KEYS MARINE SANCTUARY PROPOSES BOUNDARY EXPANSIONS & OTHER REGULATIONS

NOAA proposes to add 23 new wildlife management areas to Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. These areas are designed to minimize disturbances to sanctuary habitats and species dependent on those habitats, like nesting birds and turtle nests. KRISTIE KILLAM/Florida Keys National Wildlife Refuges Complex

Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary’s Advisory Council members listened intently as an updated set of proposed regulations and a management plan — known as the Restoration Blueprint — was unveiled during a July 12 meeting at Hawk’s Cay Resort on Duck Key. 

“This is an exciting day for a number of reasons,” said George Garrett, SAC chairman, to kick off the meeting. “I know we’ve all been waiting for it because we went through a year or two where we were simply waiting.” 

Specifically, the sanctuary is proposing expanding the current 3,800-square-mile boundary surrounding the Florida Keys to 4,795 square miles. North America’s only coral barrier reef falls within the sanctuary, and so do 6,000-plus species of marine life, seagrass beds and mangrove-fringed island. 

Joanne Delaney, resource protection and permit coordinator for the sanctuary, said the majority of the expansion includes Pulley Ridge Wildlife Management Area in the Gulf of Mexico. It has the deepest known coral reef off the continental U.S. The ridge itself is a drowned barrier island some 100 kilometers long by 5 kilometers wide – about 62 miles by 3 miles – northwest of the Dry Tortugas and running parallel to the Florida peninsula. 

The zone overlaps with an existing Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council Habitat Area of Particular Concern. While fishing is allowed under the proposal, no anchoring would be allowed within the management area.

The sanctuary boundary also lines up with the “area to be avoided” line, which was established in 1990 and prohibits tank vessels and vessels over 50 meters from traversing the waters off the Florida Keys. 

Even with the proposed boundary expansions and modifications, sanctuary officials said 15% of the sanctuary’s 4,800 square miles would fall within managed zones. 

An assessment on the sanctuary in 2011 found that conditions within the sanctuary were fair or poor. Since that report, the Keys witnessed a destructive hurricane in Irma and a massive influx of boaters on the Keys waters since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

A set of proposals released to the public in August 2019 outlined various alternatives to combat the decline in marine conditions. Comments submitted by the public to regulations.gov were examined by sanctuary staff, bringing forth the proposed rulemaking on July 12 for another round of comments. 

Sarah Fangman, sanctuary superintendent, said the Restoration Blueprint is “our attempt to do something” with a Keys ecosystem seeing continued stress.

“This is about our future and we all have to do a little compromise,” she said. “As you hear proposals where we made changes, you’ll hear that we listened.”

Limited use suggestions for Carysfort, Sombrero and Sand Key reefs found in the 2019 draft of the Restoration Blueprint weren’t included in the latest proposal released to the public. A recommendation to end overnight use of mooring buoys wasn’t included either. And sanctuary officials said public input helped modify some original ideas, including recommendation for greater access and use of channels at Steamboat Creek, Tavernier, Marathon and Marquesas Keys. 

A proposed rule would reopen existing no-access areas, including the tidal flat south of Marvin Key and the interior channels at Mud Keys. Sanctuary officials said it’s based on updated data regarding bird populations in these areas. 

Another regulation outlined within the proposed rulemaking deals with discharges by cruise ships. Specifically, cruise ships would only be allowed to discharge cooling water, but anything else thrown into the water would be prohibited within the sanctuary. For all vessels besides ships, deck wash and cooling water are allowed, as well as chumming and other fish activities. 

As for fish feeding, the proposed rule would prohibit feeding or attracting fish, including sharks, from any vessel or while diving in federal waters. State rules currently restrict such activity within state waters. Chumming for traditional fishing is still allowed, according to the proposed rule.

The proposed rule would also prohibit anchoring, mooring or occupying a vessel at risk of becoming derelict or deserting vessels aground, anchored or adrift. The rule also prohibits leaving any harmful matter aboard a grounded or deserted vessel. 

In a bid to protect corals, NOAA is proposing no anchoring in the 17 sanctuary preservation areas, 13 restoration areas and six conservation areas. That means vessels would only be able to use mooring buoys. Vessels greater than 65 feet would be required to use a designated large-vessel mooring buoy. 

The proposed draft rule would expand Carysfort SPA from 2.2 square miles to 3.7 square miles and Alligator SPA from 0.32 square miles to 0.52 square miles in the Upper Keys in order to protect deep reef habitat. Andy Bruckner, NOAA research coordinator, said the Alligator SPA supports barrel sponges and tube sponges, as well as 618 species of reef fish. French Creek and Rock Creek SPAs would be eliminated, and two new SPAs would be created in Turtle Rocks SPA in the Upper Keys and Turtle Shoal SPA in the Middle Keys. 

