The National Fish and Wildlife is awarding more than $15.2 million from its Gulf Environmental Benefit Fund to five projects in the state of Florida designed to remedy harm and reduce the risk of future harm to natural resources that were affected by the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The Florida projects address high priority restoration and conservation needs including the continuation of fisheries monitoring, oyster habitat restoration in Pensacola Bay, marine mammal stranding network capacity, improving sea turtle nesting habitat through lighting improvements, and water quality improvements in the lower Choctawhatchee River basin.
Four of the five projects directly benefit the marine life and waterways surrounding Escambia County:
"We are extremely appreciative that NFWF and its partners continue to place a high importance on supporting Gulf restoration projects which benefit our county and northwest Florida as a whole," states Escambia County Commission Vice Chair and District 4 Commissioner Grover Robinson. "These new projects are just one more avenue in restoring our waterways to pre-oil spill conditions and will go a long way to improving the environmental health of the Gulf of Mexico and its marine life, which will also positively impact our local economy and recreational opportunities for our residents."
NFWF created the GEBF two and a half years ago as the vehicle to receive and administer funds resulting from remedial orders in the plea agreements between the U.S. Department of Justice and BP and Transocean. The plea agreements resolved certain criminal charges against both companies relating to the 2010 oil spill. Provisions within the agreements direct a total of $2.544 billion to NFWF over a five-year period to be used to support projects that remedy harm to natural resources in the Gulf States. To date, NFWF has awarded more than $54.5 million from the GEBF for 16 restoration projects in the state of Florida. These projects were selected for funding following extensive consultation with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, FWS and NOAA. For more information visit www.nfwf.org/gulf/Pages/GEBF-Florida.aspx.
For more information, please contact the Office of Community and Media Relations at (850) 595-3476 and follow @MyEscambia on Twitter.
