Okaloosa County BOCC — November 16, 2013 — reading text

 To describe the process for the funds become available (see Section IV for a definition approval of State Expenditure of projects and programs). Over the next few years, Plans that will fund projects, development and implementation of this Plan will be programs, and activities that will an iterative process leading to a comprehensive, improve the Gulf Coast ecosystem region-wide, multi-objective restoration plan based on and economy. the best available science. To develop this Plan, the Council carefully reviewed the findings and recommendations of the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Task Force Strategy (Strategy). The Council also reviewed numerous existing local, regional, state, and federal plans to inform the development of this Plan. The Council initiated a robust public engagement process to receive initial input from diverse voices from across the region. The Council hosted fourteen public meetings with over 2,300 attendees and established a web presence to accept public comments. The Council received over 41,000 public comments on the Draft Initial Comprehensive Plan. The suggestions and comments that the Council received were considered and incorporated, as appropriate, into this Plan (see “Response to Public Comments”). The Council recognizes that Gulf Coast restoration will not be successful without genuine and meaningful input from the people in the region. The Council will continue to support opportunities for public engagement to hear from individuals and organizations across the Gulf Coast region. Additionally, the United States has a unique legal relationship with federally-recognized Tribes as set forth in United States treaties, statutes, Executive Orders and court decisions. Given the GULF COAST ECOSYSTEM RESTORATION COUNCIL 1 Packet Pg. 548  INITIAL COMPREHENSIVE PLAN importance of the Tribes to the Gulf Coast region, the Council recognizes the value of tribal input in the region’s restoration activities. To begin this engagement, the Council held webinars on April 9 and 11, 2013, and a tribal engagement session on June 13, 2013. The Council will continue to engage with the Tribes on these important issues throughout the implementation of the Plan. This Plan sets forth the Council’s overarching goals for restoring and protecting the natural resources, ecosystems, fisheries, marine and wildlife habitats, beaches, coastal wetlands, and economy of the Gulf Coast region. Additionally, the Plan: (1) incorporates recommendations and findings of the Strategy; (2) describes how projects and programs under the Council- Selected Restoration Component will be solicited, evaluated, and funded; (3) outlines the process for the development, review, and approval of State Expenditure Plans; (4) includes a list of any project or program authorized prior to enactment of the RESTORE Act, but not yet commenced (see Appendix A); and (5) provides the Council’s Next Steps. The RESTORE Act also established the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Trust Fund (Trust Fund). Due to uncertainty around a variety of factors associated with ongoing litigation, the ultimate amount of administrative and civil penalties that may be available to the Trust Fund and the timing of their availability are unknown. As a result of the settlement of Clean Water Act civil claims against Transocean Deepwater Inc. and related entities, a total of approximately $800 million, plus interest, will be deposited in the Trust Fund within the next two years – approximately $320 million of which has already been deposited. Thus, based upon the RESTORE Act and the payment schedule agreed to by the court for the Transocean settlement, by February 20, 2015, thirty percent of that total amount – $240 million, plus interest – will be deposited in the Trust Fund for allocation by the Council under the Council-Selected Restoration Component. Additional funding is dependent upon settlement or adjudication of civil or administrative claims against other parties responsible for the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. This Plan does not yet include a description of the manner in which amounts from the Trust Fund projected to be made available to the Council to implement the Plan for the next ten years will be allocated, referred to as the “Ten-Year Funding Strategy.” Nor does it include a project and program priority list that the Council will fund, referred to as the “Funded Priorities List.” The Council did not include these elements in this iteration of the Plan for several reasons. First, as noted above, there is uncertainty related to the overall amount and availability of funds deposited in the Trust Fund. Second, the final procedures to guide Trust Fund expenditures have not yet been issued by the U.S. Department of the Treasury. Third, the Council wished to seek public input on key elements of the Plan. Fourth, the Gulf Coast States are in the process of developing State Expenditure Plans to guide the disbursement of funds that will be allocated to the States based upon the extent of impacts from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. For all of these reasons, GULF COAST ECOSYSTEM RESTORATION COUNCIL 2 Packet Pg. 549  INITIAL COMPREHENSIVE PLAN the Council has purposely deferred developing the Ten-Year Funding Strategy and Funded Priorities List. Under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), 42 U.S.C §§ 4321-4335, and its implementing regulations at 40 C.F.R. Parts 