It's difficult to figure out exactly how much of the wetlands the oil companies are responsible for losing, when you factor in levee-building, natural erosion, etc. But the fact remains that oil companies have a LEGAL responsibility to fix what it destroys. When these companies started dredging canals through the marshland, at that time everyone thought it was ok because the wetlands were viewed by many people as a wasteland. But their mistakes shouldn't be our burden. Politicians/citizens simply aren't holding these companies responsible at all.....I suppose because they're so powerful monetarily and politically.
But with regards to that article: I haven't read it, partly because the question "Should New Orleans Be Re-Build" frankly is insulting.
I hate it when people talk about possibly "wasting Americans' tax dollars" on New Orleans when, if we redirected tax money that is already uselessly being spent elsewhere in the world, it probably wouldn't cost the American people any more.