Scott Atwell, Communications and Outreach Manager for the Florida Keys Marine Sanctuary, joined Good Morning Keys on KeysTalk 96.9/102.5FM today to talk about what’s been going on in the sanctuary.
Congress avoided a government shut down last Friday with legislation that will be in place until September 30. How would a shut down have affected the sanctuary?
Atwell said, “It would have essentially shut us down and prevented us from doing any work at all, and there’s no shortage of that work, right? So we’re still catching up on our buoy team with the buoys that got knocked out during the hurricane season. Of course, it’s been a little windy this week, and probably losing a couple this week as well. So that team is chomping at the bit to get back out there. They had some success last week. But the network of buoys doesn’t shut down in a budget fight, there’s still groundings, so the need for science doesn’t take a day off. Enforcement doesn’t. We had a plan for potential shutdown, but fortunately, our team is at work this week, doing the work that we are obligated to perform under the National Marine Sanctuaries Act. It’s been a roller coaster couple of weeks for my colleagues and I’m sure you’ve heard the news of one of our facilities in the Upper Keys being on a list to have a lease canceled. We’re aware of that. We have responded to it, but haven’t heard anything further. We had restoration blueprint, of course, the Governor vetoed that, and at this current time, we’re working out the decoupling the restoration blueprint regulations from the state waters, because they will still be in effect in federal waters. So, we’re working on that, will be communicating that in the coming days as well. But all that to say that it has been a really interesting couple of weeks. My colleagues, hats off to them, just true professionals showing up to work every day, rolling up their sleeves and doing the work that they’re obligated to do. The Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary was created through an act of Congress. We have obligations under the National Marine Sanctuaries Act, and we’re fulfilling those obligations, I’ve got a great group of colleagues who have great attitudes, and my hats off to them.”
One of the jobs of the sanctuary is rebuilding the reefs.
Atwell said, “Each year the mission iconic reefs team gathers all of the partners for a workshop to look back and to look forward. So two days in Marathon last week, we had over a dozen organizations, more than 40 colleagues who take part in the program. One of the really powerful aspects of mission iconic reefs is the ability to bring all of these partners together, these really smart people who understand coral restoration. Mission iconic reefs is a research project within a restoration program, so there’s a lot to learn from year to year, and then we make decisions based on what we’ve learned to move forward. Some interesting things have come out of these workshops, and the synergy in the room is amazing. It’s really great to have these sessions focused on evaluating the success over the five years. We did celebrate the five years. How do we optimize restoration strategies for these coral species, and what are the novel approaches to habitat utilization we’re going to be focusing on in the coming years? The attendees also took some time to celebrate that five year anniversary. We had an event at Aquarium Encounters in Marathon. Then a couple days later, in Key West, we had another birthday celebration for MIR, premiering a film at the Eco Discovery Center, a 20 minute film about the 2023 heat wave and how the program has pivoted in the wake of that. So that was a special presentation for our partners. The film is still being fine tuned, and once it’s ready for a wider audience, I’ll be back to talk about it and how listeners can view it.”
The sanctuary actually has smart buoys and they can provide a whole lot of information.
Atwell said, “Not only water temperature, but wave heights as well. So it’s a windy day and you want to find out what how much chop do we have out at this reef or that reef before you head out? Well, you could go to missioniconicreefs.org, and find the page to these smart buoys and dial it up and see the temperature at the surface, the temperature at the sea floor and what the wave heights are and the wind. So it’s a really remarkable network we have up and down the Keys now and all that is due to mission iconic reefs.”
There has been an Upper Keys marine cleanup recently.
Atwell said they removed, “4,000 pounds of junk that was pulled out in over a five hour period. Sanctuary staff and sanctuary volunteers teamed up with Florida State Parks, the Coast Love organization and FWC for this shoreline cleanup that was adjacent to the state park restoration area. Between the organizations a total of 50 people were out there working for five hours. You know those big roll off dumpsters that you could have delivered, the big metal things? Well, we filled one of those up to the brim with 4,025 pounds of marine debris that was recovered along a section of the north Key Largo shoreline. We have pictures of that work on our social media channels for those who want to look at it, on Facebook, Instagram and X. Because of the remote location, the volunteers and staff actually had to hike to the site, they loaded the debris onto waiting boats. The boats then delivered the debris to a nearby dock, where another team was waiting to weigh and dispose of the debris. So it was an incredible team effort, and a testament to the passion of the community that has just a great passion for our national environments. It was a good day.”
A sanctuary partner is helping students with a scholarship for marine science.
Atwell said, “The only catch is you have to be a Monroe County resident pursuing a degree in marine science or a marine technology related field. This is the United Way of Collier and the Keys Marine Science Educational Advancement scholarship. It’s going into the fourth and final year. In the previous years, the program has awarded 16 scholarships, so 16 students receiving a total of nearly $70,000 and so there’s a great scholarship committee that reviews the applications based on academic achievements, career goals, extracurricular involvement, the references, financial need, etc. So if you know someone who’s from the Keys, who’s pursuing one of these degrees, the applications are open now through April the 24th. You can find more information on our social media channels, Facebook, Instagram, X, but also at United Way of Collier and the Keys. We encourage those students so the next generation that we’d love to get educated in these fields and come back and help us do the great work that we do at the sanctuary.”
For more information, click here: https://floridakeys.noaa.gov/