1500–1508, the Council is required to consider all reasonably foreseeable alternatives and the environmental effects of its proposed actions and to inform and involve the public in its environmental analysis and decision-making process. The Council prepared a Programmatic Environmental Assessment (PEA) analyzing the environmental impacts of this Plan. After analyzing the potential direct, indirect, and cumulative effects of the Plan, the Council has determined that issuance of the Plan will not have a significant impact on the environment and that no further environmental analysis is required prior to approval of the Plan. The PEA summarizes the current environment of the Gulf Coast region, describes the purpose and need for the Plan, identifies the “No Action” alternative, describes the process for selecting a proposed alternative, and assesses the potential environmental consequences of the alternatives based on the available information. The PEA can serve as a reference document upon which supplemental or individual NEPA documents can build. The PEA does not analyze impacts of projects or programs that could subsequently be funded by the Council because the Council has not yet selected projects and programs for funding. It is expected that projects and programs subsequently selected for funding through the processes set forth in this Plan may be subject to further NEPA review. In addition to meeting NEPA requirements, the Council acknowledges that any projects or programs ultimately selected for funding must comply with applicable laws and regulations. GULF COAST ECOSYSTEM RESTORATION COUNCIL 3 Packet Pg. 550  INITIAL COMPREHENSIVE PLAN II. OVERVIEW The Gulf Coast region is vital to our Nation and our economy, providing valuable energy resources, abundant seafood, extraordinary beaches and recreational activities, and a rich cultural heritage. Its waters and coasts are home to one of the most diverse environments in the world – including over 15,000 species of sea life. Over twenty-two million Americans live in Gulf coastal counties and parishes – working in crucial U.S. industries like commercial seafood, shipping, tourism, and oil and gas production. The region also boasts ten of America’s fifteen largest ports accounting for nearly a trillion dollars in trade each year. Despite the tremendous importance of the Gulf Coast region, the health of the region’s ecosystem has been significantly impacted, most recently by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill which spurred passage of the RESTORE Act. Over the past decade the Gulf Coast region has also endured significant natural catastrophes, including major hurricanes such as Katrina, Rita, Gustav, and Ike. The Gulf Coast region has experienced loss of critical wetland habitats, erosion of barrier islands, imperiled fisheries, water quality degradation, and significant coastal land loss due to natural forces, the alteration of hydrology, and other human activities. In addition, the Gulf of Mexico experienced numerous water quality problems resulting from the Deepwater Horizon disaster and other factors, including excess nutrients, hypoxia, altered sediment resources, pathogens, mercury, remaining Deepwater Horizon oil and dispersants and other pollutants. Living coastal and marine systems are showing signs of stress, such as depleted species populations and degraded habitats. Storm risk, land loss, depletion of natural resources, compromised water quality and quantity, and sea-level rise are imperiling coastal communities’ natural defenses and ability to respond to natural and man-made disruptions. These problems not only endanger the natural systems but also the economic vitality of the Gulf Coast region and the entire Nation. The RESTORE Act The Resources and Ecosystems Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities, and Revived Economies of the Gulf Coast States Act of 2012, or the RESTORE Act, was passed by Congress on June 29, 2012, and signed into law by President Obama on July 6, 2012. The RESTORE Act envisions a regional approach to restoring the long-term health of the valuable natural ecosystems and economy of the Gulf Coast region. The RESTORE Act dedicates 80 percent of any civil and administrative penalties paid under the Clean Water Act, after the date of enactment, by responsible parties in connection with the Deepwater Horizon oil spill to the Trust Fund for ecosystem restoration, economic recovery, and tourism promotion in the Gulf Coast region (Figure 1). This effort is in addition to the restoration of natural resources injured by the spill GULF COAST ECOSYSTEM RESTORATION COUNCIL 4 Packet Pg. 551  INITIAL COMPREHENSIVE PLAN which will be accomplished through a separate Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) and restoration process pursuant to the Oil Pollution Act. Figure 1: Allocation of RESTORE Act Trust Fund Geographic Scope of the Gulf Coast Region The RESTORE Act defines where and how funds may be spent. The Act defines “Gulf Coast State” to mean any of the States of Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas, and includes the following areas within the “Gulf Coast region:” 1. In the Gulf Coast States, the coastal zones (including federal lands within the coastal zones) that border the Gulf of Mexico; 2. Any adjacent land, water, and watersheds within 25 miles of the coastal zones; and, 3. All federal waters in the Gulf of Mexico. Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council GULF COAST ECOSYSTEM RESTORATION COUNCIL