New Orleans, LA- One year after the BP oil disaster began in the Gulf of Mexico, the Natural Resources Trustees announced today that BP has agreed to provide an unprecedented $1 billion toward early restoration projects along the Gulf. This Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) down payment is a significant first step toward restoration in coastal Louisiana and the other Gulf states. Vanishing Paradise released the following statement:

On Friday, officials with the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority, and the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries held a press conference with leaders from the oyster industry to highlight BP's failure to follow through on emergency restoration work to help the industry recover from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill that began nearly one year ago. LDWF Assistant Secretary Randy Pausina announced an additional $2 million in funding for a cultch plant on public seed grounds; that announcement brings the total state funds committed to emergency restoration projects for the oyster industry to $4 million.

Today, the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, in coordination with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, ordered an emergency reopening of commercial fishing in portions of state, inside waters within the Mississippi River Delta that were previously closed due to impacts from the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill last year.

The Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission (LWFC) adopted an amendment at their April 7 meeting that would allow the use of personal watercraft (PWC) on water bodies within areas managed by the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF).