2012 marks Mobile Baykeeper’s 15th anniversary, and we have spent the end of 2011 planning for the future.  We’ve cleaned off our desks and are gearing up to kick off this new year with a focused effort to see lasting change for our environment, economy and communities.

Hello! Allow me to introduce myself, my name is Bethany Olson, and I am the new Oil Response VISTA for Mobile Baykeeper. 

And good day to you! My name is Kandice O’Grady, and like Bethany, I am also the new Oil Response VISTA, atAlabama Coastal Foundation. 

Mobile Baykeeper responds to environmental concerns in the Mobile Bay Watershed in a number of ways, but one of the most important things that we do is respond to “Member Concerns”.   These concerns from our members and our community are the crux of our work.  They guide the issues we work on and the projects we pursue.  The most obvious of these is last summer’s oil disaster.  We received thousands of calls in response to the Deepwater Horizon explosion and the concerns our community had about oil washing ashore in Alabama.  

One of the most exciting things going on these days at Mobile Baykeeper is our involvement in the 100-1000: Restore Coastal Alabama partnership.  Mobile Baykeeper is one of four administrative partners, along with Alabama Coastal Foundation, The Nature Conservancy, and The Ocean Foundation.  100-1000 is a public/private partnership with a goal to build 100 miles of oyster reef and plant and promote 1000 acres of sea and marsh grasses over the next 5 years.  These are ambitious goals, and for the project to succeed we need community involvement and support.