Jindal
Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal announced Tuesday that his state will spend an estimated $12 million restoring oyster beds and wetlands damaged by the BP oil spill, and then bill the oil company later for the cost.
The announcement comes after BP has questioned whether oil damaged the state's oyster beds or if they were killed off when freshwater from the Mississippi River was diverted to keep oil from reaching the Louisiana coast.
Louisiana's congressional delegation recently wrote a letter to BP urging it to pay the $12 million it had promised to restore the wet lands.
The delegation said that BP has gone back on its promise to pay for the damage caused by the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
According to Jindal, Louisiana will spend $2 million from the Louisiana Oyster Seed Ground Development Account to place oyster clutch on beds to restore the population.
The Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority will contribute $5 million to help build reefs on the Louisiana shore.
The remaining $5 million is to come in federal funds.
It is unclear whether BP will pay back any investment made by Louisiana to restore wetlands.