Looking into the future the Pelican feeding its young from a self-induced wound in its own breast (as depicted, mysteriously, on the state flag of Louisiana) is accepted as an appropriate symbol of both self-sacrifice and rebirth. Through his selfless efforts, man is raised from the slavery of ignorance to the condition of freedom conferred by wisdom. Given the current state of affairs in Louisiana, one hopes that the understanding of the Pelican as a symbol shall point the way towards a new consciousness of ourselves as a whole, and lead us to face our futures with strength, grace, wisdom and faith, to learn from our mistakes and carry our successes and zest for living to future generations.

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Letter to U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs

To: U.S. Senate committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs

Re:

1. U.S. Senate Bill 2238, sponsored by Senator Jim Bunning of Kentucky, Bill to amend National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 to reduce losses of property for which flood insurance claims have been made.

2. Present proposal to build a 2 billion dollar mega city called the Lakeshore Village Estates Project by Tammany Holding Corp. over a vast tact of illegally drained wetlands located in an unprotected flood plain on the North Shore of Lake Pontchartrain, St. Tammany Parish, Slidell, Louisiana – right smack-dab in the middle of a hurricane tidal surge pathway!

Dear Committee Members,

This letter supplements the previous April 12, 2004 SOWL correspondence sent to you (copy attached for your easy reference).

The 2 billion dollar above-captioned mega city called Lakeshore Village/Estate Project presently proposed by Tammany holding Corp. over a vast tract of illegally drained wetlands, located in an unprotected floodplain on the North Shore of Lake Pontchartrain, St. Tammany Parish, Slidell, Louisiana, merits your special attention.

This Lakeshore/Village Project is being pushed by the St. Tammany Parish Council (also see appeal to St. Tammany Parish Council) political forces and Governor Kathleen Blanco referred to you in the aforementioned April 12, 2004 SOWL letter. It has been brought to SOWL’s attention that this project is also being propelled by a very powerful Louisiana politician with national and influential connections in Washington, D.C. Supposedly this politician received campaign contributions from agents of Tammany Holding Corporation. However, SOWL has not been able yet to confirm this information as reliable.

In any case, this Lakeshore/Village Project is a flood disaster waiting to happen. It’s a perfect example of while Louisiana politicians huff and puff the halls of U.S. Congress for billions of dollars in tax paying flood relief subsidies, they scurry around in back rooms pushing for destruction of Louisiana Wetlands, promoting housing/commercial developments in low lying flood plains, extremely susceptible to hurricane tidal surges.

SOWL is enclosing the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation July 2002 Report commissioned by the University of New Orleans – Costal Research Laboratory, entitled Urbanization Effects on Habitat Change in St. Tammany Parish. This report confirms the information given to you in SOWL’s aforementioned April 12, 2004 letter that the St. Tammany Parish Council and Louisiana politicians are on a mission to destroy Louisiana wetlands for urbanization projects that promote developments into and over flood plains. They put their citizens in harm’s way for the short-term profits of their corporate backers.

I hope that this information is helpful to you in shoveling the smoke being pushed by Louisiana politicians refusing to protect and preserve Louisiana Wetlands that act as buffers against hurricane tidal surges, and at the same time push mega 2 billion dollar cities over wetland flood buffer plains.

Respectfully,

Save Our Wetlands, Inc.