LOUISIANA – The head of Louisiana’s Department of Natural Resources named 13 scientists and other experts Friday to serve on a blue-ribbon commission tasked with determining the long-term stability of the area around northern Assumption Parish’s sinkhole.
The 13-acre sinkhole and consequences of its emergence and continued growth, such as methane trapped under the Bayou Corne area, have forced the evacuation of 350 residents for more than seven months.
The sinkhole, found in swamps between Bayou Corne and Grand Bayou on Aug. 3, is believed to have been caused by a failed Texas Brine Co. LLC cavern mined into the Napoleonville Dome. Members of the new panel are being asked to set up scientifically based benchmarks in regard to the sinkhole and then determine when they have been met in order to give assurances that the Bayou Corne area is safe for the return of evacuated residents.
“The work of this commission is crucial to the future of public safety in the Bayou Corne area,” DNR Secretary Stephen Chustz said in a prepared statement announcing the 13 appointments.
“We must ensure we have done all that we can to get the right people to provide the right answers in making recommendations for the future of the people who want to return,” Chustz said. The secretary made the appointments in consultation with Jim Welsh, state Commissioner of Conservation, and Kevin Davis, director of the Governor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness, the statement says.
The Office of Conservation is part of DNR. Gov. Bobby Jindal called for formation of the commission earlier this month after meeting with Assumption Parish public officials and Texas Brine executives about the sinkhole. DNR officials said in a statement that the blue-ribbon commission’s first meeting will be held in early April. Patrick Courreges, DNR spokesman, has said some of the group’s meetings would be public, but it was not clear Friday if the panel’s inaugural session would be open to the public or not.
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To assist in providing information to the public, the Assumption Parish Police Jury issued a statementTuesday to provide the following Office of Homeland Security portals that provide additional information about the declared State of Emergency:
Assumption Parish Blog: http://assumptionla.wordpress.com/
Assumption Parish Police Jury Site: http://assumptionla.com/bayoucorne
Assumption Parish Photo Site: http://www.flickr.com/photos/assumptionoep/
Assumption Parish YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/assumptionla
Assumption OEP Site: http://www.assumptionoep.com/
Louisiana DEQ: http://www.deq.louisiana.gov/portal/
Louisiana DNR: http://dnr.louisiana.gov/
Louisiana GOHSEP: http://www.gohsep.la.gov/
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