BOEMRE Awards $1.6 Million for Alabama Projects

 Grants Will Fund Mobile County Wastewater Treatment Facility and Habitat Restoration                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    

NEW ORLEANS – The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE) today announced that it has awarded two Coastal Impact Assistance Program (CIAP) grants totaling $1.6 million to Mobile County, Ala., and the state of Alabama for projects to construct a North Mobile County wastewater treatment and disposal facility and to develop a wildlife and plant habitat restoration strategy for coastal areas in the state.  

Created by the Energy Policy Act of 2005, CIAP provides funding to the six Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) oil and gas producing states to conserve and protect the coastal environment. CIAP is an ongoing program with grant funding that is allocated based on the offshore energy revenues collected by the United States. 

“BOEMRE continues to support vital infrastructure and restoration efforts that will benefit Alabama and its coastal counties. These projects are part of that effort,” said BOEMRE Director Michael R. Bromwich. “CIAP grants provide the opportunity for us to fund critical conservation and wetlands preservation initiatives that will help preserve these ecosystems for future generations.” 

A $1,500,000 grant to Mobile County will fund construction of a pre-engineered wastewater treatment and disposal facility and conveyance infrastructure located approximately 20 miles north of Mobile, in Mount Vernon. The new facility is initially expected to eliminate the need for 55 separate treatment systems that currently exist in the county.  

A $100,000 grant to the state of Alabama will help to develop a comprehensive inventory of potential habitat restoration projects that can be implemented in the coastal Alabama counties of Mobile and Baldwin. This inventory will be used to determine the feasibility of a number of wetlands projects that can be undertaken in the future, including projects to restore wildlife and plant communities that have been adversely affected by natural forces and human activities.  

CIAP received $250 million in appropriated funds for each of the Fiscal Years 2007-2010, to be disbursed to six eligible OCS oil and gas producing states: Alabama, Alaska, California, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas.

Contact: BOEMRE Public Affairs-Gulf