NFWF

About the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation's Gulf Environmental Benefit Fund

The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s (NFWF) Gulf Environmental Benefit Fund (GEBF) was established in early 2013 as a result of the plea agreements resolving the criminal charges against BP and Transocean after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The agreements directed a total of $2.54 billion to GEBF over a five-year period. Under the plea agreements, $356 million was allocated for projects within the state of Florida that “remedy harm to natural resources where there has been injury to, or destruction of, loss of, or loss of use of those resources” resulting from the oil spill. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) and DEP work directly with NFWF to identify GEBF projects for the state of Florida in consultation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The Florida GEBF Restoration Strategy

In 2015, FWC and DEP received funds from NFWF to develop the Florida GEBF Restoration Strategy. This document, completed in 2018, identifies Gulf of America watershed-specific, priority restoration needs based on a comprehensive review of existing conservation and management plans based on NFWF's GEBF funding priorities:

• Restore and maintain the ecological functions of landscape-scale coastal habitats, including barrier islands, beaches and coastal marshes, and ensure their viability and resilience against existing and future threats;
• Restore and maintain the ecological integrity of priority coastal bays and estuaries; and
• Replenish and protect living resources including oysters, red snapper and other reef fish, Gulf Coast bird populations, sea turtles and marine mammals.  

GEBF Projects in Florida

Since 2013, NFWF has approved 47 projects in Florida with a total current value of nearly ~$294 million. For more information on GEBF projects in Florida, visit www.nfwf.org/gulf-environmental-benefit-fund/projects.