"Negotiations between the Natural Resource Trustees and BP has resulted in a $1 billion down payment toward early restoration projects in the Gulf of Mexico for damage to natural resources resulting from the BP oil disaster.

For Mississippi, 'this means our state will receive a minimum of $100 million to use in restoring natural resources,' said Trudy Fisher, head of state Department of Environmental Quality and a trustee in the NRDA process.

The Natural Resource Damage Assessment is conducted by a team of agencies and states to determine the BP oil spill's damage to the region and to encourage BP to pay for the cost of repairing it without going to court."

Karen Nelson reports for the Biloxi Sun Herald April 21, 2011. [2]