Louisiana

I chose this region because I have always loved the geography and history of Louisiana ever since my 5th grade state project when I chose this state to study

 State Details 

Coordinates: 30.9843° N, 91.9623° W

Area: 52,378 mi²

Population: 4.67 million

Density: 104.9/sq mi

Urban-rural population: 73.2% urban, 26% rural

Capital: Baton Rouge

Other major cities: New Orleans, Shreveport, and Metairie

Languages Spoken: French, English, French Creole, Spanish, Italian, Vietnamese, and Coushatta

Louisiana being bordered by Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, Mississippi to the east, and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, along with the fact that the Mississippi River runs through the state and drains into the Gulf has created a unique environment here in Louisiana with various types of ecosystems

The Lowlands, located in the Southern part of Louisiana, are home to various types of ecosystems, the largest being the Mississippi Alluvial floodplain located in the Southernmost part of the state , which is where the Mississippi River drains into. This lowland area is where you get swamps, marshes, bayous, costal prairies, and Mangroves

The Louisiana Terrace Region, or also known as the Mississippi Loess plains, is what is considered the Old Mississippi Flood plain, before the Mississippi river changed its course after the last ice age, this area had a similar geography to the present day Lowlands area, however in present day it is generally made up of Prairies and hills

Being located at the mouth of the Mississippi River, along with its proximity to the Gulf of Mexico, has given Louisiana its subtropical climate. During the summer, thus region experiences hot, humid summers which averaging around 90℉ and short mild winters which average around 66℉

Rain is fairly common in Louisiana, with regular rains throughout the year, with its wet season lasting between April to September, where it then begins to calm down into the winter. during the summer however thunderstorms are common during the tropical downpours, without 60 days of thunderstorms per year

Louisiana is very susceptible to storms, to cyclones, hurricanes and tornadoes happen fairly often

• Louisiana experiences about Hurricanes 54 hurricanes a year, with 17 of them being between category 3-5
• Tornadoes are also a frequent occurrence, with about 27 per year

 Economy Details 

GDP: 240.5bn (State rank:46)

Businesses: 134,919, 1.7% growth (State rank: 24)

Highest GDP by sector: Manufacturing

Employment: 2.7 million, 0.7% growth (State rank: 45)

Unemployment: 7.9% (State rank: 28)

Because of its unique geology and climate, Louisiana is among the top states in oil, petroleum and natural gas reserves, meaning Chemical, petroleum, and coal products are Louisiana’s leading manufacturing, which accounts for 1/6 of their GDP

Louisiana is one of the top five states in both natural gas production and reserves, accounting for 9% of the country's reserves, has 19 underground natural gas storage sites located in salt caverns and depleted fields and is the 3rd largest gas consumer in the country

Louisiana ranks in the top 10 crude oil reserves, 1% of the country's production, has 17 refineries which process 3.4 million barrels of crude oil every day, accounts for 1/5th of the country's refining capacity, and home to two of the four storage sites that make up the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR). The industry saw a huge set back following the Gulf oil spill in 2010 in the Deepwater Horizon drilling platform off the Louisiana coast, and with the Pandemic it saw a 13% decline

Coal reserves in Louisiana are relatively small, they make up just about 0.01% of the country's reserves and 0.02% of Coal output. The coal found here is also of low-grade lignite, so Luisiana has to get 80%of their coal from out of state

Compared to its earlier history, agriculture is nowhere near as important now, the majority of the population live in urban areas, however the very few who do have farms are coming from farms in the alluvial plains.

Cotton, sugarcane, rice, soybeans, corn, feed grains, and sweet potatoes are the main agricultural crops produced in the state

Poultry and eggs, beef, cattle, and dairy products are also important, however its most important product would be crawfish, as Louisiana produced 90% of the worlds crawfish, brining in more than 300 million dollars annually

Louisiana is also among the top timber producers in the country, mostly being softwoods (pines) harvested primarily for making wood pulp and plywood

Fishing is also a very important part of the economy as the fishing industry in Louisiana produces more than half a million tons of fish, shrimp, oysters, crayfish and crabs, accounting for more than 15 percent of the U.S. fish and shellfish harvest

