Quote:
Originally Posted by Smalls
Whats tthe name waltrip?
Redchaserron - where did you hear that CPRA had operational control, because I can assure you, that is not who assumed control after USFWS relinquished it. The operation of the weirs was bid out to private companies, under the instruction of the management plan. Maybe CPRA issues those instructions, but I have never heard such.
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Well initially I got the information from the press release the USFWSA refuge complex sent out when control was turned back over to CPRA and later got the same information from the CPRA and in fact if you call the boat bay hotline they refer any questions to Chuck Perridon the public information guy with the CPRA. Does a CPRA employee actually go out and do the labor of closing the weirs? No, but it's done under the direction of the CPRA.
Here is the text of the press release from 2012 that was issued by the USFWS
Effective January 1, 2012 the U S Fish and Wildlife Service relinquished daily operation of the water control structures on the east side of Calcasieu Lake to the Louisiana State Office of Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority. Daily Operations and maintenance of the structures along the east side of Calcasieu Lake are now funded by the Coastal Wetlands Planning Protection and Restoration Act (CWPPRA) as part of the Cameron Creole Maintenance (CS-04a) project. Gate operations are now performed by a contractor directed by the Louisiana State Office of Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority."
And yes the weirs were often closed before Rita. I've been fishing that marsh for a very long time, not parking in the canal dunking shrimp by the weirs, but poling the flats and exploring the whole expanse of the place. And many times prior to Rita I felt the frustration of not being able to get back there onto the flats. After Rita they left the weirs open pretty much all the time until January of 2012.
I do think that shoring up the ship channel would help tremendously. For a while there was talk about installing a large lock somewhere near the mouth of the ship channel to really restrict tidal flow but with an always open smaller boat lane for smaller craft. That probably got nixed when they thought about the price tag.