“Coastal wetlands serve as some of nature’s most productive fish and wildlife habitat while providing storm protection, improved water quality, and abundant recreational opportunities for local communities,” Salazar said. “I am pleased that with these grants we are able to help our state partners implement some of their high-priority projects that support both conservation and recreation along their coasts.”

The grants will be used to acquire, restore or enhance coastal wetlands and adjacent uplands to provide long-term conservation benefits to fish, wildlife and their habitat. States receiving funds include Alaska, California, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Texas, Virginia and Washington.

The National Coastal Wetlands Conservation Grant Program is administered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and funded under provisions of the 1990 Coastal Wetlands Planning, Protection and Restoration Act. Funding is provided by Sport Fish Restoration Act revenue – money generated from an excise tax on fishing equipment, motorboat and small engine fuels.

The grants support President Obama’s America’s Great Outdoors initiative for conservation, recreation and reconnecting people to the outdoors. A recent 50-State Report lists more than 100 of the country’s most promising projects – a result of 50 meetings with governors and stakeholders held by Salazar and other senior Interior officials to solicit ideas on how to best implement AGO in their states – including two projects that will be supported by today’s grants. These two projects are:

Bird Island Cove Estuarine Habitat Restoration Project – The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department was awarded a $1 million grant to protect and restore coastal and estuarine barrier island habitats in West Galveston Bay along the north shoreline of Galveston Island, Texas. The project will restore approximately 70 acres of estuarine marsh complex, which will provide additional protection to the existing intertidal marsh that has been degraded by the effects of relative sea level rise.
 

Thousand Acre Marsh Wetland Protection Project – The Delaware Division of Fish and Wildlife and Delaware’s Open Space Program will acquire the 194-acre Yardley-Dale property, part of the Thousand Acre Marsh along the Delaware River in New Castle County.  The Thousand Acre Marsh is a haven for breeding and wintering waterfowl, waterbirds, muskrat, and fish. The marsh also provides critical wintering habitat for bald eagles. Delaware Fish and Wildlife plans to install a platform for bird watching with interpretive signage, blinds for duck hunters, and a trail system to provide public access.
Including the 2012 grants, the Service has awarded nearly $300 million to coastal states and territories since the program began in 1992. When the 2012 projects are complete, about 293,000 acres of habitat will have been protected, restored or enhanced as a direct result of these grants.

Coastal areas comprise less than 10 percent of the nation’s land area yet support a significant number of wildlife species, including 75 percent of migratory birds, nearly 80 percent of fish and shellfish and about half of all threatened and endangered species.

A complete list of projects funded by the 2012 grant program can be found online at: http://www.fws.gov/coastal/CoastalGrants/index.html.

Date: January 3, 2012

Contact:
Adam Fetcher, (DOI) 202-208-6416
Valerie Fellows, (FWS) 703-358-2285

http://onlinepressroom.net/fws/

Acting Commissioner David V. Aguilar and Assistant Secretary of Labor for Disability Employment Policy Kathleen Martinez signed an agreement to partner on the Labor Department’s Office of Disability Employment Policy’s Alliance Initiative. (

U.S. Labor Department’s Office of Disability Employment Policy and U.S. Customs and Border Protection Sign Alliance Agreement )

The initiative will accelerate CBP’s ability to reach its goals on disability hiring, said Aguilar during the signing ceremony. The “lifeblood” of the agency is “our people, the assets that our people bring,” he said. “The more diverse we are, the better off we’ll be.”Aguilar reported that 9 percent of employees hired by CBP last year were veterans with disabilities and that 2.09 percent of the agency workforce overall is people with disabilities. The acting commissioner said that the CBP goal is to have a workforce with 3.2 percent of employees with disabilities within five years.The Alliance Initiative enables organizations committed to improving disability workplace practices to work with Labor to develop and implement policies and initiatives that increase recruiting, hiring, advancing and retaining employees with disabilities. The disability employment policy office and CBP will work together to promote effective strategies and practices for disability employment.Labor’s Martinez explained that her office has “very practical information about how to accommodate people, about what to do in certain types of situations.”“We’re on a new path to bring qualified people [to CBP], people who should be expected to complete their jobs if they’re given the proper accommodations,” said Martinez. “And we know you have practical questions and we’re here to help you find answers.”“You guys are really raising the bar,” Martinez added, “and we plan on going shoulder to shoulder, side by side with you.”President Obama signed Executive Order 13548 in July 2010, which set a goal for federal agencies to hire 100,000 people with disabilities over the next five years. Today’s alliance agreement furthers CBP’s full compliance with the executive order and supports CBP’s formal plan to increase employment of individuals with disabilities.The alliance is one the agency’s top priorities for making CBP a model employer of persons with disabilities.A team of representatives from CBP and Labor will meet to develop a plan of action, determine working procedures, and identify the roles and responsibilities of the participants. They will meet at least four times per year to track and share progress toward achieving the alliance goals.

The two public service announcements, titled “Masquerade” and “Bird Cage,” will begin airing July 25 in three key media markets: Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and the Washington, D.C., metro area. All announcements will provide a phone number citizens can call to report suspicious activity.

“Death, disappearance, and enslavement—these too often are the futures that await illegal immigrants who mortgage their lives to human smugglers” said CBP Deputy Commissioner, David V. Aguilar. “These evils are what CBP and our partner agencies within the Department of Homeland Security began to target with last year’s ‘No Te Engañes’ campaign and that we continue to combat with our new ‘Don’t Be Fooled’ efforts.”

 “Trafficking victims live under a crippling fear under the control of their traffickers who’ve filled their minds with lies,” said U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Deputy Director Kumar C. Kibble. “Through CBP’s ‘No Te Engañes’ public service announcement, we hope to reach and rescue the victims who’ve endured much pain and suffering at the hands of callous criminals. ICE is committed to arresting human traffickers and bring them to justice by ensuring that they feel the full weight of the law.”

 “Raising awareness and educating people about the crime of human trafficking and the recruitment methods of traffickers is a vital area of work in the overall anti-trafficking fight,” said Bradley Myles, executive director and CEO of the Polaris Project. “In the United States’ 3-P approach of Protection, Prosecution, and Prevention, new prevention-focused initiatives are needed, and this campaign ensures that people are more equipped with tools to prevent human trafficking before it starts.”

 In February 2010, CBP launched the first phase of the “No Te Engañes” public awareness Spanish language campaign in Central America and Mexico to underscore the dangers of the two most common types of trafficking: sexual slavery and forced labor.

 In July 2010, the Department of Homeland Security launched the Blue Campaign – a first-of-its-kind campaign to coordinate and enhance DHS’s anti-human trafficking activities. It leverages the authorities and resources of DHS to deter human trafficking through a three-pronged strategy of prevention, protecting victims, and prosecution.

 Learn more about No Te Engañes/Don’t Be Fooled on the CBP website: ( No Te Engañes )

 PSAs are available on DVIDS:

CBP “Don’t Be Fooled,” “Masquerade” PSA: ( Video: Masquerade )

CBP “Don’t Be Fooled,” “Birdcage” PSA: ( Video: Birdcage )

CBP “Don’t Be Fooled,” print campaign: ( Video: print campaign )

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation’s borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.
 
Contacts For This News Release 
Jenny Burke
CBP Public Affairs
Phone: (202) 344-1780
Fax: (202) 344-1393