New Funding - Gulf Coast and Sargent Beach

First - the Matagorda County Commissioners will be voting to approve funding for the breakwater project are on the agenda for Monday, May 3rd (item 18):

I will track this and find out what this means from the project lead next week. 

Also in other news on funding: 

Today the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council (RESTORE Council) announced $302 million in funding decisions for restoration activities spanning the Gulf Coast states impacted by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. With today’s vote, the RESTORE Council has approved Funded Priorities List (FPL) 3b. FPL 3b includes 20 activities designed to address ecosystem needs across the Gulf of Mexico. The activities identified in FPLs are developed through collaboration among RESTORE Council members with input from Gulf stakeholders.

What does that mean for us - Texas is getting some of that funding to fund living shorelines - and East Matagorda Bay is a part of that project - so not beach related - but still will help us. 

Title: Shoreline Protection Through Living Shorelines Project Abstract: Texas, through the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ), is requesting $15M in Council-Selected Restoration Component funding for the Shoreline Protection Through Living Shorelines program. This would include $1,575,000 in planning and project management funds as FPL Category 1, as well as a separate $13,425,000 implementation component as an FPL Category 2 priority for potential funding. The program will support the primary RESTORE Comprehensive Plan goal to restore and conserve habitat through the construction of large-scale living shorelines that will stabilize estuarine shorelines and protect large tracts of land and coastal resources along the Texas coast. The program will target highly eroding shorelines along the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway, vulnerable bay shorelines, and locations that have been identified as suitable areas for a living shoreline installation. This program will also address degrading coastal structures that need repair, such as critical seawalls, and add living shoreline elements to enhance their protective capabilities. The program will utilize specified criteria for selecting projects that were identified earlier through public meetings and as part of a stakeholder process. Living shorelines can reduce damage to shorelines by dampening wave action and trapping sediments, elevating shore profiles to a level that will support marsh vegetation. This program will also provide ecosystem services by creating hard structure habitats for fish and oysters, nutrient and sediment removal, seagrass protection, and water quality improvement. Program duration is 4 years