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Gulf Guardian Award Winners 2004
Civic/Nonprofit Organization Category - 2nd Place
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Dec. 1, 2004
TAMPA BAY WATCH WINS 2ND PLACE GULF GUARDIAN AWARD
STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. – The Gulf of Mexico Program today presented Tampa Bay Watch, Inc., with a second place Gulf Guardian Award for 2004 in the Civic and Non Profit Category for the MacDill Air Force Base Oyster Reef Dome Project. The award ceremony was held aboard the Creole Queen Riverboat in New Orleans, La.
Tampa Bay Watch, in cooperation with MacDill Air Force Base and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, constructed an environmentally friendly shoreline restoration project designed to reduce erosion and promote new habitats in Tampa Bay, Fla. Members installed 910 marine friendly, concrete oyster domes; 28 tons of clean washed three-inch oyster shell, and 5,000 salt marsh grasses on the southeastern coast of MacDill Air Force Base. This partnership with the military, federal wildlife agencies, local schools and the Tampa Bay Watch non profit organization provided the framework to accomplish one of the most innovative shoreline stabilization and restoration projects in Florida
"The Gulf Guardian Award winners for 2004 are prime examples of collaborative environmental efforts leading to neighborhood solutions that transcend political boundaries,” said Benjamin Grumbles, EPA Assistant Administrator for Water in Washington, D.C. “I commend all of the winners for their innovative partnerships, common sense ideas, and hard work. Their efforts are making a difference in protecting and restoring the Gulf of Mexico.”
The Gulf of Mexico Program initiated the Gulf Guardian awards in 2000 as a way to recognize and honor the businesses, community groups, individuals, and agencies that are taking positive steps to keep the Gulf healthy, beautiful and productive. The Gulf of Mexico Program began in 1988 to protect, restore, and maintain the health and productivity of the Gulf of Mexico ecosystem in economically sustainable ways. Award entries were received from Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas. A first, second, and third place award are given each year in six categories – individual, business, youth and education, nonprofit organizations, government, and partnership efforts.
Gulf of Mexico Program Office Director Bryon O. Griffith said, “This year’s Gulf Guardian Award winners encapsulate the essence of the Gulf of Mexico Program and our efforts to attain environmental solutions in concert with economic growth.” “Environmental successes are exponential when you bring the resources of many to the table, as the 2004 winners have so successfully demonstrated.”
For a list of all the Gulf Guardian Award winners for 2004, visit the Gulf of Mexico Program web site at https://www.epa.gov/gmpo and click on the Gulf Guardian Award button.
The Gulf of Mexico Program is underwritten by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and is a non-regulatory, inclusive consortium of state and federal government agencies and representatives of the business and agricultural community, fishing industry, scientists, environmentalists, and community leaders from all five Gulf States. The Gulf Program seeks to improve the environmental health of the Gulf in concert with economic development.
Editor’s Note: For more information about the Gulf Guardian
Awards and the Gulf of Mexico Program, call Terry Hines Smith at 228-688-1159.
For more information about Tampa Bay Watch or the MacDill Air Force Base
Oyster Reef Dome Project contact Lisa Shannon or Peter Clark at 727-867-8166.
