The Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana, the Cheniere Foundation, and Restore America's Estuaries, along with dozens of volunteers, will join forces on Saturday, September 28, in an effort to restore Holly Beach.
The event marks the Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana's return to Cameron Parish, where it has been involved in coastal restoration projects for several years.
Volunteers will be planting thousands of plugs of native dune grasses to help anchor the beach dunes, preventing further erosion and creating habitats for nesting shorebirds.
The native dune grass is called bitter panicum and has a high salt tolerance, which makes it ideal for sand dunes and beaches. The dune grasses act like a net to catch blowing sand, forming dunes and using their roots to hold sand in place.
The plants also have underground stems that grow horizontally through the soil, acting as anchors and allowing new stems to shoot out across the dunes.
Volunteers will be transported to the planting site by van, and sunscreen, mosquito repellant, cold drinks, and lunch will be provided.
Registration is required in advance and is availablehere. The minimum age for volunteers is 10; all minors must be accompanied by an adult. Other volunteer opportunities with CRDL are scheduled for October.
Holly Beach provides a protective buffer between the residential communities and industrial infrastructure of Cameron Parish and the Gulf of Mexico. The beach helps minimize weather-related damage.
The beach was devastated when Hurricane Rita made a direct hit on the parish in 2005.
