The proximity of intended Cuban oil drilling and production puts the U.S. coastal zone at risk from Florida to the Carolinas and northward. Oil from a spill would quickly enter the Gulf Stream and reach Florida’s shores in hours or days with potentially devastating effects on the densely populated South Florida coastline and its coastal ecosystems. South Florida’s accounts for 3.4 million jobs and 45 percent of the $587 billion contribution to Florida’s GDP generated by coastal and ocean economic activity.

Read the full article at http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120130093113.htm

In 1996, as a volunteer certified diver, I went down to the Florida Keys to assist in mapping out the reef at John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park. I was one of more than 100 volunteer divers for this project. In three weeks we mapped out the entire reef for the state of Florida. This reef was to be preserved as a state park.

I have just learned that the bottom of this reef is currently full of garbage — not being preserved — and I am very perturbed that this could have happened. I find out that people are still hand-feeding dolphins, which is a federal offense, and they are dumping trash, which sinks to the bottom and has settled on the reef.

Garbage being on the bottom of the reef greatly threatens the wildlife that depends on the reef for housing and survival. Dolphins use the reef to hunt for the fish, as do crabs and other varieties. Bonefish, bonita, blue marlin, dolphins and all other species depend on the reef for their existence.I don’t understand why people don’t respect this.

I reside in the mountains of South Carolina, where I am retired. I would appeal to those who live in Monroe County to take up the cause and take care of your underwater wildlife at the John Pennekamp reef.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission does not have the funding and people resources to patrol these waters effectively. It is, therefore, incumbent upon the people residing in Monroe County to organize teams of volunteers to care for the waters in this area. Small teams of volunteers could be organized to start this process.

Perhaps someone reading this is an organizer. It only takes one dog in the pack to lead others. Of course, effective change starts with just one person and grows from there.

If you love your waters — those beautiful clear blue waters that many of us don’t have the access to — you’ll rise up and begin to save the gorgeous Pennekamp reef.

William Highfill

West Union, S.C.

MIAMI — The U.S. is not ready to handle an oil spill if drilling off the Cuban coast goes awry but can be better prepared with monitoring systems and other basic steps, experts told government officials Monday.

The comments at a congressional subcommittee hearing in the Miami Beach suburb of Sunny Isles come more than a week after a huge oil rig arrived in Cuban waters to begin drilling a deepwater exploratory well.

Similar development is expected off the Bahamas next year, but decades of tense relations between the U.S. and Cuba makes cooperation in protecting the Florida Straits particularly tricky. With memories of the Deepwater Horizon spill in the Gulf of Mexico still fresh, state and federal officials fear even the perception of oil flowing toward Florida beaches could devastate an economy that claims about $57 million from tourism.

Read the full article at http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2012/jan/30/experts-us-ill-prepared-oil-spill-cuba/

 
Location: Florida Keys, FL, USA
Date Taken: 12/18/2010
Length: 2:25
Video Producer/Videographer: Matthew Cimitile (U.S. Geological Survey)
Note: This video has been released into the public domain by the U.S. Geological for use in its entirety. Some videos may contain pieces of copyrighted material. If you wish to use a portion of the video for any purpose, other than for resharing/reposting the video in its entirety, please contact the Video Producer/Videographer listed with this video.

Additional Video Credits:Betsy Boynton (graphics, editing), Ann Tihansky (writing, narration) J. Harold Hudson (Video) Gene Shinn (Photographs, Narration)

Environmental groups are turning to Facebook to raise awareness of dredging and impacts from larger cruise ship vessels in Key West Harbor.

This comes in advance of Wednesday’s public workshop to discuss possible expansion of Key West’s shipping channel.

The proposal calls for widening the channel by 150 feet, allowing larger cruise ships to safely navigate in a 450-foot wide channel leading into Key West Harbor.

David Lybrand, a vice president of Last Stand, said the city could not readily accommodate the 5,000-plus passengers that can fit on new, larger cruise ships like Royal Caribbean’s the 1,187-foot Oasis of the Seas.

Lybrand also rejected arguments from those who say that not dredging would deter cruise lines from future ports-of-call in the Southernmost City.

