Lake Worth Lagoon Eco Report

Coral Reef Tire Removal Project to Resume

2009-07-29T10:44:00.000-04:00

DATE: July 27, 2009
CONTACT: Pat Quinn, Broward County Natural Resources
Planning and Management Division
PHONE: 954-519-1218

Federal, State and Broward County officials are set to begin the third year of a monumental project to remove hundreds of thousands of tires from Osborne Reef off the coast of Fort Lauderdale. The Broward County Natural Resources Planning and Management Division, with Port Everglades and the Parks and Recreation Division, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, and U.S. Army and Navy divers are partners in this massive coral reef restoration effort.

In the 1970s, two million tires were placed in Broward's coastal waters by private organizations attempting to create an artificial reef. Unfortunately, the artificial reef never developed. Instead the tires loosened and moved, damaging the nearby natural corals. Today these tires are estimated to cover more than 36 acres. This year, divers hope to remove more than 45,000 tires over a six-week period (equivalent to 30 tractor-trailer loads), to reach a three-year total of nearly 100,000.

This coral reef restoration project is unique in several ways. Divers provided by the United States Army and Navy will gather and bundle the tires which are then buoyed to the surface. While the divers work to clean up the environment, the tire retrieval project also serves as military training exercise. The Army is also providing a 175-foot ship termed a landing craft utility (LCU) which accommodates a crane used to transfer the tire bundles from the water's surface to on-board tractor-trailer units. Full trailers are regularly off-loaded at Port Everglades and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection manages the recycling of the waste tires. The Broward County Natural Resources Planning and Management Division is the local partner providing project coordination and oversight. Port Everglades provides dockage and vessel support during the entire mission and the Parks and Recreation Division provides logistical support.

This multi-agency partnership to achieve coral reef restoration has brought critical resources to Broward County and support for an environmental project that has been long overdue. Broward County is pleased to welcome its State and Federal partners in another year of collaboration and environmental restoration. For more information about the Coral Reef Tire Removal Project, call Pat Quinn at 954-519-1218
Posted by Jim at 7:40 AM 0 comments
Labels: Army Divers, Broward County Natural Resources, LCU, Navy Divers, Tire Removal

Thunderstorm at Dusk

2009-07-08T18:10:00.003-04:00

Thunderstorm North of West Palm Beach at dusk. You can see the lights of Downtown West Palm Beach which sits on the West bank of the Lake Worth Lagoon. I took the photo from the S.R. 80 (Southern Blvd.) causeway across the Lake Worth Lagoon around 9 PM July 2, 2009.

Enjoying the Lake Worth Lagoon

2009-07-04T13:51:00.004-04:00

(Compass Raft)

Today was the annual Lake Worth Raft Race. The event is held at the Bryant Park Boat ramp located on western bank of the Lake Worth Lagoon. The best way to save our natural environment is to encourage people to use the resource.

( Popeye Prepares to sail)

From the Audubon of Florida

2009-06-30T08:04:00.000-04:00

Thank You! Your Support Helped Win a Victory for the Climate

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Your help to engage our House of Representative members from Florida helped achieve a major victory for tackling climate change and protecting Florida’s environment and economy last week. The U.S. House of Representatives in a razor sharp vote of 219 to 212 passed the American Clean Energy and Security Act (ACES) late Friday.

Florida faces heavy impacts from climate change.
© RJ Wiley
Thank you to each of you who reached out with a telephone call, a letter to your local newspaper or took any action to support this legislation. The ACES bill establishes the building blocks to reduce dangerous levels of global warming pollution, stimulate renewable energy and energy efficiency, and provide new, green jobs.

The House vote was the first major hurdle to achieving sorely needed climate solutions, and your help and support was critical to the passage of this bill. Now the Senate must act to ensure the nation addresses the grave threats of climate change and its consequences, and starts the nation on the road to a secure energy future and healthy environment.

Stay tuned. We have successfully moved over the first hurdle, but the race is still far from over.

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City Celebrates National Clean Beaches Week

2009-06-22T16:33:00.001-04:00

June 22, 2009: In honor of National Clean Beaches Week (July 1-7, 2009), the City of Delray Beach will sponsor three (3) beach "clean-up" efforts during the month of July.

