State of Alabama FINAL Coastal Impact Assistance Program (CIAP ...

AL2-10
Year 1 $ 10,000,000.00
Year 2 $
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Year 3 $
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Year 4 $
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GOAL: Using CIAP funding, the State of Alabama will acquire and conserve sensitive habitat throughout
the coastal area.
OBJECTIVE: The objective of this project is to acquire approximately 5,000 acres of sensitive land
for conservation in the Escatawpa River Corridor and/or other sensitve habitats within
coastal Mobile County.
Southwestern and western Mobile County has many opportunities for land acquisition projects.
First, the Escatawpa River forms the western border between Alabama and Mississippi. The total acreage
of the Escatawpa River Longleaf Hills project area is 20,000 acres, owned by one family trust. Analysis of
GIS data indicates that this 20,000 acre tract is comprised of 75 percent upland and 20 percent wetland
forests, with the remaining five percent being open water. Much of the upland forested land is naturally
regenerated timber, with large components of longleaf pine. The tract is intersected by 25 miles of the
Escatawpa River (about 30 percent of its entire length) and 29 miles of tributary stream of this classic
blackwater river system. The Escatawpa River is a major tributary to the Pasagagoula River, which in turn
is part of the Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve’s watershed area. The tract encompasses
both banks of large portions of the Escatawpa and its tributaries, directly protecting the river and the
system’s water quality, and, ultimately, the health of the estuaries at the Pascagoula River’s termination in
the Gulf of Mexico. The tract is readily manageable and strategically located to initiate a regional
conservation project that will protect the biodiversity of this relatively small but extremely unique
blackwater stream watershed. Thousands of acres of southeastern longleaf pine habitat along with
bottomland wetland make up this area. The objective of this project is to acquire 5,000 acres of this target
tract. This project complements a Mobile County Tier Two Project: ‘Escatawpa Hollow River Park
Acquisition and Improvements’. In this project, Mobile County will acquire a key parcel to access the
Escatawpa River conservation land targeting in this project.
Second, coastal Mobile County has many opportunities for land acquisition. The State of Alabama and the
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve) have already acquired
almost 10,000 acres of this unique wetland habitat. Additional parcels may be available for purchase in this
area which will link and enhance existing conservation property.
Using CIAP funding, the State of Alabama will acquire and conserve sensitive habitat throughout the
coastal area. The objective of this project is to acquire approximately 5,000 acres of sensitive land for
conservation in the Escawtawpa River and/or coastal Mobile County. The property will be managed by
the SLD and deed will be restricted according to program requirements.
State of Alabama Final Coastal Impact Assistance Program Plan
State of Alabama Tier Two Project Descriptions
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