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3 - 6 November 2024

Student Union
Louisiana State University
Baton Rouge, Louisiana

The Interplay between Coastal Louisiana and the Energy Sector

Join us Nov. 5 for a plenary session on "The Interplay between Coastal Louisiana and the Energy Sector," followed by a tour of the Lower Mississippi River Physical Model and a reception at The Estuary, a short walk across the street from the model, overlooking the Mississippi River. See details below.

Plenary Session

Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024
3:15 p.m. - 4:15 p.m.
LSU Student Union Royal Cotillion Ballroom

 

Moderator: Dr. Clint Wilson, Dean, LSU College of the Coast & Environment

Dr. Clint Willson is the Dean of the LSU College of the Coast & Environment and Director of the LSU Center for River Studies. He holds the Mike N. Dooley Professorship in the LSU Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and is a professional engineer. Dr. Willson previously served as the Director of Engineering Design and Innovation at the Water Institute of the Gulf, as well as the Chair of the Changing Course Technical Team. His expertise is in environmental and water resources engineering, with primary research interest in the physical and numerical modeling of Mississippi River hydrodynamics and sediment transport. Dr. Willson holds a B.S. in aerospace engineering from Penn State, and an M.S. in environmental health engineering and Ph.D. in civil engineering, both from UT-Austin. His primary research interests include high-res 3D imaging of porous media systems, groundwater modeling, and small-scale physical modeling of flow and sediment in the Mississippi River Delta.

From there, attendees will travel to The Water Campus, 100 Terrace Ave, Baton Rouge, LA 70802, to tour the Lower Mississippi River Physical Model. A reception will follow immediately afterward at The Estuary, a short walk across the street from the model, overlooking the MIssissippi River.

 

Panelist: Chett C. Chiasson, Executive Director of the Greater Lafourche Port Commission 

Chett Chiasson is the Executive Director of the Greater Lafourche Port Commission, which runs Port Fourchon and the South Lafourche Leonard Miller, Jr. Airport. Chett’s experience at the Port Commission over the past 18 years includes the marketing and leasing of port and airport properties as well as grant writing, management, and disaster recovery. His battle-tested leadership saw Port Fourchon through the aftermath of a direct hit from 2021’s Hurricane Ida, highlighting the port’s resilience and strength by opening for business within nine days of landfall. Since being named director in January 2010, Chett has played a leadership role in working to protect Port Fourchon and Louisiana’s surrounding coast from devastating land loss while also stressing the importance of the energy industry for our local, state, and national economies and U.S. energy security.

 

Panelist: Glenn Ledet, Executive Director of the Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority

An accomplished leader with more than 17 years of expertise, Glenn P. Ledet, Jr., PE has extensive experience in both the public and private sectors navigating coastal issues in Louisiana. Before being appointed Executive Director of the Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority (CPRA), Glenn spent more than 13 years in the coastal engineering industry, including the last four years with a nationally renowned multi-discipline engineering, planning and construction management firm, where he led the strategic growth, business development, and operations for all of the company's coastal and water resources initiatives. Glenn also spent more than three years at CPRA serving as an Engineering Supervisor and then as the Assistant Administrator of CPRA's Operations Division.

 

Panelist: Dr. Joe Orgeron, Louisiana State Representative, District 54

Dr. Orgeron is currently serving his second term as Louisiana State Representative for District 54, which includes communities along Bayou Lafourche, from U.S. Hwy. 90 to Port Fourchon and Grand Isle. He serves as Vice-Chair of the House Natural Resources committee and serves on the Ways & Means & Judiciary committees. As executive director of Restore or Retreat, a non-profit coastal advocacy group, he promotes large-scale restoration and resiliency projects within the Barataria and Terrebonne estuaries. He and his older brother Lee are partners in 2nd Wind Marine, LLC., with the intent of building a pair of “SuperFeeder” vessels to assist in solving issues with wind farm installation logistics related to the unique U.S. Jones-Act compliant market space. Dr. Orgeron has a B.S. in physics from Nicholls State University and a doctorate in Applied Experimental Physics from the University of Texas at Dallas. 

 

Lower Mississippi River Physical Model & Reception

The Water Campus*
Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024
5 p.m. - 8 p.m.

*For out-of-town guests, transportation will be provided between LSU, the Water Campus, and the main conference hotels.  

 

Guests will view the 10,000 sq. ft. model of the Mississippi River Delta in southeast Louisiana. The model replicates the flow, water levels, and sediment (sand) transport of the river. Twenty high-definition projectors illuminate the model and bring the river and coast to life. More than 18 acoustic sensors coincide with U.S. Army Corps of Engineers river gauges on the Mississippi River and measure water levels in the model river.

 

 

 

 

At the conclusion of the river model tour, guests will walk across River Road for an evening reception at The Estuary event venue overlooking the actual Mighty Mississippi.