OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Coastal Zone Advisory Committee Meeting - November 21, 2025

Parish Council & Boards — Friday, November 21, 2025
BodySt Charles Parish, Louisiana
SessionParish Council & Boards
DateFriday, November 21, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 1:16:34

Transcript — Verbatim
0:04

All right.

0:04

Good morning, everyone.

0:05

Like to officially call this meeting.

0:09

We will start with the Pledge of Allegiance and a moment of silence.

0:39

Okay.

0:39

I'd like to officially call this meeting to order.

0:42

We are going to start with our first agenda item of chairperson.

0:48

Would like to officially call vote for John Rome, who accepted the nomination at the previous previous meeting.

1:02

Correct.

1:02

We can just open up voting.

1:09

Yeah, let's um we'll go ahead and uh according to the agenda item number two point one.

1:16

Um Mr.

1:17

Rome's been nominated as chair that was accepted at the last meeting.

1:21

So at this point, we'll call for a vote to confirm his nomination or his election to chairperson.

1:27

So at this point, everyone cast your votes on that.

1:41

And that is confirmed.

1:43

Congratulations, Mr.

1:44

Chairman.

1:44

I will turn it over to you to call the vote for the vice chairman.

1:50

Thank you, and I appreciate the vote of confidence and look to serve the board, uh planning and zoning and the community as well.

1:57

Uh at this point in time, uh, we're gonna handle item 2.2, uh vote for vice chairman.

2:04

Uh at the previous meeting, uh, Mr.

2:06

Lloyd Landry was nominated and accepted that nomination uh for potential vice president presidency position at this point in time.

2:15

I'll call for the vote.

2:23

And that motion passes unanimously.

2:25

Congratulations, Mr.

2:26

Landry.

2:30

Next item on the agenda is three point three point zero presentation by Office of Permitting and Compliance.

2:40

Thank y'all very much for having us today.

2:42

Um my name is Alex Hadski, and this is Mark Hogan.

2:46

We are with the Office of Permitting and Compliance within the Department of Conservation and Energy.

2:53

We're formerly known as DNR or DENR and the Office of Coastal Management.

2:58

Uh our office maintains the same day-to-day operations.

3:02

We've just rebranded under a new name.

3:05

But today we've come today, or today we've come to discuss a bit of the coastal use permitting process and some of the tools that you board members have in your arsenal to review applications forwarded to your committee.

3:17

Or if you're ever just curious about what's going on within the coastal zone of Louisiana.

3:23

Uh first off, I would like to start with our authority rules and regulations that guide the permitting process.

3:32

The Coastal Zone Management Act of 72 is federal law setting up the framework for states to adopt their own coastal zone laws.

4:16

State concerns usually fall in line with state, regional or national importance.

4:34

Everything else pretty much will fall to the parish.

4:37

So think kind of residential, you know, kind of smaller geared projects.

4:44

Um St.

4:45

Charles' LCP came online and was approved in 2016.

4:50

Monty Stein and Clay Ladette have been doing a fantastic job.

4:54

They both bring great expertise to the program.

4:57

And anything that they do have questions about, they reach out to me and do a great job.

5:00

They both bring great expertise to the program, and anything that they do have questions about, they reach out to me and do a great job and get the answers that they need.

5:14

Most of the added area was around Spanish Lake, kind of in the central area of the map.

5:21

You see.

5:24

So Louisiana Administrative Code Title 43, Subpart 1, Chapter 7.

5:31

It's a lot, I know.

5:32

It outlines the legislative rules under which our office operates.

5:37

This the code specifies how our office reviews applications, provides deadlines for our office and applicants, identifies requirements for assessments of impacts and benefits, and it outlines information that may be needed for a thorough review.

5:54

Our office is guided by these regulations to avoid and minimize advanced impacts to vegetative wetlands.

6:02

At the end of the day, we're trying to find a balance between developing and utilizing our resources to the most practical extent possible while also trying to conserve our beautiful state and waters for everyday use and recreation.

