Oh, by the way: Louisiana’s about to disappear!

Amid the myriad environmental issues that taking up headline space around the country, you may not have noticed this one, which I’ll try to state as calmly as possible:

10 PERCENT OF LOUISIANA’S GONNA BE GONE BY THE END OF THE CENTURY AND THERE’S NOT A HELL OF A LOT WE CAN DO ABOUT IT!!!

People have talked about the lower part of the state sinking for years. A combination of upstream dams that hold sediment and downstream levees that allow sediment to flow farther into the Gulf of Mexico has prevented the naturally subsiding sediments under the coastal part of the state from being replinished.

Over the last couple of decades, however, the situation’s been compounded by sea-level rise — about 3 millimeters a year since the early ’90s and at least 4 as global warming kicks in, according to study by two LSU geologists. The study says 10 percent of the state will be lost by the end of the century if no action is taken, but even if aggressive action is taken only select portions of the threatened land could be saved.

I mention on a media and the environment blog, because you probably haven’t read about it in your local papers. Science published a big story on the study, and the New York Times ran a shorter piece today.

Not to sound frantic or anything, but environmental disaster seems to be popping up in so many different directions that each story crowds out the next. The good news is that those who write about the environment won’t run out of material any time soon.

Related question: Will Louisiana Sen. David Vitter actually vote against the cap-and-trade bill?

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