Final Trustee Implementation Group Restoration Plans will be posted on this page for public review. Below you will find links to download documents.
The Deepwater Horizon Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group has released the Final Restoration Plan and Environmental Assessment #7.1 approving the Terrebonne HNC Island Restoration project to restore birds injured by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
The plan, Final Phase 2 Restoration Plan and Environmental Assessment #7.1: Terrebonne HNC Island Restoration Project (PDF, 96 pages), is a continuation of Restoration Plan/Environmental Assessment #7: Wetlands, Coastal, and Nearshore Habitats, and Birds. That plan selected the Terrebonne HNC Island Restoration Project for engineering and design (Phase 1) funding under the Birds Restoration Type. This Final Phase 2 Plan evaluated a reasonable range of design alternatives and selects alternative 7A as the preferred design for construction.
The project will restore and conserve bird nesting and foraging habitat and create, restore, and enhance barrier and coastal islands and headlands by increasing the acreage of the island from 27.6 acres up to approximately 45 acres of shrub nesting, ground nesting, and marsh habitat. An existing, degraded perimeter rock dike will be restored, and breakwaters may be constructed on the northeast side of the island to provide further protection as well as calm water for loafing birds. Habitat restoration will be accomplished by raising the elevation of HNC Island using dredged material from a borrow area near Cat Island Pass.
The estimated cost for implementing design alternative 7A is $34 million. The costs of construction, oversight, operation, maintenance, and monitoring costs are included in this estimate.
The Louisiana Trustees will leverage funding from the settlement of another unauthorized oil discharge, one made in 2006 by the CITGO Petroleum Corporation’s (CITGO) Lake Charles Manufacturing Complex located in Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana. That spill discharged waste oil, oily wastewater, and sludge into the Martais Waterway and ultimately into the Calcasieu River. The oil also affected adjacent marshes and the Calcasieu River’s upstream and downstream receiving waters, including Prien Lake, Moss Lake, Calcasieu Lake, and the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway.
The Calcasieu River Trustees will partner with the Louisiana TIG to partially fund construction of the Terrebonne HNC Island project to compensate for injuries to birds resulting from the CITGO spill. They will contribute $1.65 million from the CITGO settlement to the Terrebonne HNC Island project to increase the quantity and quality of coastal island nesting habitat for species injured by the CITGO spill, such as brown pelicans, wading birds (herons and egrets) and laughing gulls.
The Draft Phase 2 Restoration Plan and Environmental Assessment #7.1: Terrebonne HNC Island Restoration Project (PDF, 80 pages) was released on August 25, 2022, for a 30-day public comment period. A public webinar conducted on September 8 included a presentation of the draft plan and included an opportunity for public comment. The Trustees did not receive any public comments on the draft plan.
Final Restoration Plan and Fact Sheets
- Final_RPEA7.1_508 (PDF, 80 pages)
- LA RP7.1 Factsheet_FINAL PLAN (PDF, 2 pages)
The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group has released its latest plan to restore wetlands, coastal, and nearshore habitats to address injuries caused by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
The plan, Final Restoration Plan/Environmental Assessment #8: Restoration of Wetlands, Coastal, and Nearshore Habitats, selects four projects for implementation with an estimated total cost of almost $75 million:
- Two projects are selected for engineering and design:
- New Orleans East Landbridge Restoration will provide engineering and design for a project intended to create and restore marsh habitat that separates Lake Pontchartrain from Lake Borgne and the Gulf of Mexico. The approximate cost is $4 million.
- Raccoon Island Barrier Island Restoration will provide engineering and design for a project intended to create and enhance beach, dune, and tidal habitats through sand fill placement and shoreline protection. The approximate cost is $8.2 million.
- Two projects are selected for construction:
- Bayou Dularge Ridge and Marsh Creation is intended to create and nourish marsh on the south side of Bayou Dularge and restore the ridge along the southern bank of Bayou Dularge. The approximate cost is $41.4 million.
- Bayou La Loutre Ridge Restoration and Marsh Creation is intended to create and nourish marsh along Lena Lagoon, and restore the ridge along the southern bank of Bayou La Loutre. The approximate cost is $21.2 million.
FINAL RESTORATION PLAN AND ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT #8: WETLANDS, COASTAL, AND NEARSHORE HABITATS
The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group has released its Final Restoration Plan and Environmental Assessment #7: Wetlands, Coastal, and Nearshore Habitats, and Birds. We accepted comment from August 20, 2020 through September 22, 2020 and held a public meeting on September 2, 2020.
