The group of agencies charged with restoring Louisiana’s natural resources after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, including NOAA, recently released the Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion Final Restoration Plan. The plan evaluates using a large-scale sediment diversion to reconnect the Mississippi River to Louisiana's Barataria Basin estuary. If ultimately permitted and funded, this $2 billion, first-of-its-kind project would restore more than 13,000 acres of wetlands and contribute to the broader restoration of the Barataria Basin ecosystem, which was heavily impacted by the spill. Contact: Mel Landry.

NOAA has awarded 13 new projects a combined total of roughly $1.4 million as part of the Chesapeake Bay-Watershed Education and Training program. The new projects are based in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, Delaware, and New York. This year’s new grants support projects to help school districts deliver Meaningful Watershed Educational Experiences, which combine outdoor and classroom learning, to help students investigate local environmental issues. Fourteen continuing projects are also being funded. Contact: Elise Trelegan.

NOAA Fisheries has announced funding to continue 12 ongoing habitat restoration efforts in 2022. These projects are restoring habitats for coastal and marine species in nine states and territories across the country. They are helping to support our nation’s fisheries, contribute to the recovery of threatened and endangered species, and build resilient coastal ecosystems and communities. Contact: Jessica Edwards.

A restoration project has brought dramatic changes to the site of a former golf course in Akron, Ohio. Through a project at the Valley View area of Cascade Valley Metro Park, NOAA and partners restored nearly 60 acres of habitat and 5,000 feet of shoreline along the Cuyahoga River. Contact: Ryan Darnton.

Excavators recently breached a dike along the Snohomish River, allowing floodwaters to pour into farmland that had subsided below sea level. Part of a restoration project made possible by funds recovered from legal settlements to restore habitat damaged by hazardous waste, the 353-acre area was made ready as a nursery estuary for nine species of fish–including the threatened Puget Sound Chinook salmon, the preferred food of Southern Resident orcas. Contact: Paul Cereghino.

Climate change is threatening coral reefs worldwide. Corals bleached less in 2019 than anticipated, but bleaching events are increasingly occurring in the Hawaiian Islands. The frequency of these events is unprecedented in the archipelago. NOAA scientists and partners have determined that the key drivers of the bleaching were environmental factors and human impacts.

NOAA wants you to have the latest, most accurate information on Ian to keep you informed. Here is a compilation of information that you can use to have the most current forecasted weather conditions and after storm resources for your area.

The United States is recognized as a global leader in sustainable seafood for both wild-caught and farmed species. Join NOAA Fisheries for National Seafood Month 2022 and savor delicious seafood along the way.

Up to $10 million in funding is available for habitat restoration and resilience awards for underserved communities, to provide capacity for these communities to more fully participate in developing future transformational habitat projects under Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. Applications are now due October 14.