Blogging for a Healthy Gulf

MDEQ Permit Board Decision Infuriating to Witness

Andrew Whitehurst — 2013-05-15T18:57:55+00:00

It is hard to watch a state agency bureaucracy hurt its own citizens in real time. At the May, 2013 meeting of the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) Permit Board, a group of homeowners from Picayune, in Pearl River County came to Jackson with their attorney to contest the granting of a state water quality certification on land next to

A Huge Victory for the Nature Coast

Cathy Harrelson — 2013-05-14T21:09:52+00:00

The Army Corps has Rejected SunWest Dredge Permit!

GRN thanks its members, dedicated local activists like Karen Smith, Clay Colson and many others, as well as organizational partners Jackie Lopez from the Center for Biological Diversity and the Suncoast and Tampa

Water, Water Everywhere: How Do We Live With It?

Aaron Viles — 2013-05-14T16:09:49+00:00

and interview with GNOF's Marco

The River and the Dredge Build Land Together

Scott Eustis — 2013-05-13T20:02:02+00:00

The patient, the louisiana coast, is critical. The treatment is not simple. There are many uncertainties, and there are many factors to monitor and adapt to, as a recent scientific panel concluded. There are steps the often-negligent state of Louisiana could take to regulate pollution and

Mississippi Stretches NRDA Purpose with Latest Projects

Andrew Whitehurst — 2013-05-08T15:24:41+00:00

On May 3rd Governor Phil Bryant announced four more Mississippi projects, totaling about $69 million, to be created with Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) money. This spending is supposed to compensate for natural resource damages done by BP oil. NRDA “early restoration” projects are meant to “partially restore injured natural resources and lost natural resource services.”

How the Natural Resources Damage Assessment Money Could Actually Cause More Damage

Michelle Erenberg — 2013-05-06T19:47:29+00:00

Last week, all five Gulf states announced new projects intended to be funded by the $1 billion dollars of early restoration monies promised by BP on April 20, 2011. In recent monthly we have been publically demanding that BP and the Trustees for the Natural Resources Damage Assessment (NRDA) move quickly to spend this “early restoration” funding. Well, now they have proposed 28 projects totaling almost

"Restoration" Projects Announced: BP Boondoggles Beginning?

Aaron Viles — 2013-05-01T21:34:45+00:00

Today it did.

Alabama Governor Robert Bentley announced nearly $100 million in coastal "restoration" projects. The biggest ticket project is "Gulf State Park Enhancements" including construction of a lodge and meeting facility. The money for these projects is from the BP Natural Resource Damage Assesment early restoration initiative, which is legally required to be used to mitigate against

Sewage Woes in the Mississippi Delta

Andrew Whitehurst — 2013-05-01T14:49:47+00:00

The ugly underbelly of any town includes its sewer plant: hidden from view near a river or creek, with most residents oblivious to where and how their waste is treated. Sewer plant maintenance is not glamorous, but it is very important to do the work well. Plant workers must regularly maintain filter screens, tanks, pumps, sediment traps and lagoons full of varying states of

Feeding Frenzy Over RESTORE Dollars

Raleigh Hoke — 2013-04-26T14:48:00+00:00

Two weeks ago, I attended a roundtable, hosted by the local Chamber of Commerce in Jackson County, Mississippi, that was focused on how local government leaders would like to use BP fine money coming to the Gulf through the RESTORE Act. Many a money-hungry politician made proposals, but environmental restoration didn’t even seem to

Support the Gulf this Earth Day

Cyn Sarthou — 2013-04-22T20:30:08+00:00

April is a busy time for GRN. In between bouts of eating crawfish and celebrating our vibrant Gulf of Mexico, our staff and volunteers are out at the many festivals in the region working to build public support for a healthy Gulf. Three years ago in April, our work became even more urgent when BP's oil began tainting the Gulf.

As the third memorial of the BP drilling disaster passed this Saturday, we still need your help making sure that

BP Oil Disaster 3 Years Later

Aaron Viles — 2013-04-20T16:38:45+00:00

Three years after it began, BP's oil drilling disaster continues to impact the Gulf's residents and ecosystems. Three years later, the Gulf is still waiting for restoration.

But the future looks bright. A highlight of these tough three years was the passage of the RESTORE Act, and soon billions of dollars

The Defense Rests, but We Can't

Guest Blogger — 2013-04-19T20:13:44+00:00

The first phase of the “Environmental Trial of the Century” ended this week after BP lawyers finished presenting its defense.

A Dead Zone in Louisiana Bureaucracies

Matt Rota — 2013-04-18T18:53:34+00:00

! Despite

Watch and Share: How the Mississippi Can Save the Gulf

Aaron Viles — 2013-04-17T20:22:15+00:00

Gulf Future Groups Release “Guidance for Sustainable Restoration”

Michelle Erenberg — 2013-04-16T17:47:13+00:00

Today, GRN and partner organizations held press events in New Orleans, LA and Biloxi, MS to release Gulf Future Guidance for Sustainable Restoration. This document was drafted by fifty-nine organizations, including GRN, from across the Gulf at the 2013 Gulf Gathering in March. Through two days of discussion we outlined our vision and priorities for how the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council, created by the RESTORE Act, should select projects to fund with the BP Deepwater Horizon fines and penalties. By prioritizing ecosystem restoration and the