So glad to see this finally happening; some things move at a snail’s pace at the federal level. I hope the funds actually improve the Gulf instead of lining the pockets of the well connected. DV

Washington, DC – Under an unprecedented agreement announced today by the Natural Resource Trustees for the Deepwater Horizon oil spill (Trustees), BP has agreed to provide $1 billion toward early restoration projects in the Gulf of Mexico to address injuries to natural resources caused by the spill. The Trustees involved are: Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas, the Department of the Interior (DOI), and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The Department of Justice provided assistance in reaching the agreement.

This early restoration agreement, the largest of its kind ever reached, represents a first step toward fulfilling BP’s obligation to fund the complete restoration of injured public resources,including the loss of use of those resources by the people living,working and visiting the area. The Trustees will use the money to fund projects such as the rebuilding of coastal marshes, replenishment of damaged beaches, conservation of sensitive areas for ocean habitat for injured wildlife, and restoration of barrier islands and wetlands that provide natural protection from storms.

The agreement in no way affects the ultimate liability of BP or any other entity for natural resource damages or other liabilities, but provides an opportunity to help restoration get started sooner. The selection of early restoration projects will follow a public process, and will be overseen by the Trustees.

The full natural resource damage assessment process will continue until the Trustees have determined the full extent of damages caused by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. At the end of the damage assessment process, the Trustees will take into account any benefits that were realized from these early restoration projects. In addition to funding early restoration projects, BP will continue to fund the damage assessment and, together with the other responsible parties, will ultimately be obligated to compensate the public for the entire injury. BP is providing the early restoration funds voluntarily, and is not required to do so at this stage of the damage assessment process. The agreement will speed needed resources to the Gulf in advance of the completion of the assessment process.

To read the agreement, go to:

“This milestone agreement will allow us to jump-start restorationprojects that will bring Gulf Coast marshes, wetlands, and wildlifehabitat back to health after the damage they suffered as a result ofthe Deepwater Horizon spill,” said Secretary of the Interior KenSalazar. “This agreement accelerates our work on Gulf Coastrestoration and in no way limits the ability of all the NaturalResource Trustees from seeking full damages from those who areresponsible as the NRDA process moves forward.”

“One year after the largest oil spill in our history, we take amajor step forward in the recovery of the Gulf of Mexico, for theenvironment and the people who depend on it for their livelihood andenjoyment. Today’s agreement is a down payment on our promise toprotect and restore the Gulf,” said Jane Lubchenco, Ph.D., undersecretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere and NOAAadministrator.

“This agreement is a great first step toward restoring ournatural resources destroyed by the BP oil spill,” said LouisianaGovernor Bobby Jindal. “We are eager to continue working withpublic, state and federal co-trustees and BP to quickly convert thisdownpayment into projects to restore our damaged coast and replace ourlost wildlife. We encourage BP to continue to address the damages fromthis spill through early restoration efforts.”

“Alabama’s natural resources are environmentally diverse and aneconomic engine for our state and nation. Ecosystem restoration isvital to the economic vitality of the Alabama Gulf Coast,” saidAlabama Governor Robert Bentley. “Obtaining funding for theserestoration projects is a major step forward in addressing the oilspill’s damage to our precious natural resources. I have the utmostconfidence that the Alabama trustees will consider and identifyprojects and use these funds toward restoring our naturalresources.”

“Since the day of the oil spill, our goals have been to makeMississippi whole and to assure that our coastal areas completelyrecover. Today’s unprecedented agreement is an important firststep but it is only the first step. Mississippi will continue thiswork and will count on our many interested citizens to contributetheir ideas and input as we all work to define the scope of theseearly projects and develop other restoration projects. Our goals havenot changed. We will remain actively engaged in these and otherprojects until the Gulf is restored and our state is made whole,”said Trudy D. Fisher, Mississippi Trustee, Executive Director,Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality.

“I’m pleased that after a year of uncertainty and concerns aboutenvironmental damages which occurred as a result of the DeepwaterHorizon explosion, Florida will be able to use this early restorationmoney to initiate greatly needed environmental restoration projects,”said Florida Department of Environmental Protection Secretary HerschelVinyard. “Because we have worked diligently to assess theenvironmental damage resulting from the spill, we are well positionedto be able to quickly begin performing important restoration projectsand use Florida’s share of the early restoration funds to assist ourcoastal communities with their continued recovery from thespill.”

“While the Texas coast was not as visibly impacted by this spill,our wetlands, bays, beaches and coastal waters were affected, and itmakes sense to invest in places that can help jumpstart and maximizerecovery of the entire Gulf,” said Carter Smith, Texas Parks andWildlife Department executive director. “There will be a publicprocess in Texas and throughout the Gulf to consider and identifyprojects that make the best use of these funds for our coastalhabitats and the fish, wildlife and people who depend uponthem.”

The $1 billion in early restoration projects will be selected andimplemented as follows:

· Each state -Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas – will select andimplement $100 million in projects;

· The FederalResource Trustees, NOAA and DOI, will each select and implement $100million in projects;

· The remaining $300million will be used for projects selected by NOAA and DOI fromproposals submitted by the State Trustees.

All projects must meet the other requirements of the FrameworkAgreement and be approved by the Trustee Council comprised of all thenatural resource trustees.

To read the early restoration agreement, clickhere.

# # #Special thanks to Richard Charter