Representatives from the City of Delray Beach Litter Prevention Division and Parks & Recreation will sponsor a Clean Beaches Information Booth where litter prevention and recreational materials as well as promotional giveaways will be distributed. These information booths will be open to the public on July 1, 2009 at the Municipal Beach on Atlantic Avenue and A1A and again on July 2, 2009 at Sandoway Park, 142 S Ocean Boulevard from 9:00 am until 1:00 pm.

On July 6, 2009, City of Delray Beach Litter Prevention Coordinator Jennifer Buce will conduct a beach cleanup at Sandoway Park, 142 S Ocean Boulevard, from 9:00 am until 11:00 am. Delray Beach Parks & Recreation summer camp children will participate in this effort and learn the importance of preserving our beaches.

For more information, please call Jennifer Buce at (561) 243-7138 or visit www.mydelraybeach.com.

The Clean Beaches Council sponsors National Clean Beaches Week and is a 501 (c) (3) not-for-profit organization devoted to sustaining America's beaches by promoting public awareness and volunteer participation in sustainability while ensuring a legacy of clean beaches for all generations to come. National Clean Beaches Week is an annual event that draws public attention to the importance of clean beaches and celebrates a healthy beach lifestyle by swimming, playing, surfing and enjoying the outdoors.

Contact:
City of Delray Beach
Public Information Office
(561) 243-7190
PIO@mydelraybeach.comCity Commission:
Nelson S. "Woodie" McDuffie, Mayor
Gary Eliopoulos, Vice-Mayor
Mackenson Bernard, Deputy Vice-Mayor
Fred Fetzer, Commissioner
Adam Frankel, Commissioner

Looking North with Distance Markers

2009-06-15T12:23:00.006-04:00

I took this photo from the Lake Worth Bride looking North. The most distant landmark is over ten miles away! The Lake Worth Bridge offers views of at least 16 miles of the the Lagoon's 21 mile length.

1: Southern Blvd Bridge 4.10 miles

2: Downtown West Palm Beach 6.64 miles

3: FPL Power Plant 10.33 miles

4: Okeechobee Blvd Bridge 6.18 miles

Looking South with Distance Markers

2009-06-15T12:00:00.003-04:00

Click on image for full size

I took this photo from the Lake Worth Bridge looking south. You can see all the way to the southern bank of the Lake Worth Lagoon. The makers show the two biggest landmarks in the image:

1: Lantana Bridge 2.17 miles

2: Boynton Bridge 6.10 miles

Views of the Lagoon

2009-06-13T13:05:00.003-04:00

I took these photos today around 7:30 AM from the top of the Lake Worth Bridge that spans the Lake Worth Lagoon.

Looking North towards West Palm Beach

Looking South towards Lantana

Wild Dolphins back for the summer...

2009-06-12T14:58:00.005-04:00

I caught sight of a pod of Dolphins this morning around 7 AM in the Lake Worth Lagoon feeding on mullet. I'm out on the water at least once a week and this is the first Dolphin sighting of the summer. Last year I spotted them several times around Day Board R35 but hadn't seen any since early November of last year.

Should you see them please keep your distance!!! I took today's photos from at least 50 yards with my engine OFF! Don't disturb them. DO NOT FEED THEM!!! If they want they will come to you. I have even had them swim in my pontoon's wake as I motor by. Check out this photo from a trip to the west coast from 2007....

What You Can Do to Help Protect Our Sea Turtles

2009-06-11T11:56:00.001-04:00

Sea turtle populations will continue to decline without your support and assistance. The following are suggestions of ways you can help save our sea turtles:

Avoid visiting sea turtle nesting beaches at night during the summer unless accompanied by a guide permitted by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
Do not disturb or handle sea turtles, their eggs or their nests. All are violations of both federal and state laws.
Report all dead, injured or stranded turtles and hatchlings or anyone harassing/molesting sea turtles or their nests to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission Law Enforcement at 1-888-404-FWCC (3922).

Prevent all lights from illuminating or being visible from the beach including security lights, balcony and porch lights, flashlights and car headlights. These lights are responsible for the deaths of thousands of hatchlings every year and can be eliminated or modified easily to avoid impacts.

Encourage beachfront resorts, restaurants and developments to use unobtrusive lighting.
Reduce litter and marine debris by disposing of your trash properly, picking up any plastics and fishing line, and participating in community beach clean-ups.

