Posted on December 28, 2012 by Jarred Taylor
By: Jarred O. Taylor II and Shannon K. Oldenburg
The Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council (the “Council”) held its first public meeting on December 11, 2012, in Mobile, Alabama, intended to introduce the Council to the public and to give the public feedback opportunity on the Council’s plans. The Council, established by the Resources and Ecosystems Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities, and Revived Economies of the Gulf Coast States Act of 2012 (the “RESTORE Act”), is charged with developing and overseeing implementation of a comprehensive plan to help restore the ecosystem and economy of the Gulf Coast region in the wake of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
The RESTORE Act will fund the Council’s work via a Trust Fund made up of 80 percent of all Clean Water Act administrative and civil penalties related to the oil spill:
• 35 percent of the money will be divided equally between the five Gulf States;
• 30 percent will be spent through the Council to implement a comprehensive plan;
• 30 percent will be used through States’ plans to address impacts from the oil spill;
• 2.5 percent will be used to create the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Science, Observation, Monitoring and Technology Program within the Department of Commerce’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (“NOAA”); and
• the remaining 2.5 percent will be used for Centers of Excellence Research grants, which will each focus on science, technology, and monitoring related to Gulf restoration.
Overarching themes of the comments from both the Council and the public in attendance at the meeting were that ideas for Gulf restoration should originate from the Gulf Coast, not from the federal government, and that the Gulf of Mexico Ecosystem Restoration Strategy developed by the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Task Force (“GCERTF”) should be used as a framework for the Council’s work. To much approval from the audience, Rachel Jacobson, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks, Department of the Interior (Ken Salazar’s designated representative on the Council), commented that the Council should incorporate the “four pillars” of the GCERTF strategy into the process and work of the Council in determining how the RESTORE Act funds should be distributed and used. These four pillars are (1) restore and conserve habitat; (2) restore water quality; (3) replenish and protect living coastal and marine resources; and (4) enhance community resilience. Notably, Jacobson and many of the other designated representatives to the Council served as members of the GCERTF and also act as Trustees for the Natural Resources Damage Assessment(“NRDA”) for the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
The Council has only 180 days from passage of the RESTORE Act to publish: 1) procedures to assess whether programs and activities carried out under the Act are in compliance with the Act’s requirements; 2) auditing requirements for disbursing funds from the Trust Fund; and 3) procedures to identify and allocate funds for the expenses of administering the Trust Fund. The Council will publish a “proposed plan” by the end of this year that will be the focus of public hearings in late January and early February 2013, likely to be in the style of the public “listening sessions” held by the GCERTF last year. The Council also will release a “draft comprehensive plan” for restoration in Spring 2013, and publish a final plan on July 6, 2013, the anniversary of enactment of the RESTORE Act.
An incredible amount of work has already gone into Gulf restoration, but much work remains. Only time will tell if these legislative acts and work will translate into true restoration in the Gulf area.
Tags: Deepwater Horizon, oil spill, Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council, RESTORE Act, GCERTF, Gulf restoration, Trust Fund
Clean Water Act | Emissions | Natural Resource Damages | Sustainability