Brian Spears May 8, 2015
The April 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico resulted in the largest offshore
oil spill in U.S. history. In response, pursuant to the Oil Pollution Act and associated regulations, federal
and state agencies are working together as trustees on behalf of the public to assess injury to natural
resources and determine the kind and amount of restoration needed to return those resources to prespill conditions. To date, the DWH NRDA trustees have agreed to implement a wide range of early
restoration projects in all five Gulf States. This presentation focuses on projects being led by the U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) on behalf of the U.S. Department of the Interior, designed to partially
compensate the public for injuries to birds and sea turtles and their habitats, and the cutting edge
science guiding their implementation.
The cities of Gulf Shores and Orange Beach, the State of Alabama, the USFWS and the Bureau of
Land Management collectively own and/or manage more than 20 miles of dune habitat in Alabama.
USFWS formed a partnership of these entities, the Coastal Alabama Dune Restoration Cooperative
(CADRC), to restore 55 acres of primary dune habitat by installing native dune vegetation, sand fencing
and informative signs in target areas.
Northern Gulf Coast beaches impacted by the spill provide important nesting habitat for
loggerhead sea turtles. Artificial lighting along these beaches negatively impacts nesting and hatchling
behaviors. The trustees are implementing NRDA restoration to benefit sea turtles by addressing this
issue. USFWS partnered with the State of Florida, Escambia County, Santa Rosa Island Authority and Gulf
Power to develop the first amber light-emitting diodes (LEDs) certified by the State of Florida as seaturtle friendly. These amber LEDs not only balance the needs of nesting sea turtles and public safety, but
are also extremely energy efficient and are expected to last for more than 15 years, significantly
reducing replacement and maintenance costs. These new technology characteristics represent attractive
incentives for bulb owners, power companies, and natural resource managers to use these bulbs and
fixtures near sea turtle beaches.
Gulf beaches provide nesting habitat for beach-nesting birds. Undisturbed stretches of coast are
key components required for their life cycles. As part of a larger project reducing disturbance to nesting
habitat for beach-nesting birds in Alabama and Florida, USFWS is implementing work to manage
disturbance to beach nesting birds within Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge in Alabama and St.
Vincent National Wildlife Refuge in Florida. Work includes installing symbolic fencing around sensitive
beach-nesting sites and increased surveillance and monitoring of sites to minimizing disturbance.
Adaptive management of the project includes incorporating lessons learned regarding effective
management of the human use of beaches and monitoring to evaluate ongoing site-specific threats and
project effectiveness.
North Breton Island, part of Breton National Wildlife Refuge and located at the southern end of
the Chandeleur Island chain in Louisiana, is recognized as a globally important bird area and hosts one of
Louisiana’s largest historical brown pelican nesting colonies. Erosion from tides and storms, however,
constitutes a major and ongoing threat to its longevity. As part of a larger NRDA restoration project to
restore four barrier islands in Louisiana, USFWS is collaborating with the State of Louisiana, U.S.
Geologic Survey, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to
enhance North Breton Island to partially compensate the public for injuries to brown pelicans, terns,
skimmers and gulls, species injured by the spill. Proposed restoration work incorporates established
methods used in other Louisiana barrier island restoration projects. However, the location and sitespecific dynamics of the island system pose unique engineering and design challenges. The project
design team is using cutting edge methodology and modeling to evaluate the location of sand resources,
potential changes in wave patterns following project implementation, and longevity of restoration
design options. Restoration actions will facilitate natural evolutionary processes to extend island
longevity, including erosion and longshore transport of sand.
Brian Spears May 8, 2015
Primary corresponding author:
Brian Spears
DWH NRDAR Field Office
341 Greeno Road North, Suite A
Fairhope, AL
(251) 928-9765
brian_spears@fws.gov
Brian Spears is the Restoration Program Manager for the USFWS Deepwater Horizon NRDAR program.
Primary duties include developing alternatives to restore bird resources injured by the BP spill. Prior to
his current position, he served as a USFWS biologist leading toxicological investigations and restoration
planning and implementation in the Coeur d’Alene Basin (ID), Crab Orchard NWR (IL), and Rocky
Mountain Arsenal NWR (CO). Experience also includes work at bird-related field projects in Arizona, New
Mexico, Colorado, Oklahoma and Kansas. Brian holds a Bachelor’s degree in Ecology and Evolutionary
Biology (University of Arizona) and a Master’s degree in Wildlife Science (Texas Tech University).