Terrebonne Parish Harbor of Refuge

The Terrebonne Parish Harbor of Refuge project aims to provide safe places for boats to ride out a hurricane with a larger vision to develop a network of safe harbors located in bayous across coastal Louisiana, and the Gulf Coast, inside the flood protection system, but close enough to the Gulf of Mexico that the fishermen will be able to return to their work once the storm passes.

SMM investigated a wide range of possible sites, in collaboration with community stakeholders, and settled on three sites for further study, each in a different bayou. One site along Bayou Grand Caillou was selected for a pilot project. Conceptual designs were developed and a final design was selected. The site has the potential to protect over 17 large fishing vessels and 45 small fishing vessels during a storm event, and also serve as an ecotourism and cultural site, promoting the retail shrimp outposts of the shrimp processors in the area. The Harbor of Refuge project showcases a strategy to protect vital industries, and the people that work in those industries, from the challenges of extreme weather, while also providing economic and cultural benefits to the communities that live in the region.