THERE'S NOW A BIG COMMUNITY EFFORT TO RESTORE CAT ISLAND.
>> THE NATION AND THE WORLD
DIDN'T UNDERSTAND HOW BAD THIS
OIL SPILL WAS.
>> THE IMAGES WERE ICONIC.
LOUISIANA STATE BIRD COVERED IN
OIL.
OIL. A SYMBOL OF A GULF DISASTER.
P.J.HAHN WAS THERE TO DOCUMENT
IT IT.
IT IT. >> WE WOULD GET OUT THERE BEFORE
THE WORKERS WOULD GET OUT THERE.
ONCE THEY STARTED TO SEE THE
POOR BIRDS COVERED IN OIL,
GASPING FOR AIR AND THE PICTURES
CAME BACK, WE SAID, YEAH, WE'RE
GOING TO GET HELP.
>> AUTHORITIES DID NOT WANT THE
MEDIA TO SEE THAT, DID THEY?
>> THEY ABSOLUTELY DIDN'T WANT
US TO SEE THAT.
AND AS AN AMATEUR PHOTOGRAPHER
SO TO SPEAK, I WAS OUT THERE
PHOTOGRAPHING, TAKING
PHOTOGRAPHING, TAKING PHOTOGRAPHS, AND I HAD A LOT OF
THE MEDIA WITH ME.
AND WE HAPPENED TO CATCH SOME
BIRDS TRAPPED IN THE OIL,
COVERED IN OIL.
>> SO IF THAT STORY HAD GOTTEN
OUT.
OUT. THERE MAY HAVE BEEN MORE OF AN
INTENSITY TO SAVE CAT ISLAND SF.
>> I BELIEVE MORE INTENSITY TO
GET MORE EQUIPMENT DOWN HERE
BECAUSE WE WERE BEING TOLD
THERE'S A LOT OF EQUIPMENT.
THE PROBLEM IS THEY WOULD LEAVE
LAND, LOAD UP THEIR BOATS AND BY
THE TIME THEY GOT ON THE WATER,
IT WAS 11:00 THIS IN THE
MORNING.
MORNING. AND THEY ONLY WORK UNTIL 4:00 OR
5:00 IN THE AFTERNOON.
BY THE TIME THEY GOT DARK THEY
WERE COMING BACK OFF.
THE PEOPLE LOCALLY HIRED, THOSE
GUYS WORK UNTIL MIDDLE OF THE
NIGHT.
NIGHT. THEY WORE LAMPS ON THEIR HEAD TO
GO OUT AND COLLECT THE OIL.
>> OFF THE COAST OF LOUISIANA,
BARRIER ISLANDS PROVIDE A
SANCTUARY FOR WILDLIFE.
>> LITTLE GROUPS OF ISLANDS,
ANYWHERE BETWEEN FOUR TO SIX
ACRES IN SIZE.
AND IT WAS PELICAN AND VARIOUS
OTHER TYPES OF BIRDS.
EVEN ENDANGERED SPECIES USING
THOSE ISLANDS TO NEST.
THEY USED THE ISLANDS BECAUSE
THEY ARE FAR AWAY FROM ANY TYPE
OF PREDATORS.
OF PREDATORS. NOW THEY HAD SEVEN TO
EIGHT-FOOT MANGROVE TREES.
YOU COULDN'T GET ON THE ISLAND.
YOU COULD ONL DRIVE AROUND THEM.
AND IT WAS COVERED IN BIRD.
>> CAT ISLAND WAS A BARRIER
ISLAND OFF THE COAST OF
LOUISIANA THAT SAW THE MOST
DAMAGE FROM THE OIL SPILL.
>> CAT ISLAND WAS GROUND ZERO TO
THIS THE OIL SPILL.
AND THERE'S A SERIES OF BARRIER
ISLANDS ALONG THE LOUISIANA
COAST.
COAST. WHAT HAPPENED WAS THE OIL CAME
ALONG THE WEST SIDE OF THE
MISSISSIPPI RIVER.
MISSISSIPPI RIVER. IT CAME THROUGH THE BAYOU PASS.
IT CAME IN THERE AND THOSE LIMIT
ISLANDS WERE THERE TO GREET
THEM.
THEM. >> NOT THAT THERE'S A GOOD TIME
FOR THE OIL SPILL, BUT IT WAS
WORSE BECAUSE THE BIRDS WERE
FESTING.
FESTING. SO YOU HAD PELICANS AND SHORE
BIRDS AND OTHER BIRDS USING THE
ISLANDS TO NEST, AND
UNFORTUNATELY THE OIL WAS COMING
IN SO THICK THAT AS IT COVERED
THE MANGROVE, IT WOULD KILL THE
MANGROVE TREES AND THE OTHER
VEGETATION ON THE ISLANDS.
