Six coastal states will receive nearly $500 million from the U.S. Interior Dept. to help them alleviate environmental impacts of oil-and-gas development, the agency said on April 20. Louisiana tops the list with $121 million, followed by Alaska at $37.5 million, Texas at $35.6 million, Mississippi at $23.8 million, Alabama at $19.7 million and California at $5 million. The agency will distribute the funds in fiscal 2009 and 2010, the final two years of the Coastal Impact Assistance Program, which Congress created in 2005 for states adjacent to oil-and-gas production on the Outer Continental Shelf. Lawmakers authorized the agency to distribute $250 million annually from fiscal 2007 through fiscal 2010, using production proceeds. “The funding we provide through this program goes a long way to restore portions of our coastline, and I look forward to working with each of the states on their upcoming projects,” said Interior Secretary Ken Salazar.