The state Department of Transportation is looking at possibly widening I-12 in St. Tammany Parish between Mandeville and Covington. Emelie Gunn has more…
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The dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico is the biggest one ever measured. Jeff Palermo has more…
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The lawmakers who will sit on the TOPS task force have been announced. Halen Doughty has more…
Cut 3 (31) “I’m Halen Doughty”
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An expecting mom’s diet can have huge impacts on the health of her baby. Dr. Nick Broskey with the LSU Pennington Biomedical Research Center says a mom’s lifestyle can impact their baby’s metabolism and lifelong risk for obesity and other chronic diseases.
Broskey says a recent study found that soda consumption during pregnancy increased the risk of childhood obesity for her baby. He says that’s why it’s important for moms-to-be to stay healthy.
Between 5 and 14 percent of expecting mothers are diagnosed with gestational diabetes. Broskey says their IMAGINE study will assess whether these moms give birth to babies with a higher risk for diabetes and obesity. He says they’re recruiting women with gestational diabetes for the study.
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The state Department of Transportation is discussing the possibility of widening Interstate 12 in the western part of St. Tammany Parish between Mandeville and Covington. Jennifer Branton with DOTD says there are two proposals in the works to add one lane to the east and westbound lanes.
The plans were presented at a public meeting last week. Branton says currently, the cost of the project is over 100 million dollars, including expanding lanes on the bridge running over the Tchefuncte River. She says this expansion is necessary because of the recent increase in people commuting through the area.
DOTD has said there is no money to move the I-12 expansion project forward as the Legislature did not pass any funding bills. Branton hopes funding will become available because a three lane interstate would mean so much to the Northshore.
It’s estimated at least 80-thousand vehicles travel through this corridor every day.
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This year’s “dead zone” in the Gulf of Mexico is the biggest one yet. LSU scientist Nancy Rabalais says the oxygen-depleted region is about 8,800 square miles, which is about the size of New Jersey. She says many of the stations, especially those close to the shore, were close to no oxygen.
Rabalais says the area may actually be even bigger, but they had to stop mapping before reaching the western edge. She says as a scientist, she’s worried about nutrient cycling in an area that’s not fully oxygenated. Practically speaking, she says it’s also a problem for shrimpers.
Rabalais says unfortunately the Gulf of Mexico is poised for dead zones. She says one problem is fresh water inflow that creates a layered system. That coupled with the nutrient-rich water coming down the Mississippi River from the Midwest creates a huge dead zone.
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Membership has been announced for a task force that will examine the 350-million dollar TOPS scholarship program for the first time since it was established 20 years ago. Jennings Senator Blade Morrish will chair the committee. He says the panel consists of an array of lawmakers representing both parties and all corners of the state.
Last year, the taxpayer funded scholarship program was only funded at 70 percent, a first since its inception in 1997. That’s one reason Morrish authored a resolution to create the bipartisan task force. He says another reason is to reexamine the program because a lot has changed in the last 20 years.
The task force’s first meeting is September 6. Morrish says there is a lot of misinformation surrounding the scholarship program, which makes it harder for lawmakers to decide how to alter it. He says the goal of the taskforce is to put together a report of accurate information.
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The indefinite suspension to Maea Teuhema leaves LSU with just eleven scholarship players on the offensive line. But starting left guard, Garrett Brumfield, says they have enough talent to still have a very good o-line…
With Teuhema away from the team, Lloyd Cushenberry from Dutchtown High School as taken Teuhema’s spot at starting right guard. Brumfield says Cushenberry has been waiting for his chance after taking a red-shirt last season….