NEW ORLEANS, La.—The Union Sportsmen’s Alliance (USA) and 14 union volunteers braved wet and muddy conditions on Sept. 7 to install a new AccuDock floating dock at Bayou Sauvage Urban National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) to open bank fishing access to New Orleans residents and visitors, including hundreds of union tradeswomen.
“We couldn’t have had more stereotypical southeast Louisiana weather,” said USA Events Coordinator and Louisiana native John Segura. “We are in a drought, and then it pours the day of the project. It was a slop fest—mud everywhere, but we got the dock installed safely and had a bunch of laughs in the process.”
Located 40 minutes from downtown New Orleans, the 27,190-acre refuge is home to a variety of wildlife and fish species, including largemouth bass, crappie, sunfish and gar.
“The whole refuge lies within New Orleans city limits and provides numerous opportunities for urban dwellers to fish, hike, boat, bike and experience wildlife up close. You can go downtown to see the wild side of New Orleans and then go to the refuge to see another wild side of the city,” said Bayou Sauvage NWR Project Leader Pon Dixson. “However, most fishing was only accessible with a boat before we partnered with the USA.”
USA Conservation Programs Manager Sam Phipps discovered Bayou Sauvage NWR while looking for a location to host female union workers from around the U.S. and Canada for a fishing event during the 2024 Tradeswomen Build Nations—the largest gathering of union tradeswomen in the world—in New Orleans. While the refuge was in an ideal location, there was no access to the water due to thick vegetation surrounding the refuge ponds.
“Luckily, the USA’s Work Boots on the Ground conservation program was designed to tackle outdoor access issues just like this one,” said Phipps, “and we had both funds from the USA’s Inaugural Louisiana BCTC Conservation Dinner in February and local union members willing to volunteer their time and skills.”
In preparation for the dock installation, local firefighters cut approximately 200 invasive Chinese tallow and willow trees along the water. Then on Sept. 7, members of South Central Pipe Trades (UA Locals 141, 198, 568, 619, 669 and 60) as well as Laborers’ Local 99 and Elevator Constructors Local 16 donated 112 hours to install a 10’x20’ dock from world-renowned floating dock manufacturer AccuDock.
“We're proud to have been chosen to build the fishing dock at Bayou Sauvage,” said AccuDock Owner Jason Harrison. “Our goal was to provide a safe and convenient place for visitors to enjoy fishing, and it's wonderful to hear about the union volunteers’ involvement. We hope this dock will become a cherished part of the community for many years to come."
The project had special meaning to Segura, who was born and raised 20 minutes from the refuge.
“I saw that beautiful refuge decimated by Hurricane Katrina,” said Segura. “Seeing our union brothers come out on a Saturday, some from as far as 5.5 hours away, missing LSU, Mississippi state, and Ole Miss games, for a great cause was really powerful.”
According to Dixson, putting in a dock would not have been possible, at least not for two to three years, without the USA funding and volunteers.
On September 27, Cynthia Martinez, chief of the NWR system, and Marjorie Chiles, chief for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service infrastructure and management division, will join the USA, Bayou Sauvage NWR staff and 200 union tradeswomen to dedicate the new pier in conjunction with the USA’s tradeswomen’s fishing event.