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The Brown Marsh Project Responds to Louisiana's Smooth Cordgrass Dieback
The browning and dieback of over 100,000 acres of smooth cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora) served as a dire call to action for Louisiana's coastal science community. This 6-part series explores the response to that call, from satellite imagery to laboratory studies of individual plants.

1: A State of Emergency

The discovery of an ecological mystery, Governor Foster's call to action, and the coastal research community's call to arms.

2: Data Management and Synthesis

Laying the groundwork for the storage, access and retrieval of the multidisciplinary data to be generated, plus plans to disseminate findings.

3: Status and Trends

Determining the extent and spread of the problem from space, air and at ground level.

4: The Search for Causes

The heart of the matter, including an investigation of the climate record, field studies, laboratory studies, greenhouse studies and computer modeling.

5: Remediation Trials

The challenge of finding a way to repair the damage done: breeding a heartier marsh grass, aerial seeding, shoring up critical zones and the use of dredged material.

6: A Silver Lining

Even prior to the investigation's conclusion, simply facing the challenge yields it own rewards.