Thank you to our Sponsors of the 2014 GOMA PIT Meetings!
Shell * EPA GMP * HRI * GCOOS
TNC * OC * NOAA * GMF
GoMURC * Gulf Sea Grant Programs
May 19-21, 2014
Renaissance Mobile
Riverview Plaza
Mobile, Alabama
|
Partnership for Gulf Coast Land Conservation Annual Meeting
May 12-13, 2014
Point Clear, Alabama
|
Hypoxia Task Force Spring 2014 Public Meeting
Wednesday, May 21, 2014
Little Rock, AK
8:30 am-5:45 pm CT
|
|
PRIORITY ISSUE TEAM CONFERENCE CALLS:
No calls for the month of May. Join us at the meeting in Mobile, Alabama.
To contact Team Coordinators, see Quick Links below. |
| MAPPING RESTORATION PROJECTS |
GOMA has been working hard on a map that will allow users to view restoration projects as well as research activities in progress across the Gulf. Click here to see the site!
Currently, the site contains projects from GOMA, GoMRI, NFWF, and early NRDA, with more to be added in the future. Coming soon are projects from states, Sea Grant, and National Academy of Sciences.
|
Come See Us!
We love visitors! With our new
sign out front, you can't miss us. Stop by 1151 Robinson Street in Ocean Springs, Mississippi and we'll show you around.
|
|
|
|
|
Alabama Takes Leadership of Alliance Management Team
|
|
The State of Alabama now leads the Gulf of Mexico Alliance's Management Team. Phillip Hinesley, Coastal Section Chief for the State Lands Division, Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (ADCNR), will serve as the Chair, taking an active role on behalf of the State of Alabama.  This is the third leadership change for the Gulf regional ocean partnership organized in 2004. Alabama takes over following a productive tenure by Louisiana's Jerome Zeringue, Chairman of Louisiana's Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority. The leadership changes seamlessly and the mission of the Gulf of Mexico Alliance to enhance the environmental and economic health of the Gulf of Mexico remains steadfast. Read more.
|
| GOMA PIT Meetings and 10-Year Anniversary
May 19-21, 2014
|
Register Now - Limited Space Available! Registration is open for this year's GOMA PIT meetings and anniversary celebration in Mobile, AL. All events will take place May 19-21 in historic downtown Mobile, Alabama at the Renaissance Mobile Riverview Plaza Hotel. The room reservation block is extended to May 5, 2014. Registration, agendas, room block, and sponsorship information is available here.
Tuesday evening, May 20, 2014, a 10-year celebration reception will be held. Come share in the Gulf of Mexico Alliance's decade of success and perhaps see a few old, but familiar faces.
Team meeting highlights are posted on the event page. Be sure to follow the Alliance before and during the meeting on Twitter! #GoMAlliance will keep you up to date.
|
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) Releases New Economic Analysis
|
|
The USFWS released a new economic analysis highlighting the impact of coastal and private lands restoration on local economies.  The analysis, Restoration Returns: The Contribution of Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program and Coastal Program Project to Local U.S. Economies, documents how federal investments in local restoration projects stimulate local economies by creating jobs, supporting local businesses, and supporting local tax revenues. Restore America's Estuaries joins this announcement by releasing a highly visual executive summary of the analysis, Coastal Restoration Returns.
|
|
5th Annual NOAA/NGI Hypoxia Research Coordination Workshop
|
|
The 5th Annual NOAA/NGI Hypoxia Research Coordination Workshop: Advancing Ecological Modeling for Diversions and Hypoxia in the Northern Gulf of Mexico will be held July 14 - 16, 2014 at the Stennis Space Center, Mississippi. This year's Hypoxia Research Coordination Workshop will address two important fisheries issues: (1) Fisheries management in the northern Gulf of Mexico - Mississippi River diversions and (2) Gulf hypoxia. For more information contact David Kidwell or the Gulf Hypoxia Monitoring website.
