Commission hears $13 million in federal foundation funds to restore Little Dolphin Island

County staff told commissioners the Little Dolphin Island restoration project has secured major foundation support and interagency cooperation to shore up vulnerable shoreline and habitat.

"It has been over a year. We've been working collaboratively with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Department of Conservation, [and] U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to put together this project," Tina, a county project presenter, said. She described two funding streams from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation — the Gulf Environmental Benefit Fund (oil-spill dollars) and the National Coastal Resilience Fund — and explained the plan to beneficially use dredged material from the Mobile Harbor project to rebuild island habitat. Staff later announced an additional $3,000,000 award, bringing the total cited in the meeting to $13,000,000.

Staff also presented item 13, a memorandum of agreement with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Mobile District, to allow beneficial use of dredged material in conjunction with the harbor project and the island restoration. The presenter emphasized both environmental and economic benefits, saying the island protects shoreline infrastructure and nearby charter-boat access. The agreement and grants were presented as pending legal review; no formal vote on the MOA was recorded in the transcript during this session.