Gov. Bryant and Trudy Fisher Announce Release of Draft Restoration Plan
Mississippi Public Engagement Meeting June 11 in Biloxi
(JACKSON, Miss.) – Governor Phil Bryant and Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality Executive Director Trudy Fisher announced Thursday that the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council’s draft plan has been released and that a public engagement session to receive comments on the draft will be held at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum and Convention Center in Biloxi on June 11.
The “Draft Initial Comprehensive Plan: Restoring the Gulf Coast’s Ecosystem and Economy” describes the objectives, the selection process, and the evaluation criteria for the ecosystem restoration projects and programs that will be funded by the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council. The Council was created by the RESTORE Act and is comprised of the five Gulf states and six federal agencies.
“I encourage Mississippians to review the draft plan and submit comments because the implementation of the projects and programs will have a significant impact on our state for decades. Fortunately we have laid a foundation with the substantial work of the GoCoast 2020 teams that highlighted the priorities to help us recover and move forward. It’s important we don’t lose that momentum and continue with the process to improve our Coast,” said Gov. Phil Bryant.
“We’ve been given an unprecedented opportunity to make our Gulf Coast better than it’s ever been, and to do so we need to secure and implement the best restoration projects. An important component of the whole process is public engagement, and we ask the public to review the draft plan, attend the meeting, and submit comments,” said MDEQ Executive Director Trudy Fisher.
Mississippi’s public engagement session will be June 11 beginning with registration at 5:00 p.m. and the meeting at 6:00 p.m. at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum and Convention Center, 2350 Beach Boulevard, Biloxi.
The Draft Initial Comprehensive Plan can be viewed online at XX and will be available for public comment from May XX until June XX.
Periodically MDEQ will release information on RESTORE Act activities and meetings. A text group for the public is available by texting “restore” to 601-863-8082.
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