Mississippi creates Bonnet Carré Spillway disaster grant program for seafood processors

The U.S. state of Mississippi has created a new grant program to help seafood processors affected by the 2019 Mississippi Bonnet Carré Spillway disaster.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers opened the spillway twice in 2019 to divert floodwater away from populated areas, but the resultant surge of freshwater into the ocean damaged commercial fisheries along the Gulf Coast. In 2020, the U.S. Department of Commerce determined a fishery disaster had taken place and allocated USD 88 million (EUR 80.6 million) in financial aid.

Mississippi received USD 21 million (EUR 19 million) as a result and launched the 2019 Mississippi Bonnet Carré Spillway Fisheries Disaster Recovery Program to distribute the money.

In 2023, the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources (DMR) opened applications for financial relief to commercial fishermen, seafood dealers, aquaculture harvesters, and live-bait fisheries, ultimately awarding USD 6.6 million (EUR 6.2 million) in relief to 416 eligible individuals.

Now, the department has opened up applications to certified Mississippi seafood processors who were affected by the spillway release. Approved businesses could be reimbursed for emerging seafood processing technology, enhancements to existing infrastructure, new equipment, and facility upgrades.

The Mississippi DMR will accept applications through 5 p.m. EDT on 13 September.

In the wake of the 2019 event, Mississippi governments, nonprofits, and businesses sued the Army Corps of Engineers. In January 2023, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi determined that the Army Corps of Engineers must consult NOAA Fisheries before opening the spillway again. The Army Corps of Engineers has appealed the ruling.

“Four years later, Mississippi communities still feel the effects of 2019,” U.S. Senator Roger Wicker (R-Mississippi) said in response to the ruling. “Gulf Coast communities should not be expected to contend with prolonged spillway openings when heavy rain leads to high water upstream. Going forward, the impact of such spillway openings on Mississippi needs to be considered in flood-control operations.”