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BP Plc has agreed to provide $1 billion toward initial projects in the Gulf of Mexico to address damage to natural resources from last year脮s oil spill, the U.S. Justice Department said.

It said the agreement, the largest ever of its kind, represented a first step toward fulfilling BP’s obligation to fund the complete restoration of harmed public resources, such as rebuilding coastal marshes and replenishing damaged beaches.

The Justice Department said the agreement does not affect the ultimate liability of BP or any other company for environmental damages or other liabilities, but lets restoration projects get started sooner. The states of Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas will each select $100 million in projects while the rest of projects picked by the federal government.