ATLANTA, Aug. 23, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Southern Company,
along with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) and
other public and private partners, has announced the 2017 national
grants under the Gulf Coast Conservation Grant Program (GCCGP).
Southern Company-sponsored grants help fund projects that restore
and maintain the ecology of coastal bird species across
Mississippi, Alabama and Florida.
The following organizations have been awarded GCCGP grants
supported by Southern Company's Power of Flight Program:
Wildlife Mississippi
will place 80 acres of grassland in Jackson County, Miss., under permanent
conservation easement. The project will protect an agricultural
property that provides important habitat for the critically
endangered Mississippi sandhill
crane and is currently used by up to nine cranes, which is seven
percent of the wild population, for foraging and raising colts.
The Southeastern Association of Fish and Wildlife will
promote water conservation best management practices on 6,000 acres
of agricultural lands within the Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint (ACF) River basin. The
project will protect flow to benefit habitat for six federally
listed mussel species, gulf sturgeon and a host of other endemic
species native to the Chipola River and ACF basin.
"We believe in being a good steward wherever we serve and our
support of the Gulf Coast Conservation Grant Program is one of the
many ways we are doing that," said Southern Company Environmental
and System Planning Vice President Jeff
Burleson. "Through the Power of Flight Program, we are
helping to conserve critical bird species and improve the Gulf
Coast's ecosystem, which is inextricably tied to the health of our
coastal economy and tourism."
The GCCGP supports a variety of conservation projects that focus
on enhancing coastal habitats and bolstering priority fish and
wildlife populations along the Gulf of
Mexico. Southern Company and NFWF have partnered through the
Power of Flight Program since 2003, which has restored or enhanced
more than 478,000 acres of high-priority habitat for bird species,
including red-cockaded woodpecker, northern bobwhite quail,
whooping crane, coastal waterbirds and shorebirds, and other
imperiled species. To date, 89 Power of Flight-supported projects
have been implemented across the Southeast in states where Southern
Company's electric-utility subsidiaries are located.
"Successful conservation programs operating at this scale
wouldn't be possible without bringing together the public and
private sectors," said Jeff
Trandahl, executive director and CEO at NFWF. "Innovative
partnerships like these drive the overall success of the Gulf Coast
Conservation Grant Program, which in turn ensures that critical
on-the-ground conservation work gets done throughout the Gulf
Coast."
In addition to Southern Company and NFWF, other public-private
partners include Shell Marine & Wildlife Habitat Program, the
U.S. Department of Agriculture's Natural Resources Conservation
Service and others.
About Southern Company
Southern Company (NYSE: SO) is America's premier energy company,
with 46,000 megawatts of generating capacity and 1,500 billion
cubic feet of combined natural gas consumption and throughput
volume serving 9 million customers through its subsidiaries. The
company provides clean, safe, reliable and affordable energy
through electric operating companies in four states, natural gas
distribution companies in seven states, a competitive generation
company serving wholesale customers across America and a nationally
recognized provider of customized energy solutions, as well as
fiber optics and wireless communications. Southern Company brands
are known for excellent customer service, high reliability and
affordable prices that are below the national average. Through an
industry-leading commitment to innovation, Southern Company and its
subsidiaries are inventing America's energy future by developing
the full portfolio of energy resources, including carbon-free
nuclear, 21st century coal, natural gas, renewables and energy
efficiency, and creating new products and services for the benefit
of customers. Southern Company has been named by the U.S.
Department of Defense and G.I. Jobs
magazine as a top military employer, recognized among the Top 50
Companies for Diversity by DiversityInc, listed by Black Enterprise
magazine as one of the 40 Best Companies for Diversity and
designated a Top Employer for Hispanics by Hispanic Network. The
company has earned a National Award of Nuclear Science and History
from the National Atomic Museum Foundation for its leadership and
commitment to nuclear development and is continually ranked among
the top energy companies in Fortune's annual World's Most Admired
Electric and Gas Utility rankings. Visit our website at
www.southerncompany.com.
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SOURCE Southern Company