” A lot of people are trying to cloud the issue, implying that if we don’t do this the cruise ship industry will just shut down here, ” Lybrand said. ” If we don’t dredge, all these people will be out of jobs. That’s just ridiculous. ”

Beginning at 6 p.m. Wednesday, members of the Key West City Commission will hear from dredging experts from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and environmental reps from the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. The meeting will be held at Old City Hall on Greene Street. Read the full article: http://www.keysnet.com/2011/07/12/357913/dredging-plan-gets-public-airing.html

photo:NOAA

Reef Relief, T.R.A.S.H.E.D. in the Keys and the Ibis Bay Waterfront Resort is hosting a mangrove and shoreline clean-up this Saturday July16 ^th, 2011 from 10am-1pm. Volunteers are needed to help remove marine debris that is harmful to marine life and contributes to poor nearshore water quality.

Bring your kayak if you have one. A few kayaks will be available on a first come first serve basis. The clean-up will start at 10:00am leaving out of the Ibis Bay Waterfront Resort located at 3101 N. Roosevelt Blvd· Key West, FL 33040. We should be done by 1:00 pm. Thanks to Lazy Dog for providing the kayaks for this event.

Please RSVP to Reef Relief by reefrelief@gmail.com or call 305-294-3100.

With support from and coordination with the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary(FKNMS), a program was created and modeled after the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority’s “BleachWatch” program. The project  coordinator routinely revue’s existing NOAA monitoring stations and satellite imagery analysis to track changes in environmental conditions within the Florida Keys region.

In addition, specially trained volunteers known as the Florida Keys “BleachWatch” observers collect field observations to monitor for signs of coral bleaching. Mote will work to gather and consolidate the existing NOAA analysis from satellite and monitoring data, combine that data with field observations by trained “BleachWatch” observers, and provide the FKNMS with a summary, or “current conditions report”, throughout the summer.

Becoming a BleachWatch observer is easy!  All you have to do is attend one of the training workshops.  Observations can be done anytime you happen to be on the water, whether on your personal boat, work boat, or charter.  Reports can be filled out online and take literally seconds to fill out.  If you would like to become a BleachWatch Observer or just learn more about coral bleaching…

BLEACHWATCH TRAINING WORKSHOP to be held Thursday July 14th at the Florida Keys Eco-Discovery Center starting at 7pm.  No RSVP necessary…just bring yourself and a friend!  See you there!  For more information:
http://isurus.mote.org/Keys/bleaching.phtml

All Reef Relief Members are cordially invited to the 24^th Annual Reef Relief Membership Meeting

Monday, July 18, 6pm-9pm

Pier House Resort Caribbean Spa Room,

1 Duval Street, Key West

Hear the annual State of the Reef Address, presentations by MOTE, FKNMS, and more…  Join us this evening as we celebrate our marine environment together as one Reef family united.  We hope to see your there! Free food and a cash bar.

If you are not a member you may join online or at the door. If you have not yet renewed your membership please do so now.

If you have questions you can email reefrelief@gmail.com or call our office at 305-294-3100

The Natural Resources Defense Council on Wednesday released its annual survey of beach-water quality and public notification of health advisories against swimming or complete closures, and it’s a mixed bag for the Florida Keys for 2010.

Overall, the council ranked Florida as having the sixth-best beach-water quality among the 50 states. States with the beaches with the most contamination, mainly from stormwater and sewage runoff stemming from storms, were Louisiana, Ohio, Indiana and Michigan.

The Natural Resources Defense Council looked at the percent of monitoring samples that exceeded Florida’s daily maximum bacterial standards. Overall, 4 percent of reported beach monitoring samples exceeded the state’s standard. Read the full article

Read the NRDC Report at http://www.nrdc.org/water/oceans/ttw/titinx.asp

Last summer, we saw the devastation of oil spills. Birds and turtles covered in oil. Fishermen out of work. Even now, dead dolphins are washing ashore and cleanup workers are complaining of lingering headaches, nausea, and memory loss. Where there is drilling, spills are inevitable.

But Rep. Doc Hastings (R-WA) is ignoring the dangerous reality of oil spills and is pushing for expanded and hasty offshore drilling.

Don’t let another oil spill put birds, turtles, dolphins, even whales at risk. Voting on Rep. Hastings’ bills starts this week, so there is no time to lose – call TODAY.

CLICK HERE TO GET YOUR NUMBER TO CALL