Prevent pets from disturbing nesting females, digging up nests, and eating hatchlings.
Do not drive any motor vehicles on the beach.

Avoid digging deep holes or sticking poles into the sand, such as beach umbrellas.
Cooperate with local groups monitoring sea turtles by not disturbing nest markers.

Do not cover sea turtle tracks or mark nests yourself unless you have a marine turtle permit from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

Operate your boat with an awareness that sea turtles congregate in our waters in high numbers, particularly in the summer, and may be difficult to see when they surface to breathe.

Support local conservation groups that monitor sea turtles.

Learn more: A compilation of over 500 sea turtle websites [External Link] is available online.

Purchase a sea turtle license plate. Proceeds from the sale of sea turtle license plates support the Sea Turtle Grants Program. [External Link]

Source: http://www.pbcgov.com/erm/permitting/sea-turtles/community.htm

Sinking Miss Lourdies

2009-06-07T11:54:00.002-04:00

Wes Blackman was on hand Saturday to video and photograph the sinking of Miss Lourdies. The cargo ship will become an artificial reef in 140 feet of water off shore of southern Boca Baton, Florida.

Urge Water Managers to Approve Irrigation Rule

2009-06-05T11:26:00.001-04:00

From the Florida Audubon
http://www.audubonofflorida.org/

Protect Florida’s Freshwater:
Urge Water Managers to Approve Irrigation Rule

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Freshwater is critical to our life support system, our quality of life, and to a healthy and sustainable environment and economy. Especially in South Florida, which is subject to severe droughts and extreme weather patterns, protecting rather than wasting our freshwater resources should be a priority for us all.
To further conservation of this vital resource, the South Florida Water Management District is proposing a two-day-a-week Mandatory Landscape Irrigation rule. Two-day-a-week landscape irrigation restrictions have already been in effect for over two years, and now is the time to make them permanent. Yet, some utilities would like to roll back the irrigation rule because they claim it impacts their profits. Better planning by water utilities will ensure they remain profitable while also protecting our freshwater resources.

Limiting landscape irrigation to a couple of days a week is the easiest water conservation measure we have available and this rule is an important first step in the SFWMD’s water conservation initiative.

The two-day-a-week landscape irrigation restrictions have been in place for the SFWMD’s region since April 2007. Audubon supports making the measures permanent in order to balance the demands on our water supply. Landscape irrigation does not have to be wasteful and can be—as two years under this rule demonstrates—conducted within a conservation ethic.

Audubon needs your help to ask the Governing Board of the SFWMD to adopt the two-day-a-week Landscape Irrigation Conservation rule. The Governing Board is being pressured to relax the rules to allow landscape irrigation to take place three days-a-week. Make your voice heard by signing our Petition to protect our drinking water and water for the environment for a sustainable future in South Florida.

Vessel to be sunk Saturday

2009-06-04T08:49:00.002-04:00

For immediate release: June 3, 2009
Contact: Brock Stanaland, 561-233-2443 Carman Vare, 561-233-2444 (w) 561-386-9612 (c)

A 165-foot cargo freighter seized by US Customs and Border Protection will become the next vessel to be scuttled as an artificial reef a mile off the coast of southern Boca Raton. Once in place, the M/V Miss Lourdies will straddle the Palm Beach-Broward County line in approximately 140 feet of water. The vessel will provide habitat for fish and other marine life as well as serve as a new wreck site for recreational divers.

This project is the result of the successful collaboration of multiple entities including the Palm Beach County Board of County Commissioners through its Department of Environmental Resources Management, Broward County, the City of Deerfield Beach, US Customs and Border Protection, and private stakeholders including the Miracle of Life Foundation, Dixie Divers, CEPEMAR Environmental Services and the Bunnell Foundation.

Who:
PBC Environmental Resources Management

What:
Scuttling of the M/V Miss Lourdies

When:
Saturday, June 6, 2009Approximate start time: 10 amApproximate deployment time: noon

Where:
Offshore of the Palm Beach/Broward County Line

Note to news editors and photojournalists: Members of the press may call Carman Vare at 561-233-2444 (work) or 561-386-9612 (cell) or Brock Stanaland at (561) 233-2443 for press boat reservations, project scheduling information, and directions. If you are going out on the press boat, please plan to be out on the ocean for several hours. If you are prone to motion sickness, please be aware that seas may be rough this time of year. Also note that the scuttling may be delayed or postponed due to wind and sea conditions. Casual dress and shoes are recommended for this event.

