Jindal Plans $12M For Oyster Bed, Shoreline Rehab

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Governor Bobby Jindal wants to redirect $12 million in state and federal coastal restoration funding to help re-establish oyster reefs and shoreline damaged by the Gulf oil spill.

Jindal announced the plans on Tuesday, saying he expects oil giant BP PLC to ultimately reimburse the spending. BP, however, has yet to agree to reimbursement.

The plans call for $2 million to re-establish oyster beds in public seed grounds, $5 million for engineering shoreline reefs and $5 million to rebuild vegetation and sand fencing along the shore.

The dollars would be taken from three different accounts for oyster development and coastal restoration programs. A $5 million slice of the cash is from federal funds and will need federal approval for the redirection.