The plan includes projects that restore the Wetlands, Coastal, and Nearshore Habitats and Birds restoration types. It includes five projects which have a total estimated cost of $234.6 million. The selected alternatives are:
Wetlands, Coastal, and Nearshore Habitat:
Grande Cheniere Ridge Marsh Creation – This project will create up to 624 acres of marsh near Bayou Grande Cheniere and approximately 12,480 linear feet of earthen ridge along Jefferson Canal. The project estimated cost is $65 million.
Terrebonne Basin Ridge and Marsh Creation Project: Bayou Terrebonne Increment – This project will create up to 1,430 acres of brackish and saline marsh and restore up to 80 acres of earthen ridge. The estimated project cost is $157 million.
Bird’s Foot Delta Hydrologic Restoration – This project provides engineering and design funding for restoration anticipated to restore the hydrology of the Mississippi River Bird’s Foot Delta by dredging parts of Pass-a-Loutre, South Pass, and Southeast Pass to reconnect the Mississippi River with the marshes of the eastern and central Bird’s Foot Delta. The estimated engineering and design cost is $6 million.
Birds:
Isle au Pitre Restoration – This project provides engineering and design funding for restoration anticipated to enhance nesting conditions on the existing island by elevating portions of the island with dredged sediment and planting suitable vegetation for nesting brown pelicans and wading birds, shell rakes for American oystercatchers, and shell or small limestone on the perimeter of the island for tern and black skimmer nesting habitat. The estimated engineering and design cost is $3.5 million.
Terrebonne Houma Navigation Channel (HNC) Island Restoration –This project provides engineering and design funding for restoration anticipated to enlarge the island from its current size of 32 acres to approximately 50 acres by importing dredged sediment from a nearby suitable sand source and disposing of it adjacent and onto the existing island. The estimated engineering and design cost is $3.1 million.
The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group has approved the Final Restoration Plan and Environmental Assessment #6: Restore and Conserve Wetlands, Coastal, and Nearshore Habitats. We released the draft restoration plan on December 20, 2019 and accepted public comment through January 21, 2020. The final plan includes three projects, which together, will create or restore more than 1,900 acres of marsh, beach, and dune habitat and protect more than 11.5 miles of shoreline:
- West Grand Terre Beach Nourishment and Stabilization project: Creates and restores beach habitat, dune habitat, and intertidal marsh habitat and protects shoreline along Barataria Pass and Barataria Bay on West Grand Terre Island in Jefferson and Plaquemines Parishes. The estimated cost of the project is $92,500,000.
- Golden Triangle Marsh Creation project: Restores approximately 774 acres of broken marsh and open water through marsh creation to help buffer storm surge and provide estuarine habitat for Lake Borgne in Orleans and St. Bernard Parishes. The estimated cost of the project is $50,000,000.
- Biloxi Marsh Living Shoreline project: Creates oyster barrier reef along eastern shore of Biloxi Marsh to provide oyster habitat, reduce erosion, and prevent further marsh deterioration in Jefferson Parish. The estimated cost of this project is $66,600,000.
The selected projects are intended to continue the process of using restoration funding to restore and conserve wetlands, coastal, and nearshore habitats injured by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The total estimated cost of the selected projects is approximately $209 million.
The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group has approved the Final Restoration Plan/Environmental Assessment #5: Living Coastal and Marine Resources – Marine Mammals and Oysters.
We released the draft restoration plan in March 2020 and accepted public comment through April 20, 2020. This final plan will replenish and protect living coastal and marine resources (specifically, oysters and marine mammals) in the Louisiana Restoration Area. One project approved in the plan will focus on increasing capacity to respond to marine mammal strandings, and the other three will focus on oyster restoration in the Louisiana Restoration Area.
We released the draft restoration plan in March 2020 and accepted public comment through April 20, 2020. This final plan will replenish and protect living coastal and marine resources (specifically, oysters and marine mammals) in the Louisiana Restoration Area. One project approved in the plan will focus on increasing capacity to respond to marine mammal strandings, and the other three will focus on oyster restoration in the Louisiana Restoration Area.
Marine Mammal Project
The marine mammal project will increase capacity and expand partnerships along the Louisiana coastline for marine mammal stranding response.
