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U.S. NEWS Saturday 14 december 2019
Nearly $226M to

restore open Gulf

after 2010 BP oil spill

By JANET McCONNAUGHEY and Wildlife Service, Na-
Associated Press tional Park Service, Bureau
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Fed- of Land Management, U.S.
eral agencies have ap- Department of Agriculture
proved nearly $226 million and U.S. Environmental Pro-
for 18 projects to restore tection Agency.
open ocean and marine The money is from BP’s $8.8
habitats that were deci- billion settlement for natu-
mated in the Gulf of Mex- ral resources damage, said
ico by the 2010 BP oil spill. NOAA Deepwater Horizon
The projects range from program manager Rachel
$52.6 million to study deep- Sweeney.
sea habitats to $290,000 to The projects, expected to
find ways to keep sea tur- run two to 15 years, were
tles from swallowing or get- chosen from about 1,600
ting snagged on hooks or submitted by the public,
tangled in lines set out for non-governmental orga-
miles along reefs. nizations, as well as local,
They are described in a state and federal agen-
490-page report released cies.
Tuesday. The plan includes $126.2
The nonprofit Ocean Con- million to study habitats in
servancy said it’s “the deep water and water be-
world’s first plan to restore tween 100 feet (30 meters) In this April 2010 file photo, oil can be seen in the Gulf of Mexico, more than 50 miles southeast of
Venice on Louisiana’s tip, as a large plume of smoke rises from fires on BP’s Deepwater Horizon
the open ocean and and more than 490 feet offshore oil rig.
deep-sea environment (150 meters) deep. That Associated Press
from a major oil disaster.” includes $35.9 million for million for a program to brought rapidly to the sur- “Supplying fishermen with
“Ocean Conservancy wel- high-resolution mapping distribute and promote face, gases in their organs the tools and knowledge to
comes this major conser- and analysis and $52.6 mil- devices that let deep-sea and tissues expand. That minimize barotrauma-relat-
vation milestone for the lion to analyze damaged fish released by anglers be also makes it hard for them ed mortality would result in
Gulf of Mexico,” CEO Ja- and undamaged habitats returned gradually to the to swim back down, mak- increased survival of fish re-
nis Searles Jones said in a at those depths, learning depths where they live. ing them easy prey, the re- leased during recreational
news release. more about the corals. An- When deepwater fish are port said. fishing activities,” it said.q
The explosion April 20, 2010, other $20.7 million would
on the Deepwater Horizon manage and protect cor-
drilling rig killed 11 work- als and $16.9 million would
ers. There are varying es- develop techniques to
timates on how much oil grow and transplant them.
was released. According The longest-running pro-
to Ocean Conservancy, gram would spend $5.7 mil-
the well spewed 210 million lion to create a sea turtle
gallons (795 million liters) of atlas indicating where and
oil before it was capped 87 when species found in the
days later. Gulf would most likely be
A federal judge tasked with found, and how they use
determining how much oil various habitats. It’s among
went into the Gulf of Mex- six programs, totaling $18.9
ico for purposes of levying million, for sea turtles. All
penalties ruled that 4 mil- five species found in the
lion barrels of oil — 168 mil- Gulf are threatened or en-
lion gallons — was released dangered.
from the reservoir. Of that, About $22.9 million is dedi-
810,000 barrels of oil — 34 cated to four programs to
million gallons — was col- protect whales and dol-
lected without touching phins.
the water and so 3.19 mil- “We will develop and im-
lion barrels — nearly 134 plement tools and tech-
million gallons — of oil were niques to reduce risks to
discharged into the Gulf. marine mammals from ves-
The judge said in his ruling sel collisions, ocean noise,
that there was no precise and human-caused and
way to know how much oil natural disasters,” Laurie
discharged into the Gulf. Rounds, of NOAA’s Office
The open ocean recovery of Habitat Conservation
plan was drawn up by the said during a news tele-
National Oceanic and At- conference Tuesday.
mospheric Administration Another $57.7 million would
with help from the U.S. Fish protect fish, including $30