Abstract
The 2010 Deepwater Horizon (DWH) oil spill caused extensive damage to the northern Gulf of Mexico ecosystem and resulted in multiple settlements with responsible parties, and the subsequent payments of fines and penalties related to statutes including the Oil Pollution Act (OPA) and the Clean Water Act (CWA). These funds are jumpstarting recovery and restoration efforts across the Gulf region, including in Alabama, where over $720 million has been approved for projects to date. The Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (ADCNR), working with federal and local partners, oversees many aspects of this restoration effort in the state, leveraging existing planning and stakeholder investments to maximize efficiencies and take advantage of local expertise. Three programs govern the selection of DWH Horizon-related projects: (1) the Natural Resource Damage Assessment Process (NRDA), which is implemented under the Oil Pollution Act of 1990; (2) the Gulf Environmental Benefit Fund, a 5-year, $2.54 Billion program created to address oil spill impacts and mitigate future harm, overseen by the not-for-profit National Fish and Wildlife Foundation; and (3) the RESTORE Trust fund, created by the 2012 RESTORE Act, which directed 80% of all civil penalties levied against responsible parties to the Gulf region, overseen by the Department of Treasury and the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council for the purposes of ecosystem restoration, economic recovery and tourism promotion. This presentation provides an overview of a selection of planning tools Alabama utilizes to support DWH restoration efforts and highlights several of the ongoing restoration projects that will benefit coastal habitats and wildlife in Alabama.