6:17

I'd like to say most of those guidelines can be summarized in three words.

6:22

Avoid, minimize, mitigate.

6:25

Avoid impacts by relocating or finding parcels that fall out of our purview, such as being above five feet in elevation or within a fast lands, which fast lands are levied areas that are hydrologically isolated from the rest of the surrounding areas.

6:44

Then we want to minimize impacts where we could essentially just adjust the blueprints of the project where we can diminish impacts to the coastal resources, and where it's unavoidable, and we minimized as much as possible.

7:01

We mitigate for the impacts.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Permit Applications█████████████████████████████████████████████45%
Coastal Restoration█████████████████17%
Procedural████████████12%
Environmental Protection██████████10%
Technology and Innovation██████████10%
Parks and Recreation███3%
Engineering And Infrastructure██2%
Floodplain Management█1%
Summary of Proceedings

St. Charles Parish Coastal Zone Advisory Committee Meeting - November 21, 2025

The St. Charles Parish Coastal Zone Advisory Committee (CZAC) met on November 21, 2025, at 12:00 PM in the Council Chambers of the Courthouse. The meeting included officer elections, a presentation on coastal use permitting processes, a manager's briefing on current permit applications and activities, adoption of the SHIELD Plan, approval of 2026 meeting dates, and discussion on the Davis Pond freshwater diversion.

Election of Officers

  • Chairperson: John Rome was unanimously elected as chairperson.
  • Vice Chairperson: Lloyd Landry was unanimously elected as vice chairperson.

Presentation by Office of Permitting and Compliance

  • Alex Hadski and Mark Hogan from the Office of Permitting and Compliance (formerly DNR/DENR) provided an overview of the coastal use permitting process, including the Joint Permit Application (JPA) system, types of permits (general permits, coastal use permits (CUPs), exemptions), and the use of GIS tools (Sunrise database, GIS reports, and mapping tools).
  • They demonstrated how to find permits and GIS reports online, and emphasized the importance of the "avoid, minimize, mitigate" approach.
  • Committee members asked questions about permit extensions, rule changes, and the timeline for review. It was clarified that extensions can be granted up to three times for a total lifespan of five years, and that new rules would apply to extension requests.

Manager's Briefing (Clay Leday)

  • October JPA Applications:
    • SCP-2025-04 (Boat Ramp Repair): Deemed exempt, authorized concurrence received.
    • SCP-2025-05 (Bayer CropScience Soil Borings): Deemed exempt, pending authoritative concurrence.
  • Open for Public Comment:
    • P20250804 (Entergy Power Plant): Proposed 750 MW natural gas power plant at Waterford Station, including transmission lines. No objection recommended.
    • P20250727 (Cousins Pump Station T-Wall): Flood protection project involving a T-wall, gate crossing, sump area, and stockpile—recommended as a coastal use permit.
  • Local Activities:
    • Attended CPRA board meeting (Oct 15) and BitNEP quarterly conference (Nov 6).
    • Christmas Tree Program: Six drop-off sites (East/West Bank Bridge Parks, IMTT Field, Monsanto Park, Desalman's Playground) plus curbside pickup Jan 5-7, 2026. Trees will be used for marsh restoration at Cuba Island.

Resolution Adopting SHIELD Plan (2025-3-CZAC)

  • A public hearing was held; no public comments were made.
  • The SHIELD Plan (Stabilizing Habitats Through Infrastructure, Ecology, Land Defense, Access, and Recreational Use) was presented. It includes projects such as Cuba Island shoreline protection, Bayou Cuba shore protection, Tank Pond shoreline protection, Rock Jetty Extension, Lake Salvador interior marsh restoration, and LaBranch area marsh creation.
  • Committee discussion: The plan is programmatically consistent with the Louisiana Coastal Master Plan. The parish plans minor updates every five years and major updates every ten years. Monitoring of projects post-construction was discussed, with coordination with CPRA.
  • Motion to adopt: Made by Mr. Landry, seconded by Mr. Cole. Passed unanimously.

