Mobile County Meets With Feds On Oil Spill

Posted on: Feb 21st, 2011 | News and Announcements

Mobile County Commission president Merceria Ludgood met with many of her Gulf Coast counterparts Thursday as they hammered out priorities for recovery from the Gulf Coast oil spill for consideration by President Barack Obama?s administration. Called the Gulf Coast Restoration Work Group, the group operates as an advisory arm to the Environmental Protection Agency?s Local Government Advisory Committee. Its goal: to establish a consensus by October 4 for how fines and other monies will be used to help restore the ravaged ecosystem along Gulf Coast states, from Texas to Florida. Speaking at the opening meeting of the work group in New Orleans, Ludgood said she hoped ?to integrate local government at every step of the way for implementation of the strategy for recovery.? She added that she hoped politics would not derail an effort at regional consensus by favoring those states with closer ties to the Obama administration. ?I don?t expect it, but I?d like information to reassure the public,? she said. On one point, all those in attendance spoke with one voice. ?The stakes could not be higher,? said Bryon Griffith, deputy director of the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Task Force. ?The Gulf Coast economy is the 6th largest economy in the world?even above China,? he said. ?What must we do to restore this treasure?? The day-long meeting produced some general areas of agreement. There were many voices saying that the ecosystem couldn?t be addressed in a vacuum, but had to include economic recovery as well. Ludgood recommended the start of ?healthy conversations? about the balance of ecology, tourism and business losses among all the states. Streamlining the permitting process for restoration projects ? whether through single-source permitting, waivers and/or exemptions ? was recommended repeatedly as necessary to expedite restoration projects. Members agreed they would continue to talk about where the rules could be relaxed. Mobile County Commissioner Mike Dean praised the effort of the federal government to partner with local government and expedite relief efforts. ?Speaking from experience, our need to get some flexibility into the process is tremendously important,? he said. ?We can?t get tripped up with boundless red tape in addressing the pressing needs of recovery.? Ludgood told members at the meeting that funding for the restoration projects needed to flow directly to the local governments where implementation occurred. ?The resources have to come with [the projects,]? she said. EPA?s Griffith, one of several EPA officials at the meeting, tried to check expectations, saying that everything wouldn?t be done at once. ?We must get down to priorities,? he said, asking participants to aim for a ?hard-hitting? action plan. ?The stakes are huge,? he added. Mobile County Commissioner Connie Hudson said the invitation for county level participation in federal recovery efforts signaled a new attitude about partnership to restore the Gulf Coast. ?We are positioned better to focus relief efforts where they are needed,? she said. ?We are best situated to identify the needs and to get relief to our communities.?