Latest news: April 19, 2012

House moves along Restore Act to help Gulf Coast
By Maria Recio, McClatchy Newspapers. April 18, 2012
“WASHINGTON — On the cusp of the second anniversary of the BP oil spill, the House of Representatives on Wednesday approved a transportation bill that includes a provision setting aside 80 percent of the BP fines for the five Gulf states _ Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama, Florida and Texas _ for restoration and recovery of the areas affected by the Deepwater Horizon disaster…” (Read more)

House backs BP funds for Gulf
By Jordan Blum, The Advocate (Baton Rouge, La.). April 19, 2012.
“WASHINGTON – The House and Senate each approved versions of the RESTORE Act to direct BP fine money to Louisiana and the other affected Gulf Coast states…” (Read more)

BP offers a warts-and-all tour of Louisiana coast cleanup
By David Hammer, The Times-Picayune (New Orleans). April 18, 2012.
“Mike Utsler stood on the bow of a bayou touring boat Wednesday and pointed at a section of marsh that was cleaned after the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. “If we dug down in there and pulled it back, I can almost guarantee you we’d find oil,” he said…” (Read more)

BP Oil Spill: 2 Years Later (video)
WVUE-TV, New Orleans. April 19, 2012.
“Audubon Louisiana Vice President Doug Meffert, Ph.D. talks with us about the BP oil spill two years later and its continued impact on the environment…” (Read more)

Oil spill is prime suspect in hundreds of dolphin deaths
By Kate Spinner, The Sarasota (Fla.) Herald-Tribune. April 18, 2012.
“Dying dolphins and whales in the northern Gulf of Mexico provide a grim reminder that the ecosystem there still has not recovered two years after the BP Deepwater Horizon oil disaster…” (Read more)

Project to restore oysters
By Amy Wold, The Advocate. April 19, 2012.
“Construction should start soon on almost $30 million worth of early restoration projects in Louisiana in response to BP’s Deepwater Horizon oil leak in 2010…” (Read more)

8 Gulf Coast restoration projects announced
By Harlan Kirgan, The (Pascagoula) Mississippi Press. April 19, 2012.
“GULFPORT, Mississippi — Two Mississippi projects announced Tuesday are among 8 early restoration projects that are to begin soon along the Gulf Coast in response to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill two years ago…” (Read more)

EcoTourism takes a major step forward in Louisiana
By Shana Rose, WWL-Radio (New Orleans). April 19, 2012.
“Over two years in development, the first maps and guide to promote Louisiana as a world-class eco-tourism destination are now in tourism centers across the State…” (Read more)

Stories From the Gulf Reveal BP Disaster Still Hurts
By Rocky Kistner, National Resources Defense Council, for the Huffington Post. April 18, 2012.
“When BP’s Deepwater Horizon well exploded two years ago and spewed nearly 200 million gallons of Louisiana crude into one of the world’s most productive fisheries, people of the Gulf prayed it would be a fleeting disaster…” (Read more)