Gulf Oil Spill Currently Impacts two sister National Estuary Programs:  Barataria-Terrabonne NEP in Louisiana, Mobile Bay NEP in Alabama, and possibly others as the disaster unfolds

Like thousands of other environmental organizations and countless citizens around the United States and the globe, the Barnegat Bay Partnership and our member groups are deeply concerned about the Gulf Oil Spill and greatly saddened by the tragic loss of human life. The impacts of this oil spill on the environment may not ever be fully recognized; nonetheless, we grow increasingly concerned by what appears in all likelihood to be one of the greatest environmental catastrophes in the history of our planet. 

The oil has now been reported in four Gulf states, and may spread further.  Presently, we are especially concerned about the impacts to the estuaries and coasts of our “sister” programs, the Mobile Bay National Estuary Program (www.mobilebaynep.com/) and the Barrataria-Terrebone National Estuary Program (www.btnep.org), which are already working round-the-clock with clean-up and recovery efforts.  Much like the Barnegat Bay, the Mobile Bay and the Barrataria-Terrebone estuaries are highly productive and home to many species, and thus are critically important to their region’s economies.  Both NEPs are also renowned for their many efforts to protect and restore their coastal ecosystems, which are still recovering from the devastating impacts of recent Gulf hurricanes.

To stay abreast of the Joint Federal Government and BP Response, check out:  www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com/go/site/2931/

www.whitehouse.gov/deepwater-bp-oil-spill/

www.whitehouse.gov/blog/issues/Deepwater-BP-Oil-Spill.

To learn more about the impacts of oil spills on the environment, see www.fws.gov/contaminants/Issues/OilSpill.cfm

To track the oil as it moves beyond the Gulf of Mexico, visit NOAA's new website, www.GeoPlatform.gov/gulfresponse.

For information about estuarine restoration, see www.darrp.noaa.gov/about/nrda.html.

For information about what you can do to help, see www.btnep.org/default.asp?id=213, and www.lagulfresponse.org/.

We'll continue to keep this page updated as more information about local-level and other efforts to support the cleanup, recovery, and restoration in the Gulf.

Stan Hales, Director

Barnegat Bay Partnership