Sierra Club Comments on Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary Restoration Blueprint
Sierra Club submitted the following comments on the draft environmental impact statement for the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary Restoration Blueprint:
January 30, 2020
Sarah Fangman, Superintendent
Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary
33 East Quay Road
Key West, FL 33040
RE: Comments on Draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary Restoration Blueprint
NOAA-NOS-2019-0094
Dear Superintendent Fangman,
Sierra Club expresses support for a Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary (FKNMS) Restoration Blueprint that provides all the necessary protective measures that ensure the long-lasting restoration and survival of the marine habitats and marine life in this remarkable ecosystem. We urge the implementation of conservation policies that protect threatened wildlife and sensitive habitat, reduce stressors on natural resources, restore degraded areas, and strengthen activities that improve the long-term health of the Sanctuary. Resource protection and enhancement must be the primary outcomes for all activities in the Blueprint.
This Sanctuary was created to protect unique and nationally significant marine resources, including part of the world's third largest barrier reef ecosystem (North America's only coral barrier reef), extensive seagrass beds, mangrove islands, over 6,000 species of marine life and even pieces of our nation's history in underwater cultural and historical sites. In addition, the Sanctuary is vitally important to the economy of South Florida. The importance of the long-term health and sustainability of the Sanctuary cannot be overstated.
Unfortunately, the Sanctuary is facing mounting stresses, including impacts from overuse, debris, pollution, diseases and climate change (such as intensifying storms, rising ocean temperatures and acidification). We are deeply concerned about the current and declining health of many Sanctuary resources and believe that strong actions must be taken to protect these resources for current and future generations.
We support the implementation of science-based and protective conservation measures, including enhancements to education and enforcement activities. Specifically, we urge for the Blueprint to include measures that:
Address water quality issues from all sources affecting the Sanctuary natural resources, including greywater discharges from cruise ships. To that end, we also urge the Sanctuary to be more engaged in Everglades restoration efforts since those efforts can help the health of the Sanctuary waters on Florida Bay.
Address the impacts of climate change to the Sanctuary, including coral bleaching, sea level rise, increased storm activity and erosion. The Sanctuary is also urged to redouble its efforts at demonstrating good natural resource stewardship by mitigating its own contributions to the human causes of climate change, including moving towards 100% clean renewable energy sources.
Implement a mandatory boater education program given that participation in the voluntary program has been very limited and there is demonstrated damage to sensitive natural resources caused by uneducated boaters.
Expand Sanctuary boundaries to include Pulley Ridge, the deepest known photosynthesizing coral reef off the continental US with physical and biological connections to the Florida Keys.
Protect larger shoreline to reef zones and expand the number and size of marine protected areas, by adding sufficiently large new and modified marine zones/ reserves, strategically located, to protect diverse and interconnected habitat types from local impacts. These zones will help sustain a the full suite of species and ecosystem functions in the face of the changing climate and water quality challenges that will take, at best, many years to resolve. These marine reserves will also ensure the future cultural and economic benefits of Florida Keys' fisheries.
Provide stronger protections for wildlife management areas, such as no-entry and no-anchoring zones, in sensitive wildlife populations and habitat areas with high biodiversity and/or serving as wildlife corridors.
Adopt other management actions that respect the carrying capacity and biodiversity of the Sanctuary while providing reasonable public access.
We look forward to a stronger Blueprint that demonstrates commitment to the future of the incredible natural resources protected by the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary.
Diana Umpierre, AICP
Organizing Representative
Everglades Restoration Campaign
Sierra Club
136A S Main St / PO Box 2347
Belle Glade, FL 33430
e: diana.umpierre@sierraclub.org
o: (561) 983-8655