Fulfilling obligations to help the Gulf Coast heal

Sandpipers, plovers and turnstones race along the beach on Dauphin Island, Alabama, dashing in to snatch their next meal as the waves retreat. Gulls, terns, cormorants and pelicans dive beyond the surf break, plucking fish from the Gulf of Mexico.

Herons, egrets, avocets and stilts wade through the barrier island’s brackish wetlands, while colorful songbirds flitter through its maritime forests. Weather conditions sometimes set the stage for a birdwatcher’s dream experience: a “fallout” event wherein flock after flock of songbirds descends suddenly to take shelter in the first available spit of forested land along the Gulf.

Rich coastal habitats such as those found on Dauphin Island must be protected, and they must be restored following human-caused or natural disasters.

When the Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded in the Gulf of Mexico on April 20, 2010, claiming 11 lives, it unleashed the largest oil spill in the history of the United States. By the time the well was sealed, 87 days after the explosion, approximately 134 million gallons of oil were released into the Gulf. The resulting environmental catastrophe wreaked havoc upon communities, natural habitats and wildlife populations — including those on Dauphin Island.

In 2013, a U.S. District Court approved two plea agreements that directed $2.544 billion to NFWF to fund projects benefiting the natural resources of the Gulf Coast that were impacted by the spill. To date, NFWF has worked closely with state and federal partners to award $1.6 billion from its Gulf Environmental Benefit Fund (GEBF) to restore natural resources harmed by the spill.

In fiscal year 2022, NFWF awarded $98.9 million from the GEBF to projects in Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas, including nearly $7.6 million to advance the restoration of beach and marsh habitats on Dauphin Island. In November 2022, NFWF made a final award of $47 million to projects in Alabama, bringing the total since 2013 to $356 million.

“Together, these investments tell a story of significant accomplishments of fishing reefs in the Gulf of Mexico and a thriving red snapper fishery; of land conservation in the Perdido River Corridor, Fort Morgan Peninsula, and the Grand Bay Savanna to protect habitat for game and non-game species; and of habitat conservation and strengthened resilience in our coastal towns like Dauphin Island and Bayou la Batre,” said Alabama Governor Kay Ivey.