Posted on March 19, 2020
PENSACOLA, Fla. (WKRG) — The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) and NOAA’s Office for Coastal Management announced Tuesday more than $36 million in grants for Panhandle counties impacted by Hurricane Michael.
The following projects address two priorities: 1) building coastal resilience through restoration and enhancement; and 2) addressing design and engineering barriers to coastal resilience.
Here is a list of the fund breakdown:
- Dauphin Island Causeway Shoreline and Habitat Restoration Project (AL) Grantee: Mobile County Commission Grant Amount: $4,900,000
- Franklin County Living Shoreline (FL) Grantee: Apalachee Regional Planning Council Grant Amount: $7,444,000
- St . Joseph Peninsula Dune Habitat Enhancement Project (FL) Grantee: Gulf County Board of County Commissioners Grant Amount: $3,700,000
- Raffield Peninsula Restoration (FL) Grantee: Bay County Board of County Commissioners Grant Amount: $2,951,645
- Veterans Park Living Shoreline, Erosion Control and Habitat Restoration (FL) Grantee: Okaloosa County Grant Amount: $1,500,000
- Coastal Dune Lake Hydrologic Restoration (FL) Grantee: Walton County, Florida Grant Amount: $1,224,604
- City of Mexico Beach Wetland Restoration and Dune Installation (FL) Grantee: City of Mexico Beach Grant Amount: $335,908
- Okaloosa Island Dune Restoration and Enhancement (FL) Grantee: Okaloosa County Grant Amount: $60,000
To see the full list click here.
Hurricanes Michael and Florence, Typhoon Yutu, and the coastal wildfires of 2018 caused more than $50 billion in damage and severely degraded a range of wildlife habitats. Congress provided funding under the Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2019 (P.L. 116-20), allowing grants to be awarded through a partnership between NFWF and NOAA. NFWF’s Emergency Coastal Resilience Fund was launched in August 2019, two months after Congress passed the emergency supplemental appropriations bill, to support natural and nature-based infrastructure that will help impacted communities and wildlife recover and be better prepared for future events.
Source: wkrg
