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challenges, and proposed solu- tions. “We’re on everybody’s side, and we’re letting the community tell the story,” Coffman says. Solu- tions, however, are as complex as the problems they face. The Deepwater Horizon oil spill
in 2010 again thrust the coast into the national spotlight. “It took us a few years to understand how these competing interests intersect,” Coffman says. “Oil companies’ activities in the marsh lead to ero- sion, but oil companies have also given significant funds to research and preservation. Plus, a majority of people are employed by oil and seafood. It’s not as simple as to say, oh, the oil company is the bad guy. It’s not binary. People want to keep their jobs; they don’t want the oil company to leave, but they don’t want it to pollute the seafood and the environment. Really, we are looking at a very vulnerable area.” One solution proposed in the
documentary is the piping of sedi- ment through pipelines, which is then dumped on the coast. “This is what the local communities want financed to slow down coastal land loss, and it’s been demonstrated to work,” Coffman says. “This is a conversation among people in political office, levee directors, en- vironmental scientists—it’s really collaborative problem solving.” A copy of the film was given to Loui- siana Governor Bobby Jindal, and
Coffman hopes the documentary will make the case for the pipeline sediment solution, as well as draw further attention and funding to the issue. Coffman is hopeful about the
future of the area, and she holds the outcome close to her heart. “One of the documentary’s main subjects is Kerry St. Pe’, who has led conservation efforts in southern Louisiana for decades. He has a long commitment to restoring and saving his home,” Coffman says. “He suffered a stroke while making this film. The stroke was mild, but it was enough to slow him down and affect his speech. Seeing the commitment of people like Kerry, as well as that of people who may have seemed like they were on the other side of the fence—politicians or people who work for oil—seeing how people came together and committed to this issue, regard- less of the disasters, was, to me, emotionally gripping.” Coffman believes that the
unflappable commitment of those who live in the area will be the thing that ultimately leads to a solution. “They know how intertwined the culture is with the landscape, and they want to keep both from disappearing,” Coffman says. “These people aren’t leaving.”
To learn more about the documentary and its subject, visit
veinsinthegulf.com.
THE DUCK STOPS HERE
... AND HERE ...
Elizabeth Coffman, PhD, faculty member in the School of Communication and maker of the documentary film Veins in the Gulf
... AND 18 LOYOLA UNIVERSIT Y CHICAGO
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