Louisiana and Open Ocean Trustees Begin Writing Restoration Plan for the Chandeleur Islands

The Louisiana and Open Ocean Trustee Implementation Groups are jointly developing a Draft Restoration Plan that will evaluate options for restoration of the Chandeleur Islands to address injuries to multiple resources caused by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.  

The Chandeleur Islands provide a vital ecosystem supporting 79 wildlife and plant species classified as “Species of Greatest Conservation Need” by the State of Louisiana. They are recognized as a “Globally Significant Bird Area” by the National Audubon Society and are home to the largest seagrass beds in the northern Gulf of Mexico. To address this regionally and globally significant ecosystem, three Deepwater Horizon Trustee Implementation Groups are investing in the Islands’ restoration. First, through its 2021 Restoration Plan #1, the Regionwide Trustee Implementation Group invested in focused restoration planning for the Chandeleur Islands by funding data collection and engineering and design efforts. Now, the Louisiana and Open Ocean Trustees are building upon the Regionwide Trustees’ initial investment by integrating these ongoing efforts into the Restoration Plan development process, which will evaluate providing funding for project implementation.

The Louisiana and Open Ocean Trustees are undertaking this restoration planning effort to restore natural resources in the Louisiana and Open Ocean Restoration Areas injured by the Deepwater Horizon spill, and to compensate the public for the lost services those resources provided before the spill. This restoration plan and environmental assessment will address two of the Trustee Council’s Programmatic Damage Assessment and Restoration Plan programmatic goals: “Replenish and Protect Living Coastal and Marine Resources” and “Restore and Conserve Habitat.” Together these goals are intended to benefit injured habitat and coastal and marine resources such as submerged aquatic vegetation, birds, sea turtles, and fish, including those of the Chandeleur Islands.  

The Louisiana and Open Ocean Trustees expect to release a draft of the plan and associated environmental analyses in the first half of 2025. The public will have the opportunity to review and provide input on the draft plan. After the public comment period ends, the Trustees will review, consider, and incorporate public comments, as appropriate, before releasing a final restoration plan.  

The Trustees will ensure development of the Restoration Plan for the Chandeleur Islands is consistent with the Trustee Council’s Programmatic Damage Assessment and Restoration Plan, the Oil Pollution Act, the National Environmental Policy Act, their implementing regulations, and all applicable Federal and state laws.