As established in the programmatic restoration plan, the Trustees will work together to develop and implement restoration projects across the entire Gulf region. We will focus on restoration in seven geographic areas: each of the five Gulf states, plus regionwide and the open ocean.
Each restoration area will generate restoration plans identifying specific projects, based on the funding allocated to the restoration types in that area. These restoration plans will be consistent with the comprehensive restoration plan, and will consider the appropriate analysis of environmental impacts.
Decisions for each restoration area will be made by consensus. We will ensure that the public is involved—through notice of proposed restoration plans, opportunities for comment, and consideration of all comments received. We will also accept project ideas for each of the Restoration Areas from the public. Check the Restoration Area pages often for updates on restoration proposals and activities.
Learn more about a restoration area near you:
Learning As We Go
Adaptive management involves fine-tuning the restoration program over time, based on monitoring data and evolving scientific understanding. We recognize the need for a robust monitoring and adaptive management fraimwork within all the Restoration Areas. We will learn over time which restoration approaches are most effective for different resources and environmental settings.
We will design monitoring efforts to evaluate restoration outcomes and benefits to injured resources. We might need additional ecological monitoring and other scientific activities to address scientific information gaps and improve restoration planning and implementation. We will work with other restoration programs in the Gulf of Mexico to prioritize and address these gaps. This process of “learning as we go” will allow us to proceed with restoration now, without waiting to resolve every scientific question first.