Voters in some Louisiana parishes will have the rare opportunity on Saturday to participate in an election for the Crescent Soil and Water Conservation District Board of Supervisors.
Soil and Water Conservation Districts help landowners implement practices to protect natural resources, usually with technical assistance. There are 44 districts in Louisiana.
“ It's super important that folks now learn about the Soil and Water Conservation District. Keep an eye out on — no matter who ultimately ends up being elected — what that person is doing and how they intend to further the goals of what the position is intended to do, which is support folks in protecting and conserving our natural resources,” said Samantha Fleurinor, the Regional Director for the NOLA Food Policy Action Council.
This kind of election has only happened seven times in the state’s history. That's because typically board seats are uncontested, said Fleurinor.
“Usually when someone is in that position, they tend to just keep going until they choose not to do it anymore,” she said.
It’s the first-ever election for the Crescent Soil and Water Conservation District, which includes Orleans, Jefferson, St. Bernard, St. Charles, and St. John the Baptist parishes.
“Despite the unusual nature, I hope with more attention on this election and processes like that, we can build sort of a culture of transparency,” said Fleurinor.
The candidates for a board seat are Erica Johnson, an urban farmer in New Orleans and Lloyd Landry IV, the owner of a fishing boat charter company, who’s from St. Charles Parish.
Polls will be open from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday. Polling locations will be different from typical elections and only paper ballots will be used.
A list of polling locations
Orleans Parish
- Mid-City: New Harmony High School, 3368 Esplanade Avenue
- New Orleans East: Crown of Life Lutheran Church, 11721 Morrison Road
- Marigny/Bywater: Press St. Gallery, 5 Homer Plessy Way
Jefferson Parish
- Jefferson Feed Store: 4421 Jefferson Highway
- Jefferson Feed Store: 2949 Veterans Boulevard
St. Charles Parish
- Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 3750: 140 Angus Drive, Luling
- Knights of Columbus Home: 375 Spruce Street, Norco
- Alan Arterbury BLDG: 14564 River Road, New Sarpy
What we know about the candidates
Erica Johnson
Erica Johnson, the incumbent, runs Petit Jardin, an urban farm in New Orleans. A graduate of Southern University Agricultural and Mechanical College, she has been farming in the city since 2015. She works at Sprout, a nonprofit that provides technical assistance to growers.
“ I have a strong connection to agriculture. My grandmother was a sharecropper in Mississippi,” she said.
Johnson was the first Black person elected onto the board, and only the second woman to serve. During her two years on the board, she became treasurer and introduced a low-cost tool renting program for small-scale farmers. She said she’s also pushed for more public visibility and getting the board to grow its social media presence.
“My vision going forward, if I'm elected to the board, is to expand that tool rental library to include more equipment, to connect farmers to funding opportunities and grant opportunities, and to continue to increase our public visibility and the public awareness of the board,” she said.
Johnson said her top priorities are coastal restoration, urban farming and sustainability.
“I will continue to connect farmers and landowners to federal resources as part of my responsibility to district residents. The election is about doing the right thing with taxpayer dollars, it's simple. As this is only the seventh election of its kind in state history, we all want to ensure this strangely administered election is upheld fairly,” she said.
Lloyd Landry IV
Lloyd Landry IV runs Outcast Fishing Charters. A lifelong resident of Luling, he’s been a charter fishing captain for 27 years and is also on the board of the St. Charles Farm Bureau, representing fishermen. He also works as a deputy tax assessor at the St. Charles Parish Assessor’s Office. He said having to move his fishing operation due to coastal erosion compelled him to take action.
“ I always asked friends in politics and said, look, if there's ever an opportunity to get on something where I can participate in projects or have an impact on something for coastal restoration and shoreline (erosion) prevention, I was interested,” he said.
He heard through the St. Charles Farm Bureau board that this seat would be open and decided to run. If elected, he said coastal restoration would be his priority, protecting the marshes through “responsible stewardship, transparent governance, and science-based solutions.”
“There's not enough representation for St. Charles Parish and St. John Baptist Parish on this board with coastal work.” he said. “I'm familiar with, and worked with farmers since I was a little boy. There's just a lot of opportunities that I think this board can do more on our side.”
He said if elected, he would continue the district’s efforts to promote farmers markets and plant along the coastline to prevent erosion.
“ I'm in this to try to help cattle farmers and the small vegetable farmers in my area,” he said.
