The Gulf of Mexico, where $16 million will be put to use for environmental research. Photo: Aaron Burden // Unsplash
The NOAA is awarding $16.8 million to ecological researchers studying the Gulf of Mexico. The money will be used to “conduct collaborative ecosystem science research that will be used by natural resource managers,” according to a press release from the organization. The money will be split among 32 organizations, across 10 projects.
“The Gulf of Mexico is a vibrant ecosystem with diverse and productive habitats,” said National Ocean Service director Nicole LeBoeuf. “These awards represent NOAA’s commitment to providing the best available science to the natural resource managers who make important decisions about how to balance rapidly changing economic, environmental and social pressures in the region.”
The funding comes via the Resources and Ecosystems Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities, and Revived Economies of the Gulf Coast States Act (RESTORE). RESTORE was created following the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, in which an explosion on an oil platform spilled 134 million gallons of oil into the gulf. The goal of the act is to “increase understanding of the Gulf of Mexico ecosystem, including its fisheries, and to support restoration and sustainability through research, observation, monitoring and technology development.”
The 10 selected projects include representatives from a variety of sources, including universities, government agencies, non-governmental organizations and the private sector. The subjects of their research are equally varied, from studying the impact of boating activities on seagrasses, to the effects of red tides, to developing new solutions to manage future oil spills.
A full list of the projects can be found here.
