February 10, 2021 — Congress recently moved to invest in the nation’s estuaries, including two in the First State.
The Protect and Restore America’s Estuaries Act was signed into law last month – doubling funding for the National Estuary Program.
It can now receive up to $50 million for use across 28 estuary programs nationwide.
“This is great news for Delaware because it means that there will be more support for two of our estuaries – the Delaware River and Bay and the Inland Bays,” said Chris Bason, the executive director for the Delaware Center for the Inland Bays. “The support will be for the National Estuary Program (NEP), which works collaboratively with communities to protect and restore the fish and wildlife habitat and the water quality of our estuaries.”
Bason says the most Congress could send Delaware’s way is $1 million per estuary program in the state.
Bason says that would be a significant increase and bolster work to educate residents and visitors about Delaware’s estuaries.