Work to restore nearly 5 square miles of Louisiana coast JANET McCONNAUGHEY, Associated Press FacebookTwitterEmail NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Work has begun on three projects designed to restore nearly 5 square miles (13 square kilometers) of Louisiana's coastal land, Gov. John Bel Edwards said Wednesday. They'll use a total of 18 million cubic yards (13.8 million cubic meters) of sediment dredged from the Mississippi River — enough to fill the Superdome 18 times, he said. The $256.6 million total cost is being covered by money paid by BP PLC after the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill, he said during a news conference livestreamed from Baton Rouge. The Spanish Pass project will build more than 1,500 acres (607 hectares) of marsh and 132 acres (53 hectares) of ridge west of Venice in Plaquemines Parish for about $100 million.