Gulf Restoration Network

Make Restoration the Priority in Mississippi Blog - BPs Oil Drilling Disaster in the Gulf of Mexico Monday, 22 October 2012 10:12

Right now, Governor Bryant's Go Coast 2020 commission is putting together a plan for how Mississippi will divvy up its share of the billions of dollars in BP fines coming to the Gulf Coast under the RESTORE Act. A bipartisan majority of Congress passed the RESTORE Act so that we could restore the unique and important ecosystem of the Gulf Coast - we need to make sure that the Governor and the Go Coast 2020 commission got the memo. Tell the Governor and Go Coast 2020 commission that environmental restoration comes first:

http://grn.convio.net/site/Advocacy?pagename=homepage&&id=459

Many of you probably know that the state of Mississippi doesn’t have the best history when it comes to spending big bucks from the federal government on good things for the Coast. After Katrina, hundreds of millions of restoration dollars meant for low-income housing were diverted to pork-barrel projects – things like unneeded sewage plants and the Port of Gulfport - that never fulfilled their promise. Let’s not see history repeat itself. Click here to tell the Governor and commission to do the right thing for Mississippi’s coast and communities.

With these RESTORE Act funds, Mississippi has a major opportunity to not just provide short-term, one-off economic benefits, but to build a healthier and more resilient coastal ecosystem that supports a vibrant economy for generations to come. And ecosystem restoration can also provide jobs and opportunities for the low-income and minority communities hardest hit by the BP disaster. Let’s make sure that the Governor and members of Go Coast 2020 grab this opportunity.

Raleigh Hoke is GRN's Mississippi Organizer.