BP Spill Disaster Could End up Working in Favor of Coastal Restoration

"The Deepwater Horizon disaster  dumped about 210 million gallons of poisonous crude oil just off the Louisiana coast, unleashed economic and social chaos across the region, and leaves a shadow of doubt over the future of fish, wildlife and humans that will linger for decades.

But here's a surprise: A coalition of national environmental groups working since 2007 on the effort to restore Louisiana's crumbling coast believes BP's bad behavior may end up saving more of those wetlands than it ever destroyed.

They say three months of daily newscasts have dramatically increased national awareness of the state's real coastal disaster, and the billions in fines BP is expected to pay could bankroll critical projects Congress had refused to fund."

Bob Marshall reports for the New Orleans Times-Picayune August 22, 2010.