Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Alabama’s RESTORE Act Recovery

Overview

On April 20, 2010, an explosion on the Deepwater Horizon offshore drilling platform killed 11 workers and triggered one of the largest environmental disasters in U.S. history. The well, located about 40 miles off the Louisiana coast, released oil into the Gulf of Mexico for nearly three months before it was capped.

Alabama and the other Gulf states experienced direct impacts, including injured wildlife, environmental degradation, fishery closures, reduced tourism, and economic disruption in coastal communities.

Timeline

Legal Action and the RESTORE Act

After the spill, the United States government filed a civil lawsuit against responsible parties, including BP, Transocean, and Halliburton. Alabama also filed suit against BP for damages tied to the spill and its aftermath.

While the cases moved through the courts, Congress created a framework for directing penalty funds back to the Gulf Coast. The resulting RESTORE Act, signed into law on July 6, 2012, dedicates 80% of Clean Water Act civil and administrative penalties related to the spill to the Gulf Coast Restoration Trust Fund.

Settlement Funding

In 2015, the U.S. Department of Justice announced a $20.8 billion settlement with BP, which was finalized in April 2016. Under the RESTORE Act, funds allocated to Gulf states are distributed through five funding components:

Alabama’s Recovery Process

The RESTORE Act requires each Gulf state to designate an entity to carry out required duties. In Alabama, the Alabama Gulf Coast Recovery Council leads project selection, while the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources receives and manages RESTORE funding.

The council includes state, county, port, and municipal representatives from Alabama’s coastal region. ADCNR’s Deepwater Horizon Section works with municipalities, agencies, universities, and nonprofit organizations to implement projects funded through the RESTORE Act.