Louisiana Restoration Area

Pelicans

American white pelican (foreground) and brown pelican in the Gulf of Mexico.
Credit: Fish and Wildlife Service

Restoration work in the Louisiana Restoration Area focuses on restoring wetlands, coastal, and nearshore habitats, restoring water quality and habitat, and replenishing and protecting wildlife and marine resources, such as sea turtles, dolphins, birds, and oysters. We are also providing and enhancing recreational opportunities and restoring habitats on federal lands.

Together, the trustees are restoring natural resources—and the services they provide—that were injured by the spill. We are developing project-specific restoration plans that are consistent with the resource allocations laid out in the programmatic restoration plan (see chart below).

With an understanding that the use of restoration funds will be guided by specific criteria, Louisiana is committed to maximizing its investment in oil spill recovery activities by implementing restoration projects that are consistent with the Louisiana Coastal Master Plan to the extent possible. 

As part of the restoration planning process, we are continuing to accept restoration project ideas from the public. The public also has the opportunity to review and comment on proposed project-specific restoration plans for the Louisiana Restoration Area. Once a plan is approved, we will implement and monitor the selected projects.

Restoration Plans

Louisiana Phase 2 Restoration Plan 7.1
Louisiana Restoration Plan 8
Louisiana Phase 2 Restoration Plan 3.2
Louisiana Restoration Plan 7
Louisiana Phase 2 Restoration Plan 1.2
Louisiana Restoration Plan 5
Louisiana Phase 2 Restoration Plan 3.3
Louisiana Restoration Plan 6
Louisiana Restoration Plan 4
Louisiana Phase 2 Restoration Plan 1.3
Louisiana Phase 2 Restoration Plan 1.1
Louisiana Restoration Plan 2
Louisiana Restoration Plan 3
Louisiana Restoration Plan 1

Recent News

Looking for a particular news item or document related to the Louisiana, Open Ocean Restoration Page? View the story archive.

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a pass is shown amongst brown land and green islands

The Deepwater Horizon Louisiana Trustee

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seven men and women stand in hardhats holding shovels at a groundbreaking ceremony

Louisiana’s Coastal Protection and Restoration

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a pelican sits in its nest with a few smaller birds in the background

The  Deepwater Horizon Louisiana Trustee

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Construction equipment and barge in marsh

Construction is currently underway on the almost 1

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Pelicans flying around a rocky shoreline

The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group is

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Brown pelicans and laughing gulls nesting on a restored Louisiana island.

The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group held

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On a Mississippi Gulf Coast beach looking out to the water with a pier.

The Deepwater Horizon oil spill Natural Resource

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Aerial view of wetlands and marsh with a large excavator working among the landscape.

The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group (TIG)

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Anglers fishing on kayaks in Texas, near Port Aransas. Copyright Texas Parks and Wildlife

The Trustee Council will hold its sixth annual

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Landscape view of marsh and tidal wetlands on the Louisiana coast.

The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group is

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Aerial view of North Breton Island.

On December 9, 2020 construction began on North

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Marsh in Louisiana.

Update: The September 9 Annual Meeting

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A school of Horse-eye jacks in Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary in the Gulf of Mexico.

The Trustee Council will hold its fifth annual

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Sunset over dunes and marsh in Destin Florida, a dolphin dorsal fin breaches the water in the foreground.

In 2019, the Deepwater Horizon Trustees continued

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Human hand holds half an oyster shell.

Updated on April 17, 2020 - Materials from the

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Governor John Bell Edwards in front of a project dedication sign.

Standing on the newly restored Queen Bess Island

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A beach at Cypremort Point State Park at sunset.

The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group is

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Children learn about wetlands while a science educator holds a juvenile alligator. Photo: Louisiana Sea Grant

The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group has

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Aerial view of a Louisiana barrier island.

The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group is

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Equipment delivers sand onto a sliver of an island in the Gulf of Mexico.

A Deepwater Horizon project to restore 37 acres of

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Aerial view of a Louisiana barrier island.

The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group held

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Aerial view of boats navigating waters in a marsh on the Louisiana coast. Credit: State of Louisiana

The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group will

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An aerial view of Shell Island East, a barrier island with sand dunes and other habitat also helping with coastal resilience.

Notice of Solicitation of Project Ideas The

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An aerial view of Louisiana's Barataria Basin.

The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group has

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An adult pelican greets juveniles on Queen Bess Island.

The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group has

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Marsh and water habitat in Louisiana. Credit: Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority.

The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group has

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Dredged sediment pumping out of a pipe to help build coastal ecosystems.

The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group will

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A diver operates a camera in a coral nursery.

The Trustees are committed to providing annual

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Satellite image shows sediment pouring out of the Mississippi River and into the Gulf after large storms and flooding in the central U.S. Credit: NASA

The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group

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Two people fishing from kayaks

The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group is

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Large oyster

The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group is

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diamondback terrapins are released into the marsh at Chenier Ronquille barrier island

On July 6, NOAA, the Louisiana Coastal Protection

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aerial view of Barataria basin

The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group is

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man fishing on Louisiana coast

The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group is

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green turtle on a beach

It’s been one year since we settled with BP and

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Lake Hermitage marsh creation

The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group is

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cutter section dredge

We're almost finished with construction of the

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pelican lifting off from marsh in Louisiana

The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group has

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Louisiana fishing boats

Due to site issues that arose during planning and

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barrier island restoration in Louisiana

The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group is

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brown pelicans on the beach

The Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group

Projects

Projects led by the trustees for the Louisiana Restoration Area are below. Use the filters below to search for specific projects. Learn more about individual projects below or view them in our interactive map. You can also learn about the environmental compliance for each of these projects

Planning

Planning led by the trustees for the Louisiana Restoration Area are below. Use the filters below to search for specific planning efforts.
Louisiana Allocation of Restoration Funds

The chart shows the restoration funding allocated to the Louisiana Restoration Area for each restoration goal and the percentage of committed funds as of May 2024. For more information on the allocation of funds, please visit the Department of Justice Deepwater Horizon page.

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la funding 2024

Monitoring and Adaptive Management

The Louisiana Restoration Area considers monitoring and adaptive management throughout its restoration efforts.

To find project-related monitoring and adaptive management information, click on the project names in the Projects table above or in the interactive project map.

Looking for information about Gulf of Mexico Colonial Waterbirds? View the Avian Data Monitoring Portal.

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screenshot of the avian monitoring portal

In addition to project-specific monitoring, we developed a Monitoring and Adaptive Management Strategy (MAM Strategy, PDF, 44 pages) that provides a framework to inform restoration planning and evaluate the outcomes of Louisiana Restoration Area restoration. Learn more about the Louisiana MAM Strategy in a webstory describing the strategy and its goals. 

In July 2023, Louisiana approved nine monitoring and adaptive management activities, to help assess the overall effectiveness of Louisiana's restoration outcomes.

Trustee Implementation Group

The trustees for the Louisiana Restoration Area are:

  • Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority
  • Louisiana Oil Spill Coordinator’s Office
  • Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality
  • Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
  • Louisiana Department of Natural Resources
  • U.S. Department of the Interior
  • National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
  • U.S. Department of Agriculture
  • U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

Contact: latig@la.gov