TANGIER, Va. — One of Virginia's most environmentally vulnerable communities is receiving a multi-million dollar grant to help protect its residents and its ecosystem.
The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) said the $2.3 million grant has been awarded to Tangier Island.
Located in the middle of the Chesapeake Bay between the Northern Neck and Eastern Shore, Tangier is accessible only by boat or aircraft. About 400 people call it home.
Rising sea levels and coastal erosion are threatening the livelihood of the small fishing enclave. Since 1850, Tangier Island has lost two-thirds of its land mass.
The DEQ said its grant will help protect Tangier’s only petroleum storage facility, which they say is exposed to flooding and will benefit from additional environmental controls to prevent petroleum spills.
"Safe, continued operation of this storage facility is necessary to support the Island’s fishing fleet and other equipment," the DEQ said in a news release.
The grant will also fund the purchase of critical equipment and spare parts for Tangier's wastewater treatment plant, as well as installing floodgates in areas around the island that are particularly affected by recurrent flooding.
Meanwhile, the Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) said it is working with local, state, and federal officials to help find more solutions to preserve the island, which research suggests could be completely lost within 50 years.
The CBF met with leaders on May 30 to discuss developing a state-certified resilience for Tangier Island, as well as neighboring Port Isobel Island.
"The plan would help the community secure funding and implement projects to protect this unique place," CBF said in a news release. "An existing partnership between CBF and Old Dominion University’s Institute for Coastal Adaptation and Resilience can support Tangier in pursuing this plan."
RELATED: Saving Tangier
A recent visit from U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) along with the Army Corps of Engineers, looked at the possibility of berms and bulkheads.
"It's something I'm very committed to. Tangier is a part of Virginia's history. And it will be an incalculable loss if we do nothing, and that island becomes uninhabitable," Kaine previously told 13News Now.
Kaine helped secure $800,000 in the Fiscal Years '23 and '24 to study dredging that could help Tangier address sea level rise and recurrent coastal flooding and storms. President Biden's proposed FY '25 budget includes more than $10 million for the project.