This proposal was snuck in by former Gov. Barbour and the MDA during the holidays and just days before he left office. It would allow 4-6 stories rigs and platforms within one mile of the barrier islands, directly along the coast in the far western and eastern portions of the Mississippi Sound, and within 4 to 11 miles of most coastal towns. Plus, these rigs and platforms also mean more oil and gas pipelines along the coast, more industrial ship traffic, and a greater risk for accidents like the BP disaster.
That’s not good for the health of Mississippi’s coast, or thriving industries like coastal tourism that rely on it. Click below to tell your leaders to protect Mississippi’s coast and economy:
In 2005, a similar proposal was defeated as thousands of concerned citizens spoke out against oil and gas drilling along Mississippi’s coast. It’s time to stop them again.
Restoring Louisiana’s wetlands, North America’s Great Delta, is a national issue, and Louisiana has taken a leadership role. We are excited that Louisiana is ramping up piecemeal projects into larger scale restoration that truly addresses the crisis, and is pursuing a long-term vision that reconnects the Mississippi River with its Delta and protects coastal communities from the Gulf of Mexico.
It is truly now or never. If coastal Louisiana is to have a future, this effort is irreplaceable. Hard decisions have been made; but we are happy to see that non-structural flood protection—elevation of homes, flood-proofing, and helping people relocate, is given significant funding in the plan.
In Louisiana state waters, oil and gas leaks are a constant threat. This photo was taken in Breton Sound in August 2011. Late in December, the Mississippi Development Authority (MDA) published rules on seismic exploration and leasing for oil and gas in Mississippi waters south of the Barrier Islands. The rules would allow drilling in state waters, which would mean rigs visible on the horizon and the possibility of drilling accidents and spills even closer to Mississippi’s beaches. It seems that MDA has erased the 2010 BP disaster from its memory and hopes we will too.
Early in his first term former Governor Haley Barbour transferred oversight of oil and gas development out of the Department of Environmental Quality’s office of Geology to MDA – the state’s economic development agency. This was to give him better control for speedy introduction and acceptance of these oil and gas rules. Contrary to this desired strategy, the rules introduced for oil and gas leasing in state waters were quickly suspended by MDA early in 2004 after intense opposition was apparent in comments heard at public meetings on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Now, MDA is trying again.
GRN is working to make sure Mississippi’s coast and communities are protected from this threat. To read more about our concerns with this proposal, check out my recent letter to the editor in the Jackson Clarion Ledger.
If you would like to see this latest effort dropped by MDA, you can oppose it by emailing comments about the oil and gas rules to
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or calling MDA at (601) 359-3449. You should also urge the MDA to extend the public comment period by at least 60 days so that concerned citizens and groups can properly review this complicated proposal. Public meetings on the rules are scheduled in Jackson on Jan. 26th from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Woolfolk state office building 501 N. West St.; and on the Coast on January 27th from 12 noon to 7 p.m. at Mississippi Coast Community College at 2300 Hwy 90, Gautier, MS., in the Administration Building Lecture Hall. If you’re interested in getting further involved in the effort to protect the Mississippi coast from oil and gas drilling, please email
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or call Raleigh at 504.525.1528, ext. 204.
Andrew Whitehurst is GRN's Assistant Director of Science and Water Policy.
This article is excerpted from Wave Maker's News, our quarterly update on all things water in the Gulf of Mexico, check out the full newsletter here.
GRN’s Executive Director Cynthia Sarthou speaking at the release of “Sunshine on the Gulf” with, from left to right, Nathalie Walker (Advocates for Environmental Human Rights), Jill Mastrototaro (Sierra Club), and Rev. Tyrone Edwards (Zion Travelers Baptist ChurchOver a year and a half into the BP oil drilling disaster, restoration seems to come too slow. Even as we see oil uncovered by successive storms, the Coast Guard has declared the Gulf coast "clean," Congress has yet to act to direct BP's fines to the Gulf, and we rely on the laws written after Exxon-Valdez with Alaskans in mind to restore the Gulf of Mexico.
