supervisor for the Office of Public Affairs. In the second half of the show, Jacques is joined by Jonathan Foret, Executive Director of South Louisiana Wetlands Discovery Cent...

Thanks for listening to the latest episode of Delta Dispatches, with your hosts Jacques Hebert and Simone Maloz. Today talks with one of the most celebrated coastal scientists in the country, Don Boesch, Professor and President Emeritus at the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science. They talk about his distinguished career including his time as the first director of LUMCON, and hi...

On today’s bonus episode of Delta Dispatches, Jacques sits down with Shannon Cunniff, who recently retired after 27 years working at the heart of environmental policy. Shannon discusses her career highlights, ranging from working for a federal agency at the intersection of water resources and coastal resilience to working for the Environmental Defense Fund and serving as a board member for the Ame...

On today’s episode of Delta Dispatches, we talk with Lauren Averill, Jefferson Parish Coastal Zone Director, and ASPBA Central Gulf Coast Board member. Lauren discusses the history and importance of coastal management in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana’s most populous coastal parish, and highlights a number of restoration projects underway in the parish.

On this week’s episode of Delta Dispatches, we’re celebrating #NationalEstuariesWeek! Our friend Kristi Trail, executive director of Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation, drops by to talk about one of our favorite estuaries, the Lake Pontchartrain Basin! Learn more about this vital ecosystem and work LPBF is doing to protect it 30 years after the organization's founding. Later in the show, Simone a...

On this week's episode of Delta Dispatches, we're talking fish! Today’s first guest is Chris Macaluso, Director of the Center for Marine Fisheries for the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership. He reflects on the state of Louisiana's fisheries after a historic year of Mississippi River flooding. Simone and Jacques also talk with another prolific fisherman, Todd Masson, host of the Marsh Man...

On this week’s episode of Delta Dispatches, we talk with Steve Caparotta, meteorologist for WAFB in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Jacques and Simone are excited to talk to another of Louisiana’s most respected meteorologists. Steve talks about how Louisiana floods, the increase in extreme weather, and how the map of our state has changed. In the final act of the show, we’re joined by David Muth, directo...

On today’s episode of Delta Dispatches, hosts Jacques and Simone are joined by Mark Sickle, Corporate and Government Relations for Weeks Marine and Bernie Pinsonat, formerly a partner at ‎Southern Media & Opinion Research, Inc. and now commissions polls for Bernie Pinsonat Inc. Mark kicks off the show to talk about Weeks Marine’s new dredge, which will be used for the upcoming Terrebonne Basin...