- Increased capacity will lead to improved rapid response to injured and dead dolphins and whales, and a better understanding of the causes of injury and/or death.
- A Louisiana-based stranding coordinator will build partnerships and conduct outreach for the project.
- Finally, the project will provide infrastructure, equipment, and supplies needed for stranding and rehabilitation.
- Estimated cost of this project is $3,095,628.
This project will be led by NOAA in partnership with other federal and state trustees on the Louisiana TIG.
Oyster Projects
A network of oyster reefs will be constructed to increase spawning oyster populations.
- This project will be done in two phases, the first includes construction of two reefs in the Lake Machais/Mozambique Point area and two in the Petit Pass/Bay Boudreaux area, each up to 10 acres in size and 1.2 m from bottom.
- The second phase will identify and construct additional spawning stock reefs in areas of Louisiana public oyster grounds with suitable conditions for oyster propagation but larval supplies are low.
- All constructed reefs from this project would be closed to harvest, but located near harvesting areas to promote habitat connectivity.
- Estimated cost of this project is $9,701,447.
Oyster reefs will be created through placement of limestone cultch material.
- Material will be placed in two locations, the first is a 200-acre site in the Grand Banks area of Mississippi Sound.
- The second location is at a 200-acre site in Caillou Lake Public Oyster Seed Reservation.
- We will also identify and construct additional reefs in areas of Louisiana public oyster grounds with suitable conditions for oyster propagation but lack sufficient substrate for oyster populations to expand.
- Harvest at these sites will be closed until performance criteria are met.
- Estimated cost of this project is $10,070,000.
The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group will provide funding to support operations at the Michael C. Voisin Oyster Hatchery in Grand Isle, Louisiana.
- Project activities include production, deployment, and monitoring of hatchery-produced oysters onto established reefs within Louisiana’s public oyster areas that are low-producing or in need of rehabilitation.
- The hatchery estimates production of at least 500 million oyster larvae per year.
- A minimum of 25 percent of the oyster larvae produced would be dedicated for oyster restoration activities in protected areas.
- Estimated cost of this project is $5,850,000.
All three oyster projects will be led by the Louisiana Department of Wildlife & Fisheries in partnership with federal and state trustees on the Louisiana TIG. The total $25,621,447 funding proposed for implementation of oyster restoration under the trustees’ preferred alternatives represents a commitment of all remaining available funding for oyster restoration in the Louisiana Restoration Area.
The Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group (Louisiana TIG) has released the Final Restoration Plan and Environmental Assessment #4: Nutrient Reduction (Nonpoint Source) and Recreational Use. This Final Restoration Plan describes and proposes restoration project alternatives considered by the Louisiana TIG to improve water quality by reducing nutrients from nonpoint sources and to compensate for recreational use services lost as a result of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
Final Restoration Plan #4
Final Restoration Plan #4: Appendices A-G
Final Restoration Plan #4: Executive Summary
The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group has approved the Final Phase II Restoration Plan and Environmental Assessment #3.3: Large-scale Barataria Marsh Creation: Upper Barataria Component.
The project was initially evaluated for engineering and design funding in the 2018 Strategic Restoration Plan for Barataria Basin. We then released the draft restoration plan in March 2020 and accepted public comment through April 17, 2020. The approximate 1,200 acre marsh creation project approved in the plan will be implemented by NOAA, in partnership with other federal and state trustees on the Louisiana TIG.
- The project includes filling areas to create an intertidal marsh platform that will support marsh plants and support healthy wetland habitat, which can lessen the impact of future storms by dissipating wave energy.
- The project will use approximately 8.4 million cubic yards of sediment dredged from the Mississippi River.
- A single construction phase will be used to maximize cost effectiveness. The estimated construction duration is 26 months. Bids are expected to be solicited by NOAA in 2021.
- The total estimated cost is approximately $176 million, including previous design efforts.
This project is intended to continue the process of using restoration funding to restore and conserve wetlands, coastal, and nearshore habitats in the Barataria Basin, where the greatest oiling impacts from the Deepwater Horizon spill occurred. The trustees will continue to consider and plan for additional wetlands, coastal and nearshore habitat restoration projects in the future
The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group, the agencies charged with restoring Louisiana’s natural resources after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, has released the Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion Final Restoration Plan. The plan evaluates using a large-scale sediment diversion to reconnect the Mississippi River to Louisiana’s Barataria Basin estuary to restore wetlands and contribute to the broader restoration of its ecosystem. If it is ultimately permitted and funded, this first-of-its-kind project, estimated to cost more than $2 billion, represents one of the largest and most innovative coastal habitat restoration efforts ever undertaken.