One of the main tools for restoration under the post-Exxon-Valdez laws is the Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA), a scientific and legal process by which federal and state officials, as well as BP, assess the damage caused by the disaster and decide how much and how BP will pay to restore this damage. As you can probably guess, this is a long and complicated process that could drag on for years and years. In order to ensure that coastal communities and the environment get some help a little sooner, the NRDA trustees (state and federal officials) and BP entered into a $1 billion early restoration settlement. This initial agreement will reduce BP’s future fines under NRDA.
Unfortunately, there are a lot of questions about how this unprecedented early restoration will move forward. Many states are looking towards existing projects and programs; but are these projects being prioritized in a way that ensures rapid restoration of the ecosystems impacted by BP’s oil? This agreement allows BP a lot of power over NRDA dollars—how do we know the Gulf will not be shorted?
On behalf of the Gulf Restoration Board of Directors and Staff, we wish you and your family a happy New Year! 2011 was a somewhat successful year for the Gulf because of supporters like you. As was plain from the blog posted by Dan Favre, GRN’s Communication Director, after our staff retreat, in the last year, together, we accomplished a lot.
Looking forward we have a lot we hope to accomplish in 2012 and will be calling on all of you for your support throughout the year. We hope you will continue to stand with us in 2012 as we work to ensure the Gulf receives the protections it needs to preserve its bountiful natural resources. Below is a snapshot of some of the GRN’s 2012 objectives that we will be working to achieve to further our collective goal of a healthy Gulf can be shared and enjoyed for generations to come.
2012 Goals/Objectives
Ensure that:
a significant percentage of Clean Water Act and other fines related to the BP drilling disaster are dedicated to Gulf restoration and recovery and are used to restore the Gulf’s coastal and marine resources to a condition of sustainability;
the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Task Force implementation plan scheduled for completion in June 2012 (1) includes concrete goals, measurable objectives, benchmarks (with specific deliverables, a clear timeline, and metrics to assess performance focused on addressing root causes of problems); (2) ensures consistency between ecological restoration and environmental permitting in the designated coastal zone of eachGulf state; and (3) requires the development of a decision-matrix to provide a general framework to prioritize projects and make funding decisions;
the Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) is as transparent and comprehensive a process as possible and early restoration funding is strategically to support long-term ecosystem restoration of the Gulf’s coastal and marine resources
Continue to monitor and expose the legacy and ongoing impacts of the oil industry and hold them accountable
Reduce the threat of spills and the discharge of contaminants to the Gulf by strengthening regulation of oil and gas drilling
Press for the establishment of a Regional Citizens’ Advisory Council for real public oversight of oil and gas exploration, development, and production in the Gulf of Mexico, and authorizes and funds research and development of oil spill prevention and clean up technologies
Advocate for Florida’s adoption of scientifically defensible and protective estuarine numeric criteria for nutrients that includes protections for downstream waters, particularly estuaries
Working with our partners in Louisiana to ensure that the 2012 Louisiana Master Plan for Coastal Restoration sets forth a realistic achievable vision for addressing the coastal wetlands crisis facing the State
Ensuring that Mississippi adopts strong anti-degradation rules (clean water remains clean)
Working to make sure that the endangered Mississippi Gopher Frog is given an appropriate buffer around its breeding ponds
Thank you for everything you do for our Gulf, and we look forward to working with you in this New Year!
This article is excerpted from Wave Maker's News, our quarterly update on all things water in the Gulf of Mexico, check out the full newsletter here.
Treatment pond at the Temple-Inland factory. GRN photo, flight provided by Southwings.In August 2011, the Temple-Inland paper company in Bogalusa, LA dumped a massive amount of pollution into the Pearl River, one of the ecological gems of the Gulf Coast. This irresponsible act resulted in the death of hundreds of thousands, if not millions of fish and mussels - not to mention the impacts on millions of the tiny invertebrates that form the base of the aquatic food web.
