Scientists from Across the World Visit Port Fourchon as Part of “Envisioning the Gulf Coast” Sympoisum
(GALLIANO, LA, MAY 1, 2006) – A group of scientists from across the world visited Port Fourchon on Monday, April 24, 2006 as part of a 3 day symposium entitled “Envisioning the Future of the Gulf Coast. The event was sponsored by BP and America’s Wetland.
Ted Falgout, Port Director, gave a presentation to the group on the importance of Port Fourchon to the nation’s oil supply and the coastal restoration efforts of the Port.
“The Port Commission creates an acre of marsh for every acre of port development,” said Falgout. Falgout continues, “The Port Commission was doing coastal restoration before it was cool to do coastal restoration. We realize the importance of saving our coast because it means saving our Port -our livelihood.”
“Our group of environmental experts from around the world came to Port Fourchon to help us determine the best methods of protecting the Gulf Coast communities and the wetlands essential for its future stability,” said Dr. Denise Reed, University of New Orleans. “Port Fourchon is vital for the economic and energy security of the United States and our future depends on the health and sustainability of America’s WETLAND.”
The symposium continued in New Orleans through Thursday. The goal is to foster shared national understanding of the nature and magnitude of the wetlands loss issue and the importance of coastal protection in the Gulf of Mexico to the nation.