Congresswoman Kathy Castor issued the following statement regarding the release today of the Gulf Coast Restoration Plan. The Gulf Coast Restoration Plan outlines a series of recommendations, including asking Congress to dedicate money from the civil Clean Water Act to the Gulf Coast’s recovery. Under existing law, BP will be fined for every barrel of oil spilled.

“The fines and penalties to be paid by BP for its Deepwater Horizon blowout disaster must be directed to Gulf Coast restoration and recovery, and I will get right to work drafting legislation to implement that proposal as soon as possible. Taxpayers must not be left on the hook for one dime of BP’s disaster. I will also make sure as I draft the new law that Florida gets its fair share of dollars directed to environmental restoration and scientific research by our universities and research institutes. The BP oil disaster was one of the worst environmental disasters of our time, and wreaked havoc on our beautiful Gulf Coast and on our recovering economy. It is the responsibility of BP to quickly step up and pay the fines they owe our country and our Gulf Coast community. Investing this money directly back into the Gulf Coast is a sound and logical approach to making our region whole.

“Florida deserves money for short-term recovery and for long-term restoration. We must direct some of the money toward investing in robust independent research, the type being conducted by researchers at the University of South Florida, Eckerd College, Florida Aquarium, Mote Marine Laboratory and other colleges and universities throughout Florida. We also must remain committed to marketing our tourism economy and remediating any environmental damage done to our state. That is why I am working on drafting legislation to implement the recommendations from this plan and to make sure Florida’s needs are addressed.

“When Navy Secretary Ray Mabus visited St. Petersburg last month, I joined him at a town hall meeting. We heard the fears and concerns of hundreds of Floridians who saw their ecosystem and, in some cases, their livelihood destroyed by the BP oil disaster. We heard some ask for a citizens and stakeholders advisory council, and I am glad to see that a Gulf Coast Recovery Council and a Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Task Force will be created.

“I have continued conversations with Secretary Mabus and Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa Jackson to stress to them how severely Florida was affected by the blowout. The proposal released today is a great first step, and I look forward to working to ensure the people of Florida get the money they need to recover from this tragedy.”

After the town hall with Mabus at USF-St. Pete, Castor wrote the Navy secretary a letter outlining the concerns of Florida Gulf Coast residents and making recommendations for restoring the Gulf Coast. Among Castor’s recommendations: investing in research, developing a fisheries marketing plan, promoting tourism, making permanent the 235-mile drilling buffer off of Florida, attacking the dead zone from the Mississippi River, creating an advisory council, studying the effects of dispersants and using restoration as a jobs plan for the Gulf Coast region. Castor has been working since the oil disaster to hold BP accountable and has secured $10 million from BP for Florida’s university researchers.