Approval of 2026 Meeting Dates (2025-4-CZAC)

  • A public hearing was held; no public comments were made.
  • The committee approved the schedule of the second Tuesday of each month at noon, with alternative dates on the third Tuesday as needed.
  • Motion: Made by Mr. Cope, seconded by Mr. Lambert. Passed unanimously.

Announcements and Discussion

  • Upcoming meetings: CPRA Board Meeting on December 10, 2025 at 9:30 AM (State Capitol, Baton Rouge) and Davis Pond Advisory Committee (DPAC) Meeting on December 12, 2025 at 11:00 AM (New Orleans).
  • Davis Pond Discussion: Committee member Mr. Lambert emphasized the need for greater involvement in Davis Pond operations to address saltwater intrusion, noting that salinity in Bayou Villien is 22.7 ppt, harming aquatic vegetation and fisheries. He requested that salinity monitors be placed at key locations and that real-time data be made available. Manager Clay Leday agreed to add a Davis Pond update to the next CZAC meeting (December 9, 2025) and to explore additional salinity monitors (e.g., through NOAA).

Key Outcomes

  • John Rome elected chairperson and Lloyd Landry elected vice chairperson (both unanimous).
  • The SHIELD Plan was adopted unanimously.
  • 2026 meeting dates were approved unanimously.
  • The committee directed staff to bring a Davis Pond update and salinity monitoring options to the next meeting (December 9, 2025).
  • Meeting adjourned unanimously.

Meeting Transcript

All right. Good morning, everyone. Like to officially call this meeting. We will start with the Pledge of Allegiance and a moment of silence. Okay. I'd like to officially call this meeting to order. We are going to start with our first agenda item of chairperson. Would like to officially call vote for John Rome, who accepted the nomination at the previous previous meeting. Correct. We can just open up voting. Yeah, let's um we'll go ahead and uh according to the agenda item number two point one. Um Mr. Rome's been nominated as chair that was accepted at the last meeting. So at this point, we'll call for a vote to confirm his nomination or his election to chairperson. So at this point, everyone cast your votes on that. And that is confirmed. Congratulations, Mr. Chairman. I will turn it over to you to call the vote for the vice chairman. Thank you, and I appreciate the vote of confidence and look to serve the board, uh planning and zoning and the community as well. Uh at this point in time, uh, we're gonna handle item 2.2, uh vote for vice chairman. Uh at the previous meeting, uh, Mr. Lloyd Landry was nominated and accepted that nomination uh for potential vice president presidency position at this point in time. I'll call for the vote. And that motion passes unanimously. Congratulations, Mr. Landry. Next item on the agenda is three point three point zero presentation by Office of Permitting and Compliance. Thank y'all very much for having us today. Um my name is Alex Hadski, and this is Mark Hogan. We are with the Office of Permitting and Compliance within the Department of Conservation and Energy. We're formerly known as DNR or DENR and the Office of Coastal Management. Uh our office maintains the same day-to-day operations. We've just rebranded under a new name. But today we've come today, or today we've come to discuss a bit of the coastal use permitting process and some of the tools that you board members have in your arsenal to review applications forwarded to your committee. Or if you're ever just curious about what's going on within the coastal zone of Louisiana. Uh first off, I would like to start with our authority rules and regulations that guide the permitting process. The Coastal Zone Management Act of 72 is federal law setting up the framework for states to adopt their own coastal zone laws. State concerns usually fall in line with state, regional or national importance. Everything else pretty much will fall to the parish. So think kind of residential, you know, kind of smaller geared projects. Um St. Charles' LCP came online and was approved in 2016. Monty Stein and Clay Ladette have been doing a fantastic job. They both bring great expertise to the program. And anything that they do have questions about, they reach out to me and do a great job. They both bring great expertise to the program, and anything that they do have questions about, they reach out to me and do a great job and get the answers that they need. Most of the added area was around Spanish Lake, kind of in the central area of the map. You see. So Louisiana Administrative Code Title 43, Subpart 1, Chapter 7.

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