State and federal agencies are looking into the impacts of this spill and are assessing damages for which Temple-Inland will be held financially accountable. The first agency to settle was the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, fining Temple-Inland $760,245.86. However, several other agencies have not finished their civil and criminal investigations, including the U.S. Department of Fish and Wildlife, Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks, and the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality.
Collecting these fines is an important step, but, Mississippi, Louisiana, and federal agencies must also ensure that any fines are dedicated to the restoration and improvement of the Pearl River ecosystem. Also, these agencies must make sure that a disaster like this does not happen again at this paper plant, or in any other waterbody in Louisiana and Mississippi. While we strongly disagreed with the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality’s (LDEQ) decision to allow the Temple-Inland plant to reopen so quickly, LDEQ has recently set several deadlines for improving the plant. We are supportive of the improvements, but it’s essential that these improvements are coupled with stricter pollution limits in the plant’s waste discharge permits, which are up for renewal. Further, these requirements should be extended to all paper plants in Louisiana and Mississippi.
The goal of the Clean Water Act was to eliminate pollution in America’s waters by 1985. This is still a dream deferred, but out of this disaster, perhaps we can at least reduce the pollution that is flowing out of the paper plants into the waters of Louisiana, Mississippi and the Gulf.
Matt Rota is GRN's Director of Science and Water Policy.
In the heart of the holiday season, I just want to take a minute to say happy holidays and thanks for an incredible year.
The GRN staff started off the week with our annual two-day staff retreat, this year out at Tickfaw State Park in Louisiana. Many times over those couple days, I was happily reminded about why I do this work to restore and protect the Gulf and why, despite all the difficulties facing the region, I'm optimistic about our future. It's you, it's our amazing staff, and all the other great people I get to work, interact, and collaborate with in this heroic effort.
Of course, the biggest reason most any of us volunteer or work for the Gulf Restoration Network is a deep commitment to a healthy Gulf. I've grown to truly appreciate the natural wonders of this area in my 5 years living here. I get so much enjoyment out of pulling in speckled trout out in Bay Eloi, going for reds in the Biloxi Marsh, and just being out on the waters of the Gulf. My girlfriend and I love to wake up to the sunrise on the beach of the Gulf Islands National Seashore on Perdido Key. I'm still amazed everytime I get to boat through a cypress forest (I grew up in the desert, mind you).
We took some time at the staff retreat to go over our victories from 2011. In light of the rough 19 months the Gulf has had since the BP oil disaster began, it was nice to step back and look at we're accomplishing. The first early restoration projects that BP is paying for being announced (and they're good projects!) recently . . . 207 Defend the Gulf home screenings hosted by volunteers throughout the country . . . the end of the destructive Richton Salt Domes project that threatened the Pascagoula River . . . 232 acres of wetlands and 22,080 feet of streams in the Chickasawhay Creek watershed saved . . critical habitat for the Mississippi Gopher Frog protected . . . the RESTORE Act introduced in both chambers of Congress . . . pollution significantly reduced into Cane Bayou . . . 200+ acres set aside for conservation near Stennis, MS . . . the list goes on.
Between the meetings and strategic planning, though, I was happy to just get to spend time with all the incredible folks who work at GRN. Eating meals together, watching Monday Night Football, singing happy birthday to Briana and Aaron, playing board games, and exchanging gifts (I got a great pizza cutter that looks like an old-timey bike from Michelle. Awesome!), it was like a family gathering. Of course, like most family gatherings, some folks were missing, and I wish our amazing volunteers and interns could have been there too, but there was still plenty of fun to be had. I enjoyed hiking to the oxbow point with Harry and Matt while other folks canoed through a swamp. Cyn managed to reunite some lost hunting dogs with their owners. Cathy showed her skill at Apples to Apples.
