Gulf Update: 5 years post-Katrina, 5 months of oil

Last Sunday marked the fifth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina’s devastating landfall on the Gulf Coast. Nearly five months ago, the Deepwater Horizon exploded, killing eleven men, beginning the release of millions of barrels of oil, and adding endless complication to the recovery and restoration process across the Gulf Coast region. As these challenges continue, and as faith communities continue to respond, the Gulf Coast remains in the national spotlight – and remains a priority for all those who care about economic and environmental justice.

Gulf Coast communities commemorated the Katrina anniversary with rallies, religious services, and a whole host of other events. The President spoke at Xavier University and restated his commitment to long-term restoration and recovery in the Gulf, and to building a stronger and more resilient region than ever. His words – “Just as we have sought to ensure that we are doing what it takes to recover from Katrina, my administration has worked hard to match our efforts on the spill to what you need on the ground” – are encouraging but beg the question: what do we do to move forward?

As Phaedra Ellis-Lamkins of Green for All explains, the Gulf Coast shows us where America falls short of our aspirations and demonstrates how our country can better live up to our ideals. Five years after Katrina, our nation still isn’t adequately prepared for natural disasters (which will only get worse with climate change), still hasn’t finished cleaning up the mess from Katrina, and still has an insatiable appetite for drilling for and burning the oil that causes human disasters (the BP spill) and exacerbates natural ones (category 4 and 5 hurricanes are expected to become more frequent and more severe in the changing climate). We have not met our goals for environmental and economic justice, in the Gulf or around the country, and the aftermath of the oil spill illustrates these inequities and injustices once again.

Yet, we see communities in New Orleans and across the Gulf rebuilding their communities and building a stronger future – and doing so in economically and environmentally sustainable ways. Grassroots-based organizing groups and national non-profits, many with ties to communities of faith, are installing solar panels and planting urban gardens in New Orleans, establishing a stronger health care infrastructure and continuing to rebuild shattered homes and damaged wetlands. Oil remains in the Gulf, but the clean up process is moving forward, and neighborhoods demolished by Katrina are – slowly but surely – being rebuilt. Yet, a tremendous amount of work remains, and a massive mobilization of resources from funds for service providers to soil to build raised bed gardens is needed.

Even five years after Katrina and nearly five months into the oil spill clean up, we must retain and redouble our commitments to rebuilding the Gulf – and hold BP and the Administration to theirs. We must call on the government to learn from community rebuilding efforts and ensure that their Gulf Restoration Plan is community-focused, balances ecosystem, economic, and human needs, and reflects a long-standing commitment to continue working in the Gulf until restoration is complete (if such a time ever comes). Community groups, churches and synagogues alone cannot finish the task of restoring the Gulf, though we have a vital role to play. This rebuilding must be a joint project of government, private sector, and non-profit enterprise, coming together to build a better future after the storm and the spill.