Non-Profit Groups Work to Restore Coast After BP Spill

The BP oil spill had a devastating effect on many natural resources on the Gulf Coast, so non-profit groups are working to restore affected areas and the groups want to make sure locals benefit from the work.

Friday, in the woods of the Gulf Islands National Seashore Park in Ocean Springs, a work group collected trash and other debris. Erica Keller of the Texas Conservation Corp says, “The right thing to do is to share that and encourage people to take ownership and interest in their own public lands.”

The cleanup work is part of a larger gulf restoration project, funded by money from the BP oil spill settlement. In the past, this type of work has been done by outside groups, but local non-profits want to train Gulf Coast residents so they can benefit from the settlement. Keller also says, “There are six members with two crew leaders, and I’m the field coordinator or their assigned staff person.”

The non-profits have recruited young adults, many of which are considered at-risk because they haven’t finished high school. Keller also says, “They haven’t really spent a lot of time out in the woods, except maybe on pavement, playing sports, but as far as dislocating into nature, I’m looking forward to the point where they can’t really imagine themselves not having a relationship with nature.”

Tijuana Williams, a restoration trainee, says, “I wanted to go to school for computers and stuff, but once they told me about this, I had to try it.”

Kilo Turner, another restoration trainee, says, “I was attending Youth Build for some time, graduated, you know they always want you to come back ‘cause they keep opening up different opportunities for the youth.”

The current restoration projects are pilot programs for much larger restoration work set to go into effect next year, and the idea of training the local workers now is to prepare them for long term work in the future.

Taylor Wolter, a restoration trainer, closes, “They’re a really great bunch, they’ve caught on really fast, and they’re really taking ownership of these projects we’re doing out here.”