It's pretty amazing that in the process of working for a healthy Gulf and building power to combat the potent political forces bent on destruction, we also get to create a beautiful extended family that shares the values that hold our environment and our Gulf of Mexico dear. All of you who follow this blog, email your Senators to support the RESTORE Act, give your hard-earned money to GRN, spend your time volunteering for the Gulf, or even just continue to pay attention to our efforts here . . . all of you are part of this impressive movement.
I just wanted to take this opportunity to say thanks for all you do. From everyone at GRN headquarters, we wish you a very happy holiday season. And, here's to a healthy Gulf in 2012!
Recent headlines and GRN's work has underscored that the oil industry continues to abuse the Gulf, and our nation's energy sacrifice zone shows the true cost of our collective oil addiction.
First, the back story: Recent research shows clearly that the act of removing oil and gas deposits from beneath Louisiana's marsh fueled catastrophic subsidence, playing a huge role in turning nearly 2,000 square miles of coastal wetlands into open water since 1932. Add in the impacts of 10,000 miles of canals that have been dredged by and for the oil industry, and the role of levees and jetties which keep the Mississippi River from ever rebuilding those wetlands with dirt and fresh water, and Louisiana is faced with an unparalleled coastal wetlands crisis.
The loss of these wetlands has left coastal communities (including New Orleans) far more vulnerable to the impacts of storms and hurricanes. The natural, coastal lines of defense such as barrier islands, marsh, and cypress swamps amount to incredibly effective storm protection, knocking down as much as a foot of storm surge for every mile of intact ecosystem the surge must travel across. Basically, if Hurricane Katrina had encountered a robust coastal system, the events of 6 years ago would have been far less tragic and damaging.
Some of GRN's best supporters recently received an interactive postcard that gives first-hand experience of the BP oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, and shows people how they can use their hands to help. Folks at M&C Saatchi, a design firm in Switzerland, created the "We Need More Hands" postcard to raise awareness and action for the Gulf of Mexico, and the film below tells the story.
Fillman's Bayou on Florida's Nature Coast.The holidays are almost upon us, and the year is soon coming to a close, but GRN’s fight to protect the health of the Gulf’s waters and wetlands continues. From working to protect Florida’s Nature Coast from a huge development project to pushing for an effective and transparent restoration process in the wake of the BP disaster, GRN’s Healthy Waters team is committed to preserving and enhancing our healthy waters and communities.
Florida’s Nature Coast in Jeopardy Florida’s Nature Coast is an amazing natural resource for the Gulf, but a mega-development dubbed SunWest Harbourtowne could strike a dagger into the heart of this beautiful region.
A Call for Sunshine on the Gulf Restoration Check out this article to hear about GRN and our allies’ efforts to ensure that restoration in the wake of the BP disaster is transparent, and truly effective in ensuring the long-term health of the Gulf of Mexico.
After Fish Kill, New Protections for Pearl Uncertain This summer, the Temple-Inland paper plant caused a massive fish kill in the Pearl River. While the dead fish may be cleaned up, there is a still a long way to go to make sure that Temple-Inland is held responsible, and the Pearl is protected.
Conservation Dollars Funding Environmental Destruction There are a lot of worthy coastal restoration projects out there, so why are the state of Mississippi and the city of Pass Christian using precious restoration dollars for an environmentally destructive harbor expansion?
Kemper Mine Threatens Healthy Waters Check out this update on how the dirty, expensive and unnecessary Kemper County, Mississippi coal mine could impact the health of nearby waters if it is allowed to move forward.
Florida Failing on Nitrogen and Phosphorus Pollution Healthy waters are central to Florida’s economy and communities, so why is the state government proposing new rules that would fail to protect waters from harmful algal blooms and nasty green slime?
On behalf of the Gulf Restoration Board of Directors and Staff, we wish you and your family a happy New Year! 2011 was a somewhat successful year for the Gulf because of supporters like you. As was plain from the 
First, the back story: 
