Some of the charities created in the Gulf Coast to provide recovery aid to victims of Hurricane Katrina will cease operations or merge with others in coming months and years because competition for money has grown more intense, reports New Orleans City Business.

In Louisiana alone, the number of charities doubled from 1996 to 2006, according to data from the National Center for Charitable Statistics. Gary Ostroske, president of the United Way for Greater New Orleans, tells City Business that he has seen an increase in the number of groups that want to strike partnerships with his organization.

But even the local United Way has had to find new donors, as it lost about 6,000 donors after Katrina, says Mr. Ostroske.

Laura Crochet, an official at the Louisiana Association of Nonprofit Organizations, says the situation has provided a reason to work together.

“I think we’ve kind of reached a bit of a plateau where people are taking a little bit of a step back to look at some of the organizations that are here and where they could maybe fit into other organizations,” Ms. Crochet says.

In another article, The New Orleans Times-Picayune reports on progress and work still to be done by nonprofit groups and other institutions three years after Katrina.

See The Chronicle’s new article on how an influx of young nonprofit workers has helped keep New Orleans charities running.

(A paid subscription or one-day pass is required to view the Chronicle article.)