Jackson Free Press

BILOXI, Miss. (AP) — Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant is proposing $54.1 million of economic development projects using recovery money the state is receiving because of the 2010 BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

Bryant announced the list of projects Wednesday, based on recommendations from a commission he appointed in 2012.

The biggest proposals are $17 million to develop an aquarium as a tourist attraction in Gulfport and $8 million to complete a dock project at Port Bienville in Bay St. Louis. The other economic development projects are:

— $10.2 million for a proposed road between commercial developments in the St. Martin and D'Iberville area.

— $5 million to expand high-speed internet access by installing more fiber optic networks along the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

— $5 million for stream restoration, in an effort to improve the quality of water that drains into the Mississippi Sound.

— $4 million for job skills training for coast residents.

—$2 million to build a hangar at Stennis International Airport in Hancock County.

— $1 million to help the private William Carey University establish a pharmacy school on the coast.

— $1 million for an oyster aquaculture project.

— $900,000 for the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality to manage restoration projects.

In addition to the economic development list, Bryant announced four ecosystem restoration projects worth a combined $20.7 million. The biggest of the restoration proposals is $15.5 million to acquire land for conservation across the Mississippi Gulf Coast. The others are:

— Nearly $2.2 million for preparation to use dredge material for coastal restoration.

— Nearly $2.3 million to coordinate restoration efforts.

— $750,000 to establish an education program focused on restoration activities such as land conservation and preservation of water quality.

Mississippi had previously received more than $180 million of oil-spill recovery money for ecosystem restoration projects.