Where is atchafalaya swamp

Through our Conservation Fellows Program , we are engaging graduate researchers in the Atchafalaya and throughout the Mississippi River Basin in order to understand the complex problems throughout the system and work toward solutions. By encouraging collaboration and communication, these future conservation leaders will think beyond a single problem.

The Atchafalaya River Basin is the place where people have connected to nature for generations. The Nature Conservancy of Louisiana is breaking ground—or water, so to speak—on a research and education complex in the Atchafalaya River Basin. The Atchafalaya Conservation Center will feature two floating barges on the Little Tensas Bayou, with a pavilion and trail system on land. The development of this Conservation Center represents an extension of the investment in the Atchafalaya River Basin and its community by allowing for a more intimate approach to stewardship, monitoring and science-based restoration activities.

Back To Top. The Challenge The Atchafalaya River is heavily used for shipping and industry, and decades of hydrologic manipulations have altered water flows. Science At The Nature Conservancy, science is at the heart of who we are and what we do. Floating Conservation Center An artist's rendition of the completed Atchafalaya Conservation Center barge, which is currently under construction.

Community The Atchafalaya River Basin is the place where people have connected to nature for generations. Atchafalaya Voices Calvin Volson "I just like being around the water. Kayak and canoe tours are also available.

Some operators offer online reservations but others accept reservations only by phone. Some tours accept credit cards but others require cash, so make your plans accordingly. We have no connection with any of the tour operators listed below We also offer links to TripAdvisor to read reviews for many of the tour companies.

Cajun Country Swamp Tours. Champagne's Cajun Swamp Tours. Swamp tours on Lake Martin. Handicapped accessible dock. Tours in French are available as are custom photography and bird watching tours. The Wax Lake Outlet delta receives approximately one third the amount of flow and sediment of the Lower Atchafalaya River delta, and yet grows at a rate three times as great.

Wetland loss in the area north of Atchafalaya Bay will generally continue at historical rates, resulting in 4, acres lost in this area in 50 years, or 8 percent of the existing acreage. Periodic overflow from the Atchafalaya system will continue to augment the wetlands, contributing to their overall stability.

However, as the Lower Atchafalaya River and the Wax Lake Outlet evolve into riverine systems, natural levees will continue to form along the channel, disrupting the flow of sediment into the wetlands. The deltas in Atchafalaya Bay will continue to grow. In 50 years, approximately 67, acres of subaerial delta will be present in both the Lower Atchafalaya River and the Wax Lake Outlet deltas.

Of this subaerial land, approximately 27, acres will be vegetated wetlands, acres in the Lower Atchafalaya River delta and 17, acres in the Wax Lake Outlet delta, representing a gain in excess of percent over the existing acreage.

As the deltas continue to grow, Atchafalaya Bay will change toward a riverine environment. Changes in salinity, water temperature, and turbidity will reduce shrimp, oyster, and marine fisheries production and increase furbearing, waterfowl and freshwater species production. Three strategies are available to increase the quantity of sediment delivered to Atchafalaya Bay: realign the entrance to Wax Lake Outlet, modify the Lower Atchafalaya River to increase its efficiency, and dredge sediments.

Realigning the entrance to the Wax Lake Outlet is the preferred strategy. It creates more wetlands at a lower cost than the other two strategies. Three strategies are available to reduce the quantity of sediment bypassing the Lower Atchafalaya River delta: relocate the navigation channel; relocate the flow and sediment to Wax Lake Outlet; and manage the growth of the Lower Atchafalaya River delta delta management.

However, it has the potential for significant environmental and engineering problems. Delta management, on the other hand, can be initiated now and continue over the long term until these issues are resolved. Delta management, relocating the navigation channel, and realigning the entrance to Wax Lake Outlet are the selected large scale measures to reduce the impact of human activity on the growth and development of wetlands in the Atchafalaya Basin.

Priority projects to reopen Natal Channel and Radcliffe Pass and reduce the height of the Big Island in Atchafalaya Bay also reduce the impact of human activity in the short-term. These projects work toward the long-term goal of overall delta management. Other short-term measures support the overall basin plan. Management in the established wetlands north of Atchafalaya Bay by closing oil and gas pipelines and reopening closed distributaries, restores fluvial input disrupted by human activity and natural processes.

Shoreline protection reduces erosion. Dredging sediments creates wetlands that offset loss from human activity and natural processes. Submit an Event.

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