|
FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES
Gulf of Mexico Alliance Resilience Small Grants
|
The Gulf of Mexico Alliance Coastal Community Resilience (CCR) Team in conjunction with the MS-AL Sea Grant Consortium is releasing a small grants request for proposals. Eligible organizations are communities that have completed the Resilience Index by the end of April. Applications will address vulnerabilities to disasters identified during a community self-assessment.
|
REGIONAL INITIATIVES
Gulf Restoration Updates
|
 RESTORE Council: Stay up to date with the RESTORE Council news and read the Initial Comprehensive Plan here.
Alabama: The AL Coastal Restoration online project suggestion portal is now available. To receive instructions for submitting a project suggestion, please go here and click on "Submit Project Suggestions." It is important to note the AL Gulf Coast Recovery Council and the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council have not yet made formal calls for project suggestions. The ADCNR will provide an update once either of these Councils make an announcement regarding a request for project suggestions. The online portal allows for the entry of suggestions for future consideration.
Mississippi: MDEQ announced receipt of a $3.6 million grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. The money will be used to coordinate views, visions, values, and plans of the people of the Gulf Coast as Mississippi puts together an integrated, coastal wide, restoration plan. The award constitutes approximately one percent of the overall NFWF dollars which will be made available under the consent decree. More information about this project and others in Mississippi can be found http://www.restore.ms/.
Florida: FDEP has improved the navigation for users to the FL Deepwater Horizon restoration website. Responding to public's request for more information on projects being submitted, the improvements allow users to view and download the full project submittals.In addition, the Department has created an interactive map of Deepwater Horizon restoration projects that have been submitted. Public notices, outreach and education activities are available on the FDEP calendar. Check out Florida updates here.
Louisiana: With an understanding that the use of restoration funds will be guided by specific criteria, Louisiana is committed to maximizing its investment in oil spill recovery activities by implementing restoration projects that are consistent with the Louisiana Coastal Master Plan to the extent possible. In addition to submitting project ideas during the public meetings, restoration projects may also be submitted electronically to coastal@la.gov. Stay up to date on Louisiana's Coastal Master Plan restoration efforts by visiting CPRA's site. Information on Louisiana's NRDA restoration can be found here.
Texas: TCEQ held its first RESTORE Advisory Board meeting in October 2013. The Texas restoration web site is under construction ( www.restorethetexascoast.org) and will provide comprehensive information soon.
|
|
NOAA RESTORE Act Science Program: The NOAA RESTORE Act Science Program Framework and recent updates can be found here.
National Academy of Sciences' Gulf Research Program
The Gulf Research Program's Advisory Group will host a meeting on June 11-12, 2014 in Tampa, Florida. The purpose is to talk with stakeholders and get their views on possible opportunities for the Program. To follow the NAS Gulf Research Program and register for updates, go to their website.
National Fish and Wildlife Foundation's Gulf Environmental Benefit Fund: In April, NFWF made two major announcements in Louisiana and Mississippi. In Louisiana, NFWF intends to use $144.5 million in funding for the second increment of the Caminada Headland Beach and Dune Restoration project. In Mississippi, NFWF announced an award to MDEQ of up to $3.6 million to support development of an integrated, far-reaching restoration plan. Read more about how NFWF works with Gulf States here.
North American Conservation Wetlands Act Fund:
As part of the criminal plea agreement involving the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, this Fund will receive $100,000,000. The purpose is for wetlands restoration and conservation benefiting migratory bird species and other wildlife affected by the oil spill. Click here to learn more. The US Fish and Wildlife Service has a "Vision for a Healthy Gulf of Mexico Watershed" and it can be found here.
|
|
Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative Update
|
The Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative (GoMRI) has announced the dates for the 2015 OIl Spill Conference: February 16-19, 2015 at the Westin Galleria Hotel in Houston, TX. Get more information.
|
|
|
|
|
