City of Port Lavaca Shoreline Revitalization and Environmental Enhancement Strategy
In response to the 2010 Deepwater Horizon (DWH) oil spill Congress passed the RESTORE Act to protect and restore the natural and economic resources of the U.S. Gulf of Mexico and Gulf Coast. The Act provides funding for coastal restoration and recovery for the affected Gulf Coast states: Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas. The environmental and economic injuries caused by the spill were extensive. The legal aftermath of the spill will require the parties responsible to pay substantial damages to address these injuries. Through the RESTORE Act, Congress allocated 80 percent of the administrative and civil penalties related to the spill to the states and the federal government to restore and revitalize the Gulf Coast. A portion of the RESTORE Act allocation comes directly to Texas.
The City of Port Lavaca has applied to Restore the Texas Coast for funding of three intertwined projects instead of the initial four. The US Army Corps has informed the Calhoun Port Authority that there is funding available to dredge the City of Port Lavaca access channels under the dredging maintenance fund of 2016. These are the channels accessing the city harbors. The US Corps of Engineers and the Calhoun Port Authority work as sponsors for the dredging goals of the Matagorda Ship Channel.
The 2016 budget is enough to dredge the two channels that connect with the city harbors. With this dredging resolution in place, the city does not need to secure funding for the dredging of these channels.
The dredging of the access channels, which was originally considered a single application, now has been removed from the application package. As result, only three applications will be submitted.
A Task Force of Citizens and experts have identified these projects as needed and viable for funding. Please review the document below and make any comments here or email them torestore@portlavaca.org.
Please Review City of Port Lavaca Shoreline Revitalization and Environmental Enhancement Strategy as well as the final submission here.
Also, here is the link to a stock letter of support that you, your business, or an organization may want to sign, scan and email torestore@portlavaca.org. These letters of support can be accepted and submitted throughout the summer.