Bruckner said the proposed new SPAs would protect patch reefs and refuge for corals proven to be resilient to bleaching and disease. Bruckner said Turtle Rocks contains the largest remaining wild population of staghorn coral in the Upper Keys. Turtle Shoal SPA protects an important complex of mid-channel aggregate and individual patch reefs surrounded by seagrass beds, which historically supported large populations of staghorn and pillar corals. 

Beth Dieveney, policy analyst for the sanctuary, said existing ecological reserves and special use areas will now be known as conservation areas. That includes the likes of Western Sambo Ecological Reserve. Under the proposed rule, Western Sambo would expand by 1 square mile to capture additional deep reef habitats at the 90-foot depth contour. No-anchor restrictions would be included for the most southern area of the prominent coral reef, while no fishing will continue to be enforced boundary-wide, as this zone provides a corridor for the migration of juvenile and adult fish and invertebrate populations, particularly the spiny lobster. 

The proposed expansion of the existing Tortugas South Ecological Reserve by 18 square miles would capture additional habitat west of Riley’s Hump known to support fish spawning aggregations and deep habitat features in the southern portion of the marine zone. 

The proposed rule establishes 47 wildlife management areas, of which 23 are new. Some WMAs like Big Mullet Key WMA have no-motor zones, while others such as Marquesas Keys WMA have no-entry zones. 

At Western Dry Rocks Wildlife Management Area, NOAA is proposing transit only and no anchoring from April 1 to July 1. That mirrors Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission’s seasonal closure of the area to fishing from April 1 to July 1. The area contains a continuous reef with high coral cover and diversity. This area has ecological significance for supporting multi-fish spawning, according to sanctuary officials. 

These proposals and more are in the updated Restoration Blueprint, which is at floridakeys.noaa.gov/blueprint.

In addition to proposed rulemaking, a draft management plan was unveiled, with proposed actions that focus on research, regulatory compliance, community involvement and stewardship. Understanding sanctuary resources, improving conditions including water quality, reducing threats and human use impacts and supporting collaborative and coordinated management were among the goals. 

While SAC members said they still need to digest all the information, several voiced concern over the lack of artificial reefs as a possible solution within the management plan

“It is regarded across the board in Key West, the business community and the recreational watermen in our community, as an overwhelming success,” said Joe Weatherby, SAC member representing the diving industry in the Lower Keys. 

Mimi Stafford, SAC citizen-at-large member from the Lower Keys, brought up the issue over enforcing new regulations and how the public could help bring more officers in. Fangman said the sanctuary is working with law enforcement and NOAA to bring more resources. But she couldn’t say that it would lead to catching everyone who breaks these rules if they go forward. 

“That’s true on the road. We still need speed limits. We still need regulations to protect these resources,” she said. 

FWC Captain David Dipre agreed with Fangman’s remarks. Laws aren’t only made for the purpose of making an arrest or issuing a citation. Dipre said laws are made “because we encourage people to do the right thing.”

Dipre added that FWC is adding more officers with 15 currently in the academy. That will bring the law enforcement agency to full staff in December. 

A 100-day public comment period on the Restoration Blueprint kicked off July 13 and will conclude Oct. 21. People can visit regulations.gov and use the docket number NOAA-NOS-2019-0094 to provide comments. 

People will also have the opportunity to provide oral comment during the Aug. 30 virtual meeting (register at floridakeys.noaa.gov/blueprint); Sept. 20 at 6 p.m. at Coral Shores High School; Sept. 21 at 6 p.m. at Marathon High School auditorium; Sept. 22 at 6 p.m. at Key West High School auditorium; and the Oct. 18 Sanctuary Advisory Council meeting at 9 a.m. in Marathon. 

Written comments can be submitted to Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, 33 East Quay Road, Key West, Florida, 33040 (be sure to include Proposed Rule in the subject heading).

Jim McCarthy is one of the many Western New Yorkers who escaped the snow and frigid temperatures for warm living by the water. A former crime & court reporter and city editor for two Western New York newspapers, Jim has been honing his craft since he graduated from St. Bonaventure University in 2014. In his 4-plus years in the Keys, Jim has enjoyed connecting with the community. “One of my college professors would always preach to be curious,” he said. “Behind every person is a story that’s unique to them, and one worth telling. As writers, we are the ones who paint the pictures in the readers minds of the emotions, the struggles and the triumphs.” Jim is past president of the Key Largo Sunset Rotary Club, which is composed of energetic members who serve the community’s youth and older populations. Jim is a sports fanatic who loves to watch football, hockey, mixed martial arts and golf. He also enjoys time with family and his new baby boy, Lucas, who arrived Oct. 4, 2022.