South
Gulf States Form 'Ready 4 Takeoff' Coalition to Fight Oil Spill Effects
August 24, 2010
To fight the negative impact of the BP oil spill on their economies, state and federal officials from Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi and Florida will join local community leaders on Aug. 26 in New Orleans to launch the Gulf Coast Ready 4 Takeoff Coalition, they announced yesterday.
"Over the last decade, the Gulf Coast has been forced to bear the brunt of unprecedented economic challenges, ranging from the severe devastation brought on by Hurricanes Katrina, Ivan and Rita, and most recently, the epic man-made oil spill that tragically struck the coastal communities in April, further crippling the environmental and economic health of the region," reads a statement on the coalition's website.
Comprised of public, private, nonprofit and academic leaders, the coalition, in its own words, "promotes the strength and diversity of the Gulf's economic and cultural assets and advocates regional economic development initiatives that will revitalize the coastal states."
Among the coalition's founding members are U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.); Mayor Sam Jones of Mobile, Ala.; Charles Wood, senior vice president of the Pensacola Bay Area Chamber of Commerce; Ewell Smith of the Louisiana Seafood Promotion Board; Donna Fraiche, original appointee to the Louisiana Recovery Authority; George Freeland, executive director of the Jackson County Economic Development Foundation; and Dave Trent, executive director and chair of the Mobile Chamber of Commerce.
For more information about the new group and its efforts, visit
www.ready4takeoff.org.