PLAQUEMINES PARISH, La. (WGNO) — Officials celebrated the completion of the Spanish Pass Increment located just west of Venice on Friday, May 12. It’s the largest marsh and ridge creation project in Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority (CPRA) history.

The Spanish Pass is a natural historic tributary of the Mississippi River that extends westward into the lower parts of Barataria Bay.

According to leaders with the CPRA, the natural channel banks and adjacent marsh have degraded due to natural and manmade causes, including the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill, which occurred about 50 miles from the project site.

The Spanish Pass Increment was identified as a priority project in the 2017 Coastal Master Plan, building over 1,500 acres of marsh and restoring more than six miles of ridge west of Venice, making it one of the largest projects ever constructed by CPRA.

CPRA leaders said the total project costed just over $100 million and was funded with Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill settlement funds.

The ridge habitat was planted with woody stemmed species of trees and shrubs to mimic natural ridges. Natural vegetation will colonize the new marsh platforms and produce a healthy habitat.

Upon completion of the project, crews will have pumped nearly 11 million cubic yards of sediment from the Mississippi River to create a total of 1,670 acres of habitat.

Governor John Bel Edwards (D-La.) joined other project partners for a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Friday.

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