County Moving to Ban House Boats

2009-06-02T17:43:00.002-04:00

The Boca Raton News is reporting that Palm Beach County Commissioner's are looking at banning live aboard vessels in the Little Lake Worth portion of the Lake Worth Lagoon.

From Monday's Boca Raton News:

"The proposed ordinance - a final vote on which was postponed to June 16 -- was actually an amendment to an ordinance pertaining to certain vessels in the Loxahatchee River and now to include certain vessels in Little Lake Worth.The issue arose, commissioner said, because of ``health, safety, and other concerns'' arising from ``people living in boats in the Little Lake Worth area of the Lake Worth Lagoon.'' The amended ordinance would in turn ``prohibit the use of boats as living quarters'' and also restrict ``commercial activity on boats in Little Lake Worth.''

Read the complete Article: http://www.bocanews.com/palm-beach/4200-palm-beach-county-wants-to-ban-houseboats.html

Fishing on the Lake Worth Lagoon...

2009-06-02T11:18:00.004-04:00

I don't just write about the Lgoon I love spending time on it boating and fishing!

My pontoon is an inshore fishing machine. Last night I took an old friend, Matt Falvey, and next store neighbor, Ernesto, out for a little night fishing on the Lake Worth Lagoon. My pontoon’s shallow draft and stable platform make it an excellent inshore fishing boat. The two live wells keep the bait fresh and the ample deck space make landing the big one’s a breeze! We landed this over slot Snook free lining a live mullet. We released him back into the lagoon in an effort to preserve the fishery for the next generation.

Do you fish or do other activities on the Lake Worth Lagoon?

Send me your photos and stories and I will post them here!

Tight lines….

M/V Miss Lourdies to Become Artificial Reef

2009-05-28T17:27:00.000-04:00

For immediate release:

May 28, 2009

Contact: Brock Stanland 561-233-2443 Carman Vare, 561-233-2444

A 165-foot cargo freighter seized by US Customs and Border Protection will become the next vessel to be scuttled as an artificial reef a mile off the coast of southern Boca Raton. Once in place, the M/V Miss Lourdies will straddle the Palm Beach/Broward County line in approximately 140 feet of water. The vessel will provide habitat for fish and other marine life as well as serve as a new wreck for divers bringing recreational, tourism and economic benefits to the region.

The Miss Lourdies was seized by US Customs in the Miami River after agents found 150 kilos of cocaine hidden in the ship’s hull. After a year of legal proceedings, the boat was officially transferred to the City of Deerfield Beach on March 20, 2009. The transfer of seized vessels to a US governmental entity for sinking as artificial reefs has become a common practice of US Customs. Prior to being approved as an artificial reef, a vessel must undergo a cleanup and preparation process to remove pollutants and make the ship safe for diver penetrations. The Miss Lourdies is expected to be ready for deployment by the first weekend of June.

The cost to decommission, transport and place Miss Lourdies in her final resting place will be covered by private contributions from members of the surrounding community through Daniel Fasano and the Miracle of Life Foundation. Overcoming his fears of swimming in the ocean, Daniel became a certified diver in 2006. Less than a year later, Daniel was diagnosed with leukemia. His subsequent chemotherapy and a life-saving bone marrow transplant inspired him to create the foundation and pursue the sinking of the Miss Lourdes as an artificial reef. Daniel had a large bronze angel mounted on the deck of the ship to symbolize his re-birth. For more information about the foundation, go to: http://miracleoflifeshipwreck.com/vessel.html.

This project is the result of the successful collaboration of multiple entities including the Palm Beach County Board of County Commissioners through its Department of Environmental Resources Management, Broward County, the City of Deerfield Beach, US Customs and Border Protection, and private stakeholders including the Miracle of Life Foundation, Dixie Divers, CEPEMAR Environmental Services and the Bunnell Foundation.

S.B. 360 A Good Bill Gone Bad…

2009-05-27T19:02:00.000-04:00

S.B. 360 was intended to aid in the redevelopment of dense urban areas. It passed both houses with a last minute amendment that would create a loop hole for large scale developments to by pass the State’s Department of Community Affair’s. This giant loop hole in our states planning laws could be devastating to the environment.