Since the Louisianan economy is so reliant on the manufacturing and producing of chemicals, petroleum, oil and natural gas, this has taken a toll on the environment. Louisiana Rank 49th in the state in terms of sustainability

 Sustainability Report 

Louisiana ranks 47th in Green energy

Ranks 36th in Open Spaces and Beauty

Ranks 49th in Waste Diversion and Recycling

Ranks 48th in Environmental Quality 

Ranks 50th in Eco-Friendly Behaviors

Ranks 49th in Climate-Change Contributions

Ranks 49th in LEED-Certified buildings per capita

Ranks 49th in Energy consumption per capita

Renewable sources only make up about 4% of Louisiana's net energy production. the state is rich in biomass resources, thus wood and wood waste accounted for about three-fifths of the state's renewable electricity generation

Hydroelectric power makes up about 1/3 of all of Louisiana's renewable energy. The state's one hydropower plant, the 192-megawatt Sidney A. Murray Jr. Hydroelectric Station is located on the Mississippi River, the plant has eight turbines and floats 200 miles north from New Orleans

The Louisiana Public Service Commission initiated a renewable energy pilot program in 2010 to determine whether a renewable portfolio standard (RPS), which would require a certain amount of electricity come from renewables, however failed to meet its goal

Climate change is likely to affect this region, as the waters get warmer this means stronger and more frequent hurricanes, the rising sea-levels will put the coasts in danger, accelerated costal erosion, more frequent floods, will affect fisheries and agriculture etc.

Being one area of the United States colonized by the French and later absorbed into the United States as its own state. Louisiana has a distinct culture found nowhere else in the country having its roots in African, Spanish, French, and Native American cultures and home to large populations of Cajuns, Creoles, African Americans and home 4 Native American tribes; The Chitimacha Tribe, the Coushatta Tribe, the Jena Band of Choctaw Indians, and the Tunica-Biloxi Indian Tribe

White population: 56%

Black population: 31%

Hispanic or Latino population: 7%

French Speaking Cajun or Creole: 3.4%

The first Europeans to arrive were the spanish in the 16th century, who rode the Mississippi river inland by were unimpressed

The territory remaining unsettled until the French arrived in 17th century, naming it after their king. The current black population mostly residing in the Southern part Louisiana is reflective of the pattern of enslaved Africans being brought in to work the plantations, bring along with them their culture and traditions which would later find itself influencing Louisiana's unique rich culture

By the 1900's, Louisiana’s population was 47 percent African-American, many with Creole heritage, however the First and Second Great Migrations which promised better economic opportunity for black Americans in other parts of the country led to a significant drop in the black population

Creole

• Creoles are the descendants of the inhabitants of colonial Louisiana
• Their ancestry is mostly made up of African, French, Spanish and Native American
• They are generally catholic
• Creole culture have been located in south and southwest Louisiana
• Louisiana has a reputation for its delicious cuisine, Creole cuisine is one in particular, which has developed from various European, African, and Native American historic culinary influences which can be seen in dishes like Gumbo and Jambalaya
• They have their own style of music called zydeco, which is derived from Cajun music, blues and jazz and can even be traced back to the music of the enslaved Africans
• The majority of Louisiana Creoles speak French as the Louisiana Creole Language is dying off
• Creole voodoo is an African Diaspora religion which originated in Louisiana through combining aspects of the traditional religions of West Africa Catholicism and Haitian Vodou

Cajun

• Cajuns are another large ethnic group within Louisiana typically found in the SouthWestern part of the state in the Acadiana region
• Louisiana's of Acadian descent were also considered to be Louisiana Creoles, although Cajuns are of French descent Acadian settlers after the Great Expulsion when the British kicked the French out of Canada
• Because of mixing, many Cajuns can also be of Irish and Spanish decent, along with admixtures of Native American and African Creole
• Cajun music is evolved from its roots in the music of the French-speaking Catholics of Canada, with such instruments like the fiddle and accordion
• Cajun ancestors unfamiliar with the terrain assimilated to Native and Creole tradition when it came to cuisine, thus Cajun cuisine focused on local ingredients and wild game like duck and rabbit, vegetables like Okra and Miriltons and grains
• Coastal communities relied heavily on fish and shellfish. Shellfish is still very popular in the region and remains a dominant feature of many classic Cajun dishes like Gumbo and Court-Bullion