Authority: Title 29.1, Chapters 1 through 6, Code of Virginia.
A. Out of the amounts appropriated for this Item, $20,000 the first year and $20,000 the second year from nongeneral funds is provided for the Smith Mountain Lake Water Quality Monitoring Program.
B. Out of the amounts appropriated in this item, $10,000 the first year and $10,000 the second year from nongeneral funds is provided for the Back Bay Submerged Aquatic Vegetation Restoration Project.
C. Out of the amounts appropriated in this item, $200,000 in the first year and $200,000 in the second year from the general fund is provided to the department to support two additional staff biologists to develop and administer a statewide plan to protect and restore native freshwater mussel species. The department is authorized to enter into cooperative agreements with qualified nonprofit and private entities to assist in mussel restoration planning and implementation.
D. Out of the amounts appropriated in this item, $775,000 the first year and $775,000 the second year from the Game Protection Fund is provided to the department to support two additional staff positions and related expenses for invasive species management and to take steps to eradicate or slow the spread of priority species.
E. Out of this appropriation, $4,431,141 the first year from the general fund is provided for the Commonwealth's share of an Army Corps of Engineers project to construct a permanent habitat for Virginia's largest seabird colony. Any unexpended general fund balances designated for payment to the Army Corps of Engineers for the habitat project on June 30, 2024, and June 30, 2025, shall be reappropriated for expenditure for the same purpose.
F. Out of the amounts appropriated in this item, $450,000 the first year from the general fund is provided to the Department to fund high priority wildlife crossing projects. The funding shall be prioritized by the department to implement wildlife crossing projects with the best likelihood of reducing wildlife and vehicle collisions, as determined by the hot spot analysis in the Commonwealth's Wildlife Corridor Action Plan pursuant to § 29.1-579, Code of Virginia.