Beall's department stores, in partnership with
sport fishing artist Guy Harvey, has pledged to
raise $150,000 by Dec. 31, 2010, for the Guy
Harvey Ocean Foundation, for research on Gulf
fisheries management and oil spill effects on
Gulf marine life. Beall's and Harvey are
contributing $10 for each 20 Harvey shirts sold.
Beall's is also contributing a portion of sales
from its own "Save Our Gulf" products and
offering a 15% store discount for a $3 donation.
[Read more
here and
here]
Community Foundation of Sarasota County
The Community Foundation of Sarasota County has
activated the Disaster Relief Fund for the Gulf
oil spill crisis. Donations to fund will be held
while the foundation learns more about the
crisis and determines where assistance can be
best directed. Proceeds from the fund will
support nonprofits engaged in first-response
work to help communities most affected by the
oil spill. [Read
More]
Community Foundation of the Florida Keys
The Community Foundation of the Florida Keys has
created a Florida Keys Oil Spill Resource page
with information on how the Keys community is
preparing for the potential impact of the spill
in the region. [Read
More]
Greater Escambia Community Foundation
The Greater Escambia Community Foundation in
Pensacola, FL, has
opened the Pensacola Environmental Relief Fund.
Proceeds from this fund will support nonprofit
agencies engaged in first response work to help
the communities most affected by the oil spill
in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties. [Read
More]
Greater New Orleans Foundation
The Greater New Orleans Foundation has created
the Gulf Coast Oil Spill Fund to support work
that helps the communities most affected by the
oil spill in Plaquemines, St. Bernard, and lower
Jefferson Parishes and to support long-term
recovery efforts that will help strengthen
coastal communities against future environmental
catastrophes. [Read
More]
Gulf Coast Community Foundation of Venice
The Gulf Coast Community Foundation of Venice
awarded a $60,000 grant to help Mote Marine
Laboratory respond to potential impacts from the
Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Mote will use
the grant to begin five important activities:
conduct sampling of water, sediments, bottom
dwelling organisms, and sea grass; conduct
mollusk sampling (primarily clams and oysters);
activate underwater robots to patrol the coast
from south Tampa Bay to the Florida Keys for
oil; sample the phytoplankton community; and
create a detailed oil response plan that covers
a number of different scenarios so that our area
will be well-positioned to receive federal or
British Petroleum funds. [Read
More]
Walt Disney World/Disney Worldwide Conservation
Fund
Eight sea turtles injured by the oil spill in
the Gulf of Mexico are being rehabilitated at Walt
Disney World Resort under the care of Disney
animal experts. In addition, Disney Worldwide
Conservation Fund (DWCF), supported by Disney’s
Friends for Change: Project Green, has donated
$100,000 to help with environmental and animal
rescue efforts, including $50,000 to The
National Audubon Society for their response in
the Gulf. Another $50,000 in grants from the
DWCF Rapid Response Fund is being awarded to
various grassroots organizations assisting with
the cleanup. [Read
More]
Wells Fargo and the Wachovia Wells Fargo
Foundation
Wells Fargo and the Wachovia Wells Fargo
Foundation have contributed $25,000 to the
Greater Escambia Community Foundation's
Environmental Relief Fund; $15,000 to the
University of South Florida's College of Marine
Science to upgrade their Slocum Gliders used for
a variety of measurements of water quality in
the Gulf; and $3,000 to the Save Our Seas
Fundraiser in Sarasota benefiting Mote Marine
Laboratory's work in the Gulf.
Audubon of Florida has created a special fund to
rescue oiled wildlife, should it become necessary, and
to underwrite advocacy to protect Florida's beaches and
coastal birds and wildlife. It has also set up a
clearinghouse for volunteers.
Green Living Energy
Education is mobilizing volunteers for oil spill
clean-up of beaches in the Florida Keys. The group
has divided up the Keys into a Coast Watch map that
offers a grid at www.KeysSpill.com where trained
volunteers can pick a portion of beach to clean, plus a
coastal cleanup checklist and other critical
information.
>
Mote Marine Laboratory plans to conduct certain key
baseline assessments in the Gulf and archive samples for
future analysis, so that the impacts of the oil spill
can be measured. This will help ensure that data on the
effects of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill cannot be
disputed for lack of baseline samples - as was the case
in the Exxon Valdez spill. Mote scientists are
also mobilizing to react to oil spill impacts in other
ways, should Florida's shores and wildlife be affected.
>
The National Park
Foundation's Disaster Recovery Fund is collecting
donations to help national parks impacted by the Gulf
oil spill. Donations to the Fund through July 1 will go
directly to National Park Service efforts in the Gulf
Coast region including park enhancements, education and
environmental monitoring. No funds will go towards
mitigating BP's responsibilities. Donations can be
given online or by texting PARKS to
90999 on your cellphone.
>
The National
Wildlife Federation has established the Gulf Oil
Spill Restoration Fund to help the wildlife at risk by
the oil spill in the Gulf. Donations to this fund will
go toward supporting NWF's immediate response and longer
term on-the-ground work to safeguard wildlife affected
by this tragedy. People can give $10 to the Fund by
texting from a cellphone: WILDLIFE to 20222.
>
The
Nature Conservancy has created a Fund for
Gulf Coast Restoration to help the organization carry
out the necessary long-term restoration work in the Gulf
and states along its coast, to restore the Gulf’s
health, productivity and resilience. People can
give $10 to the Fund by texting from a cellphone: COAST
to 50555.
>
Save Our Gulf
is a project of Waterkeeper Alliance to support and
coordinate the efforts of Gulf Waterkeepers who are
fighting to protect the Gulf Coast, its communities and
environment from the devastating BP oil disaster,
including the Emerald Coastkeeper and Apalachicola
Riverkeeper in Florida.
>
Save Our
Seabirds in Sarasota, FL, which says it has had an
85% rescue rate for oil-slicked seabirds, has an Oiled
Wildlife Response Team on standby waiting for the
official call to respond.
>
Suncoast
Seabird Sanctuary and Avian Hospital in Indian
Shores, FL, has trained staff on standby to assist with
the Gulf Oil Spill Crisis, with over 400 volunteers on
call if needed. The Sanctuary staff and volunteers were
a significant workforce in the disastrous Tampa Bay 1993
oil spill and has experienced avian care staff on
standby to assist Tri-State Bird Rescue and Research.
>
The
Turtle Hospital in Key West, FL, is preparing
emergency tanks and gathering emergency clean-up
supplies to assist in turtle rescue, in case sea turtles
in the Florida Keys become impacted by the oil spill.
>
United Way Gulf Recovery Fund will provide emergency
assistance - such as help with food, rent and utilities
- in communities impacted by the oil spill, and support
long-term recovery efforts to rebuild lives devastated
by the disaster by addressing educational, financial and
health-related challenges. In addition, funds will
enable all who need help, or want to volunteer help, to
have an easy, single point of contact by dialing 2-1-1.
People can give $10 to the Fund by texting from a cellphone: UNITED to 50555.
Florida Department of Environmental Protection The Florida Department of Environmental
Protection has been designated the lead state agency for
responding to potential impacts of the Deepwater Horizon
oil spill along Florida's shoreline, and its website
provides regular updates and information on response
actions and impacts to the state of Florida.
Pensacola
News Journal Oil Spill Coverage The Pensacola
News Journal's website provides complete, ongoing
coverage of the oil spill's impact in the Pensacola
region - the first region in Florida to suffer the
direct effects of the disaster.
>
Volunteer Florida Volunteer Florida has
information on how to volunteer to help with the Gulf
Oil Spill Crisis and links to related resources.