Visit the Audubon Society of Florida’s Take Action Network page and email Governor Crist and ask him to VETO this bill!!

Click Here to “Take Action” and help preserver Florida’s Wild for the next generation!

A Brief History of the Lagoon

2009-05-27T15:41:00.001-04:00

The Lake Worth Lagoon was not always brackish water, but in fact was a freshwater lake. The Native American’s that lived in this area called the Lagoon “ Hypoluxo” which means “water with no outlet.” That’s right! The Lagoon was a lake prior to 1877 when the first permanent channel to the ocean was built.

Man’s desire to tame the wild continued with the building of the Florida East Coast Canal (FECC) which drained the swap marsh’s from the southern end of the Lake Worth Lagoon to Biscayne Bay. The Army Corp of Engineers came in next in the 1930’s and the ICW was born. They dredged the old FECC to a minimum depth of 10 feet and a width of 100 feet. With humans came invasive species like the Australian Pine and the Brazilian Pepper. Over the next hundred years man’s involvement with Lagoon continued to be damaging to the marine life and water quality.

Ten years ago Palm Beach County Commissioners and State Legislators launched the Lake Worth Lagoon Initiative. The project has brought in $56 million dollars and created 44 projects designed to improve the water quality and attract marine life. The lagoon now has 183 acres of mangroves along its 21 mile length. Areas of the Lagoon that once were consider dead muck are now attracting oysters, claims, crabs, and fish.

The Lake Worth Lagoon is on its way back to being a healthy ecosystem even if it’s not the fresh water lake from centuries past.

Photo 1: Boat on the Lagoon

Photo 2: Lake Worth Bridge

Photo 3: Soft shoreline, Snook Islands

Learn more about the Lake Worth Initiative: http://www.pbcgov.com/erm/lakes/estuarine/lake-worth-lagoon/

Sources:
Links: http://www.pbcgov.com/erm/lakes/estuarine/ocean-ridge/
http://www.pbcgov.com/erm/lakes/estuarine/lake-worth-lagoon/pdf/LakeWorthLagoonEnjoysRebirth_Jan09.pdf

Let me introduce myself…

2009-05-26T15:09:00.001-04:00

My earliest memories as a child are of fishing with my dad on his old 16 ft. River Ox on the James River in Virginia. As a teen I spent many a summer’s day riding around the El Rio and Hillsboro canals in a 10 foot inflatable with 5 H.P. Gamer Fisher outboard fishing and exploring. When I turned 17 I took my savings that I earned working as a cashier at Publix and I bought my first boat. A 23 foot Wellcraft Nova with an I/O Merc-Cruiser. God I took that thing all over the place. I even crossed over to the Islands a few times and went as far south as the Dry Tortugas. It was a great boat! I owned it for over 10 years!Shortly after I bought the Nova I turned 18 and joined the United States Coast Guard Auxiliary where I received extensive training in seamanship, search and rescue, costal navigation skills, ATON repair, and I even spent time with the Navy mapping the sea floor (read article from the Navigator cover, 1, 2, and 3 ) using side scan sonar. I am also a NAUI certified open water diver and have logged well over 100 dives in the last 14 years. I most recently completed the University of Florida’s Wetland’s Master Naturalist course.

Most of my professional life was spent teaching High School History in Belle Glade, Florida. I was honored by my peers in 2003 and selected as Palm Beach County School District’s Outstanding Secondary Ed Social Studies Teacher of the Year. Every year I would take all, 150+ most years, of my students on a field trip to the Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge for a day of hiking and canoeing. I have always wanted to share my love for the environment and that is the inspiration for this blog.

My love for our environment started at an early age and I truly appreciate all that the natural world as to offer and I want to share that with you…

Photo 1: Jim stafford and father circa 1980

Photo 2: Jim on USCGA patrol

Photo 3: Canoeing Loxahatchee NWR

Photo 4: Sunset on Lake Worth Lagoon

Water Conservation -- It’s a Year-Round Thing

2009-05-24T14:02:00.000-04:00

Below is a Letter from Palm Beach County Commissioner Jeff Koons on the importance of water conservation.

