20-79-CWS | November 30, 2020
BILOXI, Miss. – The Mississippi Department of Marine Resources (MDMR) is in the process of working with NOAA to develop a spend plan for the 2019 Mississippi Bonnet Carré Fisheries Disaster Recovery Program. The agency is requesting public comments for the program’s spend plan through Monday, Dec. 14, 2020.
Earlier this year, NOAA allocated $88 million to respond to the impacts of the 2019 Gulf of Mexico freshwater flooding events in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. Mississippi will receive $21,290,492 of those funds to address the impacts to marine fisheries that resulted from the openings of the Bonnet Carré Spillway in 2019.
Through the 2019 Mississippi Bonnet Carré Fisheries Disaster Recovery Program, the MDMR will conduct financial assistance in the form of direct payments to the impacted industries in order to alleviate the losses that were sustained as a result of the flooding event. Projects to enhance and improve Mississippi’s marine fisheries and applicable seafood businesses will likewise aid in the long-term stability of these industries. The MDMR will also administer restoration activities to enhance habitats damaged from the spillway openings.
Public comments on the proposed plan can be submitted through Dec. 14, 2020, via email at 2019BCFund@dmr.ms.gov. For more information, visit dmr.ms.gov/mdmr-accepting-public-comments-2019-ms-bc-fisheries-disaster-recovery-program/.
The Mississippi Department of Marine Resources is dedicated to enhancing, protecting and conserving marine interests of the state by managing all marine life, public trust wetlands, adjacent uplands and waterfront areas to provide for the optimal commercial, recreational, educational and economic uses of these resources consistent with environmental concerns and social changes. Visit the DMR online at dmr.ms.gov.