>> WHEN THE ROOM SYSTEM DIES,
THE LAND STARTS TO FALL APART.
>> SURE, AND THEN THE EROSION
TAKES PLACE.
TAKES PLACE. >> THE CONSTANT WAVE ACTION
ERODING FROM DIFFERENT STORMS OR
A NATURAL WIND AND WAVE ACTION
THAT HITS THE ISLANDS START TOS
TO BREAK THEM APART.
>> CAN YOU BELIEVE WHAT YOU'RE
LOOKING AT?
LOOKING AT? >> IT'S GULF RENCHING.
>> THIS IS ALL THAT IS LEFT OF
CAT ISLAND.
CAT ISLAND. >> THIS IS IT.
>> RIGHT OFF THESE ISLANDS WHEN
YOU GET IN SHALLOW WATER AND THE
PROP RUNS AGROUND, IT KICKS UP
THE GROUND, AND THIS IS WHAT
COMES TO THE SURFACE.
YOU CAN ACTUALLY SMELL THE OIL.
IT'S LITERALLY AMAZING.
OUR PROP WENT THROUGH THERE TW
TWO ENGINES.
TWO ENGINES. IT KICKED OFF THE SURFACE AND
THERE'S YOUR OIL.
BIRDS ARE STILL ON THESE ISLANDS
COMING IN HERE AND FEEDING.
SO YOU CAN IMAGINE THE
CONTAMINATION THAT TAKES PLACE.
AS THE ISLAND SLOWLY DISAPPEARS,
SO MIGHT THE MIGRATORY BIRDS
THAT MADE THE ISLAND THEIR
GREEDING GROUND.
GREEDING GROUND. >> WE LOST OUR PELICAN BACK IN
THE '60s.
THE '60s. LOUISIANA ONLY HAS SIX BIRD
ISLANDS LEFT.
ISLANDS LEFT. THEY'RE ALL DISAPPEARING.
U.S. CHILD LIFE AND FISHERIES
DID STUDIES ON THE BIRDS AND
DISCOVERED WHAT HAPPENS IS WHEN
THESE BIRDS ARE BORN ON THE
ISLANDS, THEY IMPRINT TO THOSE
ISLANDS.
ISLANDS. THEY'LL COME BACK EVERY YEAR,
YEAR AFTER YEAR TO THE SAME
ISLANDS.
ISLANDS. >> THEY'RE GOING TO MOVE WHERE
THEY HAVE TO MOVE.
IT'S JUST THAT WE'RE RUNNING OUT
OF PLACES FOR THEM TO GO TO.
>> IF WE DON'T START REBUILDING
THE ISLANDS AND A SMALL HABITAT
FOR THEM, WE'RE GOING TO LOSE
THE PELICAN AGAIN.
>> THERE'S A MASSIVE EFFORT TO
RESTORE THIS, TO BRING IT BACK
TO ITS POSITION.
>> SO YOUR GOAL IS TO REBUILD
CAT ISLAND?
CAT ISLAND? >> ABSOLUTELY.
>> ABSOLUTELY. >> WHICH WILL TAKE HOW MUCH?
>> $6 BILLION.
WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO RAISE $3
MILLION.
MILLION. WE HAVE A GREAT COOPERATION.
OUR NEW PARISH PRESIDENT DECIDED
TO STEP UP THE PACE AND HELP AS
WELL BY USING THE FUNDING THAT
THE PARISH HAS.
SO WE HAVE MONEY WE PUT TOGETHER
FROM DONATIONS.
FROM DONATIONS. I KNOW WE CAN BRING IT BACK.
WE'VE GOT TO BRING IT BACK.
T THE BIRDS ARE DEPENDING ON
THIS THING.
THIS THING. IT'S GOING TO BE A BEAUTIFUL
BIRD SANCTUARY ONCE IT'S
COMPLETED.
COMPLETED. >> AND THEY'RE GETTING SUPPORT
FROM UNLIKELY SOURCES.
SHELL OIL PUT UP A MILLION
DOLLARS TO HELP US REBUILD THE
ISLAND.
ISLAND. THEY'RE NOT ALL BAD.
IT'S ACTUALLY AT ONE TIME
BELONGED TO A APACHE OIL.
AND APPROACHED THEM TO DONATE
AND THEY DID.
>> WHAT HAS BP DONE TO RESTORE
IT?
IT? >> NOTHING.
>> NOTHING. >> NO.
>> NO. NOT A DIME.
NOT A DIME FOR CAT