Water Conservation -- It’s a Year-Round Thing
By Commissioner Jeff Koons

As we emerge from one of the driest springs on record, our lakes, canals and surface water storage areas are frighteningly low. Last year, we got lucky when Tropical Storm Fay parked herself over the state for a week and refilled Lake Okeechobee. But we can’t expect an unusual rain event like that to happen again. That’s why it is so important to practice water conservation all year long. For many years, Palm Beach County government has been a leader in getting the most out of every gallon of water, and here are a few examples:

Reclaimed Water -- The Palm Beach County Water Utilities Department is saving millions of gallons of water each day by producing and distributing reclaimed water for landscape irrigation. Reclaimed water is cheaper to produce than drinking water, yet is perfectly safe for golf courses, parks and residential lawns. Reclamation plants in central and southern Palm Beach County efficiently produce several million gallons of reclaimed water per day. Currently, the county provides 1.5 million gallons each day to Century Village, Vista Center and Cypress Lakes for landscape irrigation. Next year, an additional 1.5 million gallons per day will be delivered to the Emerald Dunes and Fairway Drive golf courses. That’s three million gallons of water per day that is not being drawn from the tap.

The South County facility also sends secondary treated wastewater effluent to the nearby Wakodahatchee and Green Cay wetlands. The facility can clean up to 35 million gallons of wastewater per day. Approximately half of the wastewater coming into the plant is then recycled in the county's reclaimed water program.

Water Utilities is also installing an effluent polishing treatment facility at its east-central water reclamation facility to produce reclaimed coolant water for the new Florida Power & Light plant near 20-Mile Bend. The east-central facility will produce up to 27 million gallons of reclaimed water per day (average usage expected to be about 22 million gallons) delivered along 17 miles of new pipelines. Construction costs are estimated at $32 million, and FPL is paying the debt service on the revenue bonds.

Streetscape -- The Streetscape Section of the Engineering and Public Works Department maintains 140 miles of median landscaping in unincorporated areas. About two-thirds of the medians do not need irrigation because drought-tolerant vegetation such as sable palms and Bahia grass was planted. The remaining 45 miles or so are irrigated with flood bubblers: low-to-the-ground sprinkler heads that soak the root bases of plants without spraying water into the air where it quickly evaporates. There is also a new computerized telemetry system in place that allows technicians to “talk” to the irrigation system and make corrections from a central location. The computer constantly monitors the lines for unusual volumes often indicative of a leak. The break can be shut down remotely, preventing unnecessary water waste, until it can be repaired.

Water Resources Task Force – This volunteer group of water managers and engineers studies ways to protect our current and future water supply. One possibility they have suggested is to alter the water tables in certain areas during the dry season to maximize surface water storage capacity. The task force also recommends looking at creating a second regional reservoir out west. Right now, storm water in the C-51 Canal is being lost to tide, but several billion gallons could be diverted from the canal and stored in nearby limestone pits, then sent south as needed to replenish well fields in central and southern Palm Beach County and Broward County.

These are just some of the ways county government is conserving and preserving our most precious resource. I urge each of you to practice good water conservation at home, as well. Water Utilities’ brochure Water Wisely has some excellent tips. It’s available online at our Web site: www.pbcgov.com. Click on Site Index near the top of the page, then click on Publications, then Water Wisely near the bottom. As always, I welcome your comments and questions. Please feel free to contact me or my staff at 355-2202.

West Palm Building New Public Waterfront Park

2009-05-22T10:01:00.000-04:00

The city of West Palm Beach is replacing the old city library with a new waterfront park. The video below is from the city of West Palm Beach website. This project promises to be a wonderful park and economic engine bringing a little green back to the very urban west bank of the central Lake Worth Lagoon.

Concept Design Video

No more red snapper for a while

2009-05-22T08:07:00.000-04:00

Overfished red snapper could be off-limits for a year

Scientists say red snapper are being over-fished at an estimated nine times the species’ sustainable rate, and have been over-fished since the 1970s.
That’s the rationale behind a proposal to end red snapper fishing in the Southeast for up to a year while federal regulators come up with a long-term management strategy.
But the proposal has generated opposition in some quarters, especially in places like Georgia and North Florida where charter boat captains are worried about seeing one of their top game fish placed off limits.

