BATON ROUGE – Louisiana Governor Kathleen Babineaux Blanco announced in a press conference Tuesday the State of Louisiana has reached a settlement in its suit to stop the Minerals Management Service (MMS) from conducting any further oil and gas lease sales in the Western or Central Gulf of Mexico until it has prepared a new Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) covering the next sale in these areas.

Baton Rouge, LA – Jack Caldwell, Secretary of the Louisiana Department of Natural Resources, today focused attention on Louisiana’s coastal land loss at the Inaugural National Conference on Coastal and Estuarine Habitat Restoration – Saving Our Coastal Heritage. Secretary Caldwell, along with other nationally recognized leaders in the field of coastal habitat restoration, presented the information at a plenary session, entitled “Leadership Visions in Habitat Restoration.”

Joel Kohler, Assistant Director Pipeline Division of the Louisiana Department of Natural Resources, has been elected Vice Chairman of the National Association of Pipeline Safety Representatives (NAPSR). In two years, with Kohler accepting the board's top leadership position, Louisiana is expected to host the organization's 2001 national conference.

A seminar focusing on pipeline safety, current regulations, and national security will be held at the Hotel Acadiana Conference Center Hotel in Lafayette on May 22 and 23, 2003.

DNR Deputy Secretary Katherine Vaughan appeared at a press conference in New Orleans to speak on the Master Farmer Program, a soil and water conservation program with the potential to become a national model. The program was launched in January by the LSU AgCenter but was announced to the public at this year's Louisiana Farm Bureau Convention held June 26-30 at the New Orleans Marriott.

The Louisiana Department of Natural Resources (DNR) will hold a two-day Oil and Gas Seminar on Sept. 13-14 in New Orleans at the Windsor Court Hotel. The seminar will be attended by employees of oil and gas companies from Louisiana, Texas, Oklahoma, and Mississippi.

Gus Rodemacher, secretary of the Louisiana Mineral Board, was recently given the “2003 Public Service Award” by members of the largest Gulf Coast region oil and gas networking group called GCEM. The Gulf Coast Energy Marketplace, managed by a committee of more than 20 industry leaders from Louisiana and Texas, held a conference, trade show, and power lunch in New Orleans, March 31-April 1. Special guests included New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin and David Boulet, the state’s oil and gas director for the Department of Economic Development.

The Louisiana Department of Natural Resources Office of Conservation participated in this year’s Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission (IOGCC) meeting held in New Orleans. The commission is comprised of governors and government leaders from each of the energy producing states.

Redlands, California—Selected from more than 200,000 organizations worldwide, the Louisiana Department of Natural Resources is being honored for its work in geographic information system (GIS) technology. The Special Achievement in GIS award is presented by ESRI, the world leader in GIS software, mapping components, and spatial database management tools. The awards were presented at a ceremony at the nineteenth Annual ESRI International User Conference, the largest gathering of GIS professionals in the world.

State energy officials from the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and officials from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) will join other ENERGY STAR partners across the nation in bringing attention to the importance of using energy wisely.

Governor Kathleen Babineaux Blanco today announced plans to travel to Houston May 2nd and 3rd for one of the world’s foremost events for the development of offshore resources in the fields of drilling, exploration, production, and environmental protection.

Baton Rouge, LA – As part of Governor Foster’s press conference today, officials from the America’s WETLAND: Campaign to Save Coastal Louisiana (AW), launched the campaign’s latest innovation – the “Don’t Be a Big Loser” advertising campaign – to inform the state, nation and world of what they will lose as America’s WETLAND vanishes.

The 2003 Business Energy Solutions Expo will be presented at the New Orleans’ Ernest Morial Convention Center this week, on December 11th and 12th for industry leaders, consultants and professionals. The exposition and program will address proven energy strategies that can increase power reliability. Hot topics include best practices for energy management, the need to secure reliable power, and how new devices help conserve energy.