The Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation is a non-profit organization consisting of a 14-member board of directors representing the Basin parishes and regulatory agencies.
The Lake Pontchartrain Basin is a 10,000
square mile watershed encompassing 16
Louisiana parishes. The land use of the region
ranges from rural to urban and is the most
densely populated region in Louisiana, including metro New Orleans and the state capital, Baton Rouge. It is one of the largest estuarine systems in
the Gulf of Mexico containing over 22 essential
habitats. The Basin's topography ranges from rolling
woodlands in the north to coastal marshes in the south, with the 630 square mile Lake
Pontchartrain as its centerpiece.
Creating The Foundation
The Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation was established in response to environmental concerns voiced throughout the Basin.
Most of the environmental problems that plague the Basin were well recognized by the mid-1970s, yet there was no common effort towards restoration. Small groups of concerned citizens won some local battles but were unable to direct the large-scale changes that were necessary to save the Basin from further degradation.
Over 90 governmental and regulatory entities were charged with managing the Basin, increasing the difficulty of Basin-wide restoration efforts.
In the spring of 1989, a report called "To Restore Lake Pontchartrain", written by professors at Tulane University and the University of New Orleans, called for the establishment of an entity whose sole focus would be a healthy Lake and Basin. That report became the rallying point for a citizen-led effort that resulted in the formation of the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation that same year.
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