Southern Deltas
We are working in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama to conserve the lands, waters and coast of one of the most ecologically important regions on the planet.
The Nature Conservancy’s focus on lands, waters and coastal ecosystems supports a conservation strategy that reaches across state borders. Throughout the Southern Deltas, the health of our local communities is intertwined with the health of the natural environment. Together, with our partners and supporters, we are committed to ensuring that the human and natural communities of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama continue to prosper and thrive.
Southern Deltas By the Numbers
For more than 40 years, TNC has protected more than 500,000 acres of land across Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama.
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750K+
acres of former agricultural land reforested
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50%
of freshwater in the U.S. flows through the Southern Deltas
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200+
acres of oyster reefs built along the Gulf Coast
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6,350
species in AL alone makes the region a biodiversity hotspot
Our Work
The Nature Conservancy’s focus on lands, waters and coastal ecosystems supports a conservation strategy that reaches across state borders. Throughout the Southern Deltas, the health of our local communities is intertwined with the health of the natural environment. Together, with our partners and supporters, we are committed to ensuring that the human and natural communities of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama continue to prosper and thrive.
Our Vision
TNC has worked in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama for more than four decades to protect the region’s cherished landscapes for people and nature. From protecting lands near the origin of the Appalachian Trail in Alabama and reconnecting the floodplain around Louisiana’s Atchafalaya River Basin to restoring habitat at the Tony Trapani Oyster Reef along the Mississippi coast, TNC employs more than 70 passionate staff who are pursuing TNC’s mission throughout the Southern Deltas. Their work is possible thanks to a $30 million capital campaign, completed in 2026, that fuels a carefully crafted and ambitious strategic plan for the region that envisions a world where people and nature flourish together. This includes a commitment to:
- Securing clean, fresh water for drinking, swimming and boating, and harvesting and eating native fish and seafood.
- Protecting and conserving healthy and resilient lands that store and filter water, provide habitat for wildlife and endure in the face of a changing climate and weather patterns.
- Leveraging deeper investments to restore living habitats like natural channels, oyster reefs and marshes that serve as a first line of defense for coastal communities.
- Inspiring and mobilizing our partners, neighbors and friends to advance conservation in communities across the Southern Deltas.
We have only a short time to get it right. Join us as we work to solve our most pressing environmental challenges.
Our Lands
From the sandy Gulf Coast to the alluvial plains of the Mississippi Delta and the foothills of the Appalachians, our lands across Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama are the places where we camp, hike, hunt and spend time with our families. TNC works with agency partners, conservation organizations, private landowners and local communities to protect, restore and manage lands key to supporting native plants and animals and providing natural resilience to climate change. This type of work includes a variety of tools and approaches, from planting trees and returning disturbances like fire to the landscape, to eliminating invasive, non-native species and pests, and pursuing other natural solutions for securing healthy, connected, and resilient lands for all.
Our Freshwater Resources
More than 50 percent of the freshwater resources of the continental United States flow through the Southern Deltas region. These rivers, streams and wetlands form a vast circulatory system stretching across Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama, providing habitat for species that live in both fresh and salt water and connecting our human and natural communities from the Gulf Coast to the Mississippi River and beyond.
TNC is reconnecting and restoring the waterways of this globally unique system. We are delivering on ambitious plans to pursue natural solutions for securing clean and abundant water for all. Our whole-system approach means working across the states in a range of environments. From our urban conservation efforts in Alabama and Louisiana, to supporting farmers, restoring longleaf pine forests and building fish bypasses across all three states, our strategies support a system that is by definition interconnected.
Our Coasts
The Southern Deltas region remains home to human and natural communities forever rooted in our coastal landscape. These ecosystems are among these three states’ most precious resources — and their most endangered. The impacts of offshore oil production, frequent and more severe storms, sea level rise, and pollution from cities and farms are compounding.
TNC is stewarding relationships built over time and applying lessons learned from projects on the ground and in the water to secure a sustainable future for coastal and marine habitats. Our ambitious plans focus on connectivity because what happens upstream has a direct impact on the coast and the Gulf.
Read more about TNC's work in our Southern Deltas coastal waters.
Make a Difference for Nature
We work in the most critical places so that we can have a lasting impact. Nowhere is that more true than right here in the Southern Deltas.
