The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) today announced a new project funded by the Gulf Environmental Benefit Fund (GEBF) to construct a large-scale living shoreline in Pensacola Bay at White Island. Developed in consultation with state and federal resource agencies, the project is designed to remedy harm and reduce the risk of future harm to natural resources that were affected by the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
"It is with great excitement that I report NFWF has announced a $9 million award for the Pensacola Bay Living Shoreline Project – White Island Habitat Restoration," said Matt Posner, Escambia County RESTORE Program Manager. "Funding provided by NFWF GEBF builds on a $2.5 million NFWF National Coastal Resilience Fund (NCRF) award announced in November 2020 for the Pensacola Bay Living Shoreline Project – Sherman Inlet Restoration aboard NAS Pensacola. This project not only restores and creates critically important habitat, it also greatly enhances the coastal resilience of the surrounding community. We are extremely grateful for NFWF’s investment to enhance the resilience of Escambia County."
A $9 million award under the GEBF will support the construction of emergent and submerged offshore breakwaters to create approximately 45 acres of marsh, 15 acres of beach habitat and 10 acres of suitable habitat for natural recruitment of submerged aquatic vegetation. This large-scale living shoreline will protect important habitat used by fishes, shellfish, shorebirds and seabirds, while increasing the abundancy of native vegetation.
Additional funding through NFWF’s National Coastal Resilience Fund will be utilized to construct a second living shoreline adjacent to the Pensacola Naval Air Station to protect the shoreline from erosion.
“Investments in living shoreline projects are essential to our nation’s continuing efforts to restore and maintain coastal habitats and ensure their resilience against existing and future threats, such as storm events,” said Jeff Trandahl, executive director, and CEO of NFWF. “I have no doubt that the Pensacola Bay Living Shoreline Project will provide lasting benefits to this crucial coastal ecosystem and to the local communities that depend on it for protection."
About the Pensacola Bay Living Shoreline Project
The Pensacola Bay Living Shoreline Project is a large scale living shoreline to be constructed in southwestern Pensacola Bay. Project goals include the creation of approximately 20,000 linear feet of emergent and submerged reef breakwaters and 200 acres of emergent marsh and submerged aquatic vegetation habitat. The Project includes three distinct segments: Site A – White Island, Site B – Naval Air Station Pensacola Eastern Shore, and Site C – Sherman Inlet at NAS Pensacola.
Project design has been funded by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection via the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council from RESTORE Act Pot 2 funding, and by the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity through a Defense Infrastructure Grant. The Project will not only create and restore aquatic habitat, it will also enhance the coastal resilience of the surrounding community and NAS Pensacola.
Living shorelines enhance coastal resilience and address erosion by providing long-term protection, reducing wave energy and restoring vegetated shoreline habitats through strategic placement of plants, rock, and reefs. Living shorelines also stabilize sediment, improve water quality, and enhance habitats for oysters, fish, shrimp, crabs, birds, sea turtles and other estuarine species.
Watch a video tour of the Pensacola Living Shoreline Project online here.
About the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation
Chartered by Congress in 1984, the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) protects and restores the nation’s fish, wildlife, plants and habitats. Working with federal, corporate and individual partners, NFWF has funded more than 5,000 organizations and generated a total conservation impact of $6.8 billion. Learn more at www.nfwf.org.
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