While not a huge fishery in North Carolina, the proposal also has spawned concerns about regulators piling restrictions onto an industry struggling to stay afloat.
“It’s just one more blow that’s going to hurt those guys,” said Brian Chevront, the representative from the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries on the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council.
The decision earlier this month to endorse the proposed closure left the council, which manages fish stocks in federal waters from North Carolina to east Florida, deeply divided.
The council, which voted 7-6 to approve the recommendation, heard from some fishermen that the stock assessments were wrong.

Others lamented the lack of flexibility in responding to the situation.
Chevront said the closure could be a tough financial pill for fishermen and charter boat captains struggling with increased regulations on other fisheries and a tough economy – and could lead to more bottom-fishing restrictions down the road.

“I think we all agree that something needs to be done to help the red snapper fishery,” said Chevront, who voted against closing the fishery. “But I just don’t know if the timing is right.”
Red snapper isn’t a big fish in North Carolina.

In 2007, commercial fishermen landed 7,288 pounds of red snapper worth just over $23,000.
But that same year, nearly $1.5 million worth of vermillion snapper, also know as beeliner, was brought to North Carolina’s docks, according to state statistics.
Recreational fishermen in the Southeast, including in North Carolina, catch the lion’s share of red snapper.

Yet the fish’s prominence in the Cape Fear region has been slipping for years, and that’s likely tied to the decrease in the number of red snapper offshore.

“It’s something they should have done 10 years ago,” Tommy Lorenzen, business manager of the Blue Marlin, said of the closure as he prepped his charter boat in the Carolina Beach Yacht Basin for an upcoming trip. “There just aren’t a whole lot of them left out there anymore.”
While a popular game fish that can also get a good price at market, Lorenzen said people rarely come down anymore and say they want to go after red snapper.
“It’s not a staple of our charter fishing business,” he said.

At Greenville Loop Seafood in Wilmington, owner Jeff Scott said he supported the idea of closing the fishery.

“But they should have shut it down in the 1970s before we got to this point,” he said.
Scott said he only gets a few requests a month for red snapper, partly because the fish is so hard to acquire locally and because there are generally other grouper or snapper species that folks can substitute for it that are cheaper and more readily available.

But a few miles away on Castle Street, Jim Novak said the proposed closure concerned him.
“I think it will affect my business,” said the manager of Zora’s Seafood Market. “We get people who come in just wanting that fish.”

That includes chefs at many of the region’s seafood restaurants, who like cooking with red snapper because its not a “fishy” fish.

The proposed closure of the fishery, if approved by Washington, is expected to be implemented in late June or early July. The initial period will be for 180 days, with a possible extension of 186 days.

Source: http://www.starnewsonline.com/article/20090325/ARTICLES/903259933

Eastern Oysters in Our Lagoon

2009-05-21T12:26:00.000-04:00

Did you know Eastern Oysters are found in several locations in our Lake Worth Lagoon? These oysters exist in every major estuary system from the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Canada, to the West Indies. However, the availability of clean water and firm substrate sites for attachment limits their distribution.
Oysters are an important part of a healthy estuarine system. They filter-feed on plankton (microscopic organisms including plants and animals) and detritus (tiny bits of dead plant and animal material) that are brought into the shell with the current. Individual oysters can filter up to 50 gallons of water per day, removing microorganisms, sediments, and pollutants from the water column. This process enhances light penetration, promoting the growth of seagrass.
Juvenile oysters, also called spat, attach themselves with a glue-like substance to adult oysters already attached to other rocks, shell, or oysters. Over time, the accumulation of oysters forms a reef, attracting numerous species of fish and invertebrates. Learn more out oysters, their value, and restoration by visiting NOAA’s Oyster Restoration Website

source: Palm Beach County Department of Environmental Resources Management

Lake Worth Fishing Pier Grand Opening

2009-05-21T11:44:00.000-04:00

Today is Thursday, May 21, 2009
Lake Worth Fishing Pier Grand Opening
Date: 5.09.09

This morning at 6:30 am the Lake Worth Municipal Fishing Pier opened it's doors after having been closed due to damaged it sustained from the 2005 hurricane season. Hundreds of fisherman lined the rails of the pier hoping to land the first whopper of the day. Today's events included Free Admission to the Pier, Free Parking, Free Food and Drinks, Free Giveaways, and a Free T-shirts to First 300 Guests.

see more photos at http://www.UtalkNews.com