Rising Waters in Louisiana: Trump Fires Coastal Protectors Amid Climate Crisis

Lake Charles, Louisiana (United States), report

On February 14th, Mackenzie Kleinpeter was preparing for Valentine’s Day when she received an email terminating her employment. « I had to leave my office that same day », shares the 24-year-old biologist. She had been working for less than a year for the administration overseeing nature reserves in southwest Louisiana. These reserves, teeming with alligators, pelicans, and other wildlife, include the coastal marshes of Sabine, Lacassine, and Cameron Prairie, and are managed by the National Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS).

After a few years in Florida, Mackenzie returned to her hometown, Lake Charles, with her partner and two-year-old daughter for this federal job which « represented a form of security for me ». Like her, nearly 100,000 federal employees on probation were suddenly dismissed by the Department of Governmental Efficiency (Doge) created and overseen by Elon Musk since January 20th.

The founder of Tesla and the climate-denying president justify these cuts to stop « waste and fraud ». Several federal environmental protection agencies were targeted, including the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which lost nearly 400 employees.

In this agency, about 10 % of the 13,000 employees were either dismissed or accepted a resignation offer. These departures risk weakening climate research and weather forecasting, such as hurricane tracking. Louisiana, where the young biologist worked, is particularly affected by these disasters.

In these nature reserves, Mackenzie Kleinpeter was responsible for organizing educational events, all canceled since, and monitoring oil and gas installations, one of the main industries in this southern state. Five out of the twelve team members were dismissed or accepted the resignation offer proposed by Doge.

« How can seven people protect over 800 km² ? These are blind cuts », she protests. Today, she is searching for another job, before her health insurance, linked to her former employment, expires. « Then it will cost about 800 dollars [730 euros] per month », she explains.

Louisiana, built on sediments deposited by the Mississippi, is home to 40 % of the country’s coastal wetlands, with adjacent rivers, the famous bayous, meandering to the Gulf of Mexico through swampy forests and the grassy waters of the marshes. « By preserving healthy wetlands, we have this natural protection against hurricanes, as they reduce their intensity » says James Karst, director of communications at the Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana (CRCL), a nonprofit organization.

This preservation is even more crucial as Louisiana’s coasts disappear at the rate of a football field submerged. The disappearance occurs gradually, due to rising sea levels coupled with land subsidence, notably caused by human activity and the oil industry. This industry has required the building of levees and the diversion of Mississippi waters, thus preventing the river from depositing new sediments.

But sometimes, this submersion occurs suddenly, such as after, which flooded New Orleans and resulted in the death of 1,800 people. Several wetlands have disappeared, including. In 2021, tore away about 275 km² of land. Among the frontline communities are the French-speaking Native Americans of Isle de Jean Charles, who have become since 2016.

Thus, protecting and restoring the marshes has become a priority for federal and state agencies in Louisiana, collaborating to implement large-scale projects.

Twenty years after Katrina, several dismissals and voluntary departures are now occurring in their Louisiana offices, raising concerns about a loss of activity and workforce needed in this protection and restoration work. Federal funding is also being cut or frozen, causing concerns among many organizations that depend on it.

James Karst of CRCL is worried about two of their major projects funded 90 % by the NOAA and the EPA, such as the construction of reefs with recycled oyster shells and tree plantings to slow erosion. « The funding seems to be cut quite abruptly, without much thought », he laments.

Other major projects involve the construction of levees and the rebuilding of wetlands. « The most sustainable solution, however, is to mimic nature, by reproducing water currents and the natural deposition of sediments explains a federal employee specialized in coastal protection, who prefers to remain anonymous. Creating openings to let water flow requires funding and long-term planning, and nothing can be planned with an administration that changes and makes such decisions. »

She too worries about her job: « I can’t sleep anymore. » The situation is so uncertain that she no longer dares to take out loans to renovate her house. Her team leader retired early, « because she did not want to work under Trump again », and now, « it’s like having a ship without a captain ».

Other constraints have been imposed, hampering their activities: not only is telework no longer possible, but funds for fieldwork or scientific conferences are frozen. « It’s primarily a field job, it’s absurd », reacts another biologist who was dismissed.

Having become a federal employee in 2024, she had previously worked for several years as a contractor in educational projects and data collection on coastal erosion. A job she was passionate about. For her, « saying that we need to eliminate fraud and unnecessary expenses is just an excuse. The goal is to dismantle public services and privatize for profit, as in education ».

Usually proactive in facing a problem, she does not know « what to do », and fears that all these emotional shocks caused by the Trump administration will « only make people apathetic ». This is her greatest concern, seeing that even appeals are difficult or ignored by the government. Unions have initiated legal actions, and judges have ruled some of these dismissals illegal. But there is no indication that she can return to her job.

All the people met have also had to deal with the denial of their relatives, supporters of Trump, in a predominantly Republican state. « I made a post on Facebook and many people reacted by saying that I did not exist, laments Mackenzie Kleinpeter. Even my own cousin did not want to believe me. » She adds: « They don’t want to acknowledge it because it’s also their fault, they voted for this administration. »

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