The Final Restoration Plan provides an in-depth analysis of the benefits and impacts of a Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion project, and selects a preferred alternative for implementation. The project would re-establish historic delta processes by allowing for the controlled release of water, sediment, and nutrients from the Mississippi River into the Barataria Basin estuary, supporting ecosystem-scale restoration of the estuary.
Over 50 years, the sediment carried by the diversion is projected to restore over 13,000 acres of wetland habitat—which is 20 square miles, or the size of Breton National Wildlife Refuge. These restored wetlands would contribute to protecting communities and infrastructure, reducing impacts from storms, supporting healthier Gulf fisheries, and benefiting many species important to the region’s economy and environment.
“The Deepwater Horizon oil spill had a profound impact on the northern Gulf of Mexico,” said Janet Coit, Assistant Administrator for NOAA Fisheries. “I am proud of the strong collaboration with our partners over many years that resulted in a plan to sustainably rebuild these vital coastal wetlands.”
Restoration Plan Evaluation and Timeline
In this Final Restoration Plan, the Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group evaluated six sediment diversion alternatives. In selecting the preferred alternative, the Trustees considered the benefits and impacts of each alternative, and reviewed extensive public input received on the Draft Restoration Plan published in March 2021.
Throughout the plan’s development, the Trustees also participated in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ environmental impact evaluation of the proposed sediment diversion project. Concurrent with this release of the Trustees’ Final Restoration Plan, the Army Corps has released the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS), available at the Army Corps’ website. The Final Restoration Plan and FEIS will be considered by the Trustees to inform a final decision on implementing this project. That decision is anticipated to be made later this year.
If implemented, project costs are anticipated to exceed $2 billion. Costs include funds for monitoring and evaluation, and a suite of stewardship and mitigation measures to offset adverse impacts where possible.
Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority (CPRA) and NOAA are the lead Trustees for this Final Restoration Plan, which was prepared jointly with the other Louisiana Restoration Area Trustees: the U.S. Department of the Interior, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
“The Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion has the potential to build and maintain more land than any other project in Louisiana’s Coastal Master Plan. These wetlands are critical to the protection of the communities, fisheries, and economies in Louisiana—and all that our coast supports across the country,” said Chip Kline, Chairman of the Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority Board. “The project is a cornerstone of our state’s coastal program and represents the best in innovative science and collaboration across agencies to protect and restore the ecosystem.”
Final MBSD RP 091422 508 compliant
Final MBSD RP Executive Summary in English 508 compliant
Final MBSD – Executive Summary in Vietnamese 508 compliant
The LA TIG has prepared this Fianl SRP/EA to analyze strategic restoration alternatives associated with the restoration of wetlands, coastal, and nearshore habitat resources and services in the Barataria Basin, which was heavily impacted by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill and associated response efforts (DWH oil spill).
Final Restoration Plan #3: Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI)
Final Restoration Plan #3: Executive Summary
Final Restoration Plan #3: Vietnamese translation of Chapter 7 of the plan
The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group released its Final Restoration Plan and Environmental Assessment #2: Provide and Enhance Recreational Opportunities. This plan describes and selects projects intended to restore for lost recreational use opportunities caused by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
After consideration of public comments we received, Louisiana’s Phase 2 Restoration Plan/Environmental Assessment #1.3 (PDF, 149 pages) is now finalized. Released as a draft in November 2019, the plan includes a bird restoration project on Rabbit Island, and a habitat restoration project at Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve.
The final approved combined cost of the projects is approximately $37 million. These costs cover engineering and design, construction, monitoring and adaptive management, and operations and maintenance.
- The Rabbit Island project will restore 87.8 acres of the island’s original 200-acre footprint. The project will help provide more habitat for birds by raising the elevation of Rabbit Island using dredged material from the Calcasieu Ship Channel. The estimated cost of this project is approximately $16.5 million.
- The shoreline protection project at Jean Lafitte will install a rock breakwater along the eastern shorelines of Lake Salvador to improve habitat for submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV). The breakwater will include several openings to improve fish passage and water quality behind the structure. Implementation is proposed in two increments, the northern and the southern portions of the affected shorelines. In the Phase 2 Restoration Plan #1.3, implementation of only the southern portion is proposed. The estimated cost for the southern portion of this project is approximately $20.5 million.
