The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality is seeking review and public comment for pre-proposals for program areas within Texas for Bucket 2/Funded Priorities List (FPL) 4. The five pre-proposals include:
- Protection and conservation of current wetland and future wetland mitigation corridors – This program will protect existing fresh and saltwater wetlands, coastal prairie habitats, and adjacent buffer areas that may serve as wetland migration corridors.
- Oyster reef restoration – To enhance ecological resources and restore the natural habitat of Texas estuarine waters and shorelines, this program supports the restoration of non-commercial oyster reef habitat.
- Enhancing coastal water quality by preserving and rehabilitating natural floodwater pathways – This program will address this issue through protection and improvements to natural features that convey, store, and filter flood waters.
- Barrier-island ecosystem protection and enhancement – This program aims to enhance and protect barrier island habitat using a variety of priority approaches to mitigate the effects of expanding development.
- Protecting and restoring waterbird rookery habitat – This program will address habitat loss of rookery islands as restoration and protection of nesting island habitats support state, federal, and NGO efforts to protect various species of birds.
The 45-day public comment period began February 16 and runs through Friday, March 22 at 5 p.m. CST. On March 5, a public meeting will be held to discuss the five pre-proposals for the upcoming FPL 4. The public meeting will be held at the Harte Research Institute located at 6300 Ocean Dr. in Corpus Christi from 5:30-7 p.m. More information about the pre-proposals can be found on the Texas RESTORE website.