The Deepwater Horizon Natural Resource Trustees are committed to 

It’s been two years since the Deepwater Horizon Trustees settled with BP and began implementing our programmatic plan to restore the Gulf.

The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group approved and released its Final Strategic Restoration Plan and Environmental Assessment #3: Restoration of Wetlands, Coastal and Nearshore Habitats in the Barataria Basin, Louisiana (PDF 167 pg).

In January, the Jeff Friend Trail at Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge in Gulf Shores, Alabama, was re-opened after closing for restoration last fall. The project includes new longer-lasting composite material boardwalks, several new viewing platforms, and easier-to-navigate trail materials.

The Deepwater Horizon Oceanic Fish Restoration Project, which aims to restore a portion of pelagic fish populations in the Gulf of Mexico, began its second year on January 1.

NOAA and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation are working with Gulf pelagic longline vessel owners to reduce fish mortality through a temporary, voluntary fishing repose. The Trustees selected this project, formerly known as the Pelagic Longline Bycatch Reduction Project, in the fourth phase of early restoration.

On July 6, NOAA and partners released 21 baby terrapins on Chenier Ronquille barrier island. We restored the island using early restoration funding received after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

NOAA’s Office of Response and Restoration published a new guide for any organization interested in measuring recreational use at shoreline areas, fishing sites, and boat ramps affected by an oil spill. The resource titled, Best Practices for Collecting Onsite Data to Assess Recreational Use Impacts from an Oil Spill, builds off the processes and lessons learned from our experience conducting the natural resource damage assessment for the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

On April 20, 2010, an explosion on the Deepwater Horizon Macondo oil well drilling platform killed 11 workers, and started the largest marine oil spill in U.S. history, releasing millions of barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico. NOAA was on the scene from the earliest moments of the crisis, bringing more than 25 years of experience protecting and restoring our coasts from oil spills.

The Open Ocean Trustee Implementation Group for the Deepwater Horizon oil spill is holding a webinar on Thursday, April 27 from 12-1:30 p.m. Eastern. Participants will be able to learn about our restoration planning process, request for project ideas, and next steps for the Open Ocean Restoration Area.

Three artificial coral reef creation projects are underway off the coast of Texas.

A special issue of Endangered Species Research, was published on Jan 31, 2017, and features 20 scientific articles that summarize the impacts of the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill on marine mammals and sea turtles. The scientific studies, conducted by NOAA authors and partners, document the unprecedented mortality rate and long-term environmental impacts of the oil’s exposure and presents a synthesis of more than five years’ worth of data collection, analysis, and interpretation.

In 2010, when the Deepwater Horizon spill poured more than 4 million gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico, the Atlantic bluefin tuna (Thunnus thynnus) population was already depleted, having been subject to significant habitat and fishing pressures for over a decade. A new study uses 16 years of movement and spawning data from electronically tagged tuna to identify the spawning grounds affected by the spill.

In August, graduate students, academics, and industry consultants heard firsthand about challenges in assessing natural resource damages for the Deepwater Horizon event, the largest off shore oil spill in U.S. history. NOAA Economist Adam Domanski participated in a panel discussion at Camp Resources, an annual environmental economics workshop hosted by the Center for Environmental and Resource Economic Policy, at North Carolina State University.

The high number of deaths of perinatal (near-birth) dolphins in the Gulf of Mexico was likely caused by exposure to oil from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The pregnant dolphins suffered chronic illness caused by exposure to petroleum products which likely contributed to fetal death, according to a team of scientists. Their findings were published today in the journal Diseases of Aquatic Organisms.

Trustees Settle with BP for Natural Resource Injuries to the Gulf of Mexico

DECEMBER 21, 2015 -- After an oil spill along the coast, the impacts might appear to be pretty obvious: oil on beaches, dead birds, oil-coated otters. When conducting a Natural Resource Damage Assessment, it's our job to measure those environmental impacts and determine what kind of restoration—and how much—is needed to make up for those impacts.

The Deepwater Horizon trustees have proposed the fifth phase of early restoration for the oil spill, encompassing a coastal access project in Florida. The comment period ended December 31, 2015.

A team of scientists is reporting a high rate of reproductive failure in dolphins exposed to oil from the Deepwater Horizon spill. The team has monitored these bottlenose dolphins in heavily-oiled Barataria Bay for five years following the spill. Their findings, published in the Proceedings of the Royal Society, suggest that the effects of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill will be long-lasting.

The Trustees have proposed a comprehensive, integrated, ecosystem restoration plan for the Gulf of Mexico. The draft plan is based on our thorough assessment of impacts to the Gulf’s natural resources—and the services they provide—following the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

Oil Spill | Gulf of Mexico | April 2010

On April 20, 2010, an explosion occurred on the Deepwater Horizon drilling platform in the Gulf of Mexico. The explosion, which killed 11 men, caused the rig to sink and started a catastrophic oil leak from the well. Before it was capped three months later, approximately 134 million gallons of oil had spilled into the Gulf, the largest offshore oil spill in U.S. history.