Both projects included in this plan are components of larger restoration strategies and were approved for engineering and design in the 2017 Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group Final Restoration Plan #1. This final plan is consistent with the Trustees’ programmatic restoration plan.
The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group has approved the Final Phase 2 Restoration Plan/Environmental Assessment #1.2: Spanish Pass Ridge and Marsh Creation Project and Lake Borgne Marsh Creation Project.
We released the draft restoration plan in October 2019 and accepted public comment through November 20, 2019. This final plan includes construction activities for the restoration of wetlands, coastal, and nearshore habitats injured in the Louisiana Restoration Area as a result of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The plan analyzes restoration project design alternatives for two projects that are components of larger marsh restoration strategies, and were approved for engineering and design (E&D) in a previous restoration plan. We have selected and approved a design alternative for construction of each, with a combined construction cost of approximately $214,932,290.
The Spanish Pass project is a component of an overall large-scale restoration strategy for the Barataria Basin that will re-establish ridge and intertidal marsh habitats degraded due to sea level rise, land subsidence, diminished sediment supply, and storm events. The primary goal of the Spanish Pass increment in this plan is to create and nourish approximately 132 acres of historical ridge and 1,683 acres of marsh. This Plan approves funding for construction, engineering and design, operations and maintenance, and monitoring and adaptive management with an estimated cost of approximately $100.3 million.
The Lake Borgne Marsh Creation – Increment One project is also a component of an overall large-scale restoration strategy for the Pontchartrain Basin that will reestablish the bay rim and intertidal marsh habitat. This increment will create an estimated 2,816 acres of restored marsh habitat at an estimated cost of approximately $114.7 million. This Plan approved funding for engineering and design, construction, operations and maintenance, and monitoring and adaptive management.
The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group has released its Final Phase 2 Restoration Plan and Environmental Assessment #1.1: Queen Bess Island Restoration (PDF, 77 pages). The plan is consistent with the Trustees’ Programmatic Restoration Plan and includes activities for restoring natural resources and services injured or lost in Louisiana due to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
The Queen Bess Island Draft Restoration Plan evaluated two design alternatives for restoration of bird habitat, plus a no action alternative. The preferred alternative would create 30 acres of brown pelican habitat and 7 acres of tern and skimmer habitat. The Trustees presented the draft at a public meeting held on January 3, 2019, and collected public comments through January 22, 2019. After consideration of the comments received, the Trustees selected the preferred alternative and completed the final plan. The total estimated cost of the project is $18.71 million. This includes an estimated $2 million in engineering and design and $16.71 million for construction, maintenance, monitoring, adaptive management, and any future engineering and design costs required.
Final Phase 2 Restoration Plan and Environmental Assessment #1.1: Queen Bess Island Restoration
On January 20, 2017, the Deepwater Horizon (DWH) Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group (Louisiana TIG) released the DWH Final Restoration Plan #1: Restoration of Wetlands, Coastal, and Nearshore Habitats; Habitat Projects on Federally Managed Lands; and Birds.
The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group has approved the Final Supplemental Restoration Plan and Environmental Assessment for the Cypremort Point State Park Improvements Project Modifications. The modifications include replacing the original proposed breakwater system project feature with other recreational use features.
We released the draft supplemental restoration plan and environmental assessment for this project on April 17, 2020 and accepted public comment for 30 days.
The Cypremort Improvements Project modifications, as evaluated in the final supplemental plan, include an RV campground with approximately 30 new paved pull-through campsites with sewer, water, and electrical tie-ins; two mobile bathhouses with sewer, water, and electrical tie-ins; and a boat dock/fishing pier. The project also includes improvements to an existing rock jetty, beach reclamation, construction of a marsh boardwalk and trail, and road and parking lot repairs at Cypremort Point State Park.
The estimated cost of these improvements is $4.48 million.
The project improvements are intended to continue the process of using restoration funding to enhance recreational activities and amenities injured by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The project is consistent with the restoration alternatives selected in the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Final Programmatic Damage Assessment and Restoration Plan/Programmatic Environmental Impact.
The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group has released a Final supplemental restoration plan proposing changes to the Lake Charles Science Center and Educational Complex project, previously approved in the July 2018 Final Restoration Plan #2.
