The Corporate Wetlands Restoration Partnership (CWRP) is a first-of-its kind national public-private partnership combining private industry contributions with federal and state matching funds to restore the nation's environmentally important wetlands and other aquatic ecosystems. Wetlands are vital to water supplies and ecological diversity.

• The CWRP began in Massachusetts in 1999 through the initiative of The Gillette Company, the Massachusetts Executive Office of Environmental Affairs (EOEA), and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
  
  
• Other partners in the state CWRP include non-profit environmental and community groups and academia.
  
  
• Corporate contributions are generally matched 3:1 by federal/state funds.
  
  
• Corporate contributions are held in Coastal America Foundation or special state trust funds. Because the CWRP is designed to attract both large and small companies, contribution amounts are kept confidential.
  
  
• On January 21, 2000, U.S. Senator John Kerry (D-Mass.) announced the expansion of the Corporate Wetlands Restoration Partnership to the rest of New England under the coordination of Coastal America, a federal office representing 13 federal departments and agencies.
  
  
• Groundbreaking for the first CWRP restoration project took place on April 10, 2000 at the Sagamore Salt Marsh near the Cape Cod Canal in Massachusetts. Gillette is corporate sponsor of the 50-acre project, one of the largest saltmarsh restoration projects ever in New England. Over 45 projects have been supported by the CWRP.
  
  
• A press conference to announce the National Corporate Wetlands Restoration Partnership was held on May 25, 2000 in Washington, D.C. Duke Energy is National Corporate Chair, and the National Association of Manufacturers is National Corporate Sponsor of the program. Coastal America will coordinate the National CWRP, which will help the federal government meet its goal of restoring 100,000 wetland acres annually by 2005. Other members of the National Advisory Council include: Battelle, ENSR, FMC Corporation, The Gillette Company, Ducks Unlimited and Restore America's Estuaries.
  
  
• To date, over 90 companies and over 45 NGOs have pledged more than $3 million in funds and in-kind services to the CWRP.
  
  
• Duke Energy subsidiary Maritimes & Northeast Pipeline is the state leader for the Maine CWRP. Northeast Utilities and Gillette's Duracell division are state leaders in Connecticut. Environmental Science Services and Narragansett Electric Company are the state leads in Rhode Island. Jacques Whitford Company is the lead in New Hampshire. PSE&G is the lead for the Mid-Atlantic region. BP Exploration is the lead in Alaska. Duke Energy - Gas Transmission is the state lead for Texas. Dow Chemical is the state lead for California. Programs are being organized in other states and regions, including Southeast region, Northwest region, Upper Mississippi River & Great Lakes region and the Gulf of Mexico region.