MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WDNews) — More than $52 million will go toward 21 projects aimed at improving recreation, water quality and environmental resources along Alabama’s coast, according to Gov. Kay Ivey’s office.
The projects are being funded through the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act of 2006, known as GoMESA. The funding will support projects involving boating and recreational access, environmental education, water quality and coastal improvements.
“Alabama’s coast is one of our state’s greatest treasures, and we have a responsibility to protect it while ensuring Alabamians and our visitors can enjoy all it has to offer,” Ivey said. “These investments will strengthen our coastal communities, improve access to our waterways and preserve the natural resources that support jobs, tourism and our way of life. I am especially proud that, working alongside Commissioner Blankenship and his team at the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, we have now awarded more than $310 million in GoMESA projects during my Administration – investments that will benefit Coastal Alabama for generations to come.”
GoMESA allows four Gulf-producing states and eligible coastal areas to share 37.5% of qualified revenue from certain offshore oil and gas leases.
In Alabama, the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources administers the state’s GoMESA funding with approval from the governor’s office. Mobile and Baldwin counties also receive separate GoMESA payments directly from the federal government.
“The GoMESA projects announced today continue a long list of important environmental and quality of life improvements in Coastal Alabama,” Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Commissioner Chris Blankenship said. “I am grateful for Governor Ivey’s leadership and her support for our coastal restoration projects throughout her Administration. I’m also thankful for our staff at the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and our project partners as we’ve worked to enhance environmental education, improve water quality and expand access to outdoor recreation along our coast for generations to come.”
The largest award is $9 million for the City of Mobile’s Brookley by the Bay Southern Activation Zone, Phase 1b.
Three projects will receive $5 million each: the Alabama Port Authority’s Upper Mobile Bay Wetlands Creation Construction Project, Mobile County’s Byrnewood Boat Ramp and Public Access project and Daphne’s Jubilee Recreation and Fishing Pier at Bayfront Park.
Other projects include $3 million for the University of South Alabama’s Outdoor Classroom for Habitat Conservation and Stormwater Management, $2.95 million for renovations to the Boggy Point Boat Launch and $2.5 million each for projects at Flying Creek Nature Preserve, Weeks Bay Reserve and Walter Cofield Park.
Funding also includes projects in Dauphin Island, Magnolia Springs, Semmes, Elberta, Orange Beach, Bay Minette, Perdido Beach, Chickasaw and Bayou La Batre, along with water quality, wastewater and hurricane protection projects.
The announcement follows an Aug. 12 Gulf lease sale that generated nearly $83 million for 59 blocks of federal waters in the Gulf, according to the governor’s office.
