SCUBA diving community united in search for threatened coral

Not waiting for the National Marine Fisheries Service to make their determination on the Reef Rescue petition to designate most of Palm Beach County as critical habitat for ESA listed coral, the local dive community embarks on a search for more staghorn coral colonies.

The struggle to gain federal habitat protection for the reefs offshore of the Town of Palm Beach is chronicled below in previous Reef Rescue blogs. The Florida Reef Tract along the east coast, south of the Boynton Beach Inlet is now designated critical habitat essential for the survival of ESA listed elkhorn and staghorn corals. Reef Rescue has petitioned the federal government to afford the same protections to the coral reefs offshore of the Town of Palm Beach.

In Palm Beach, they say the rules should be different

Federal habitat protection along the east coast of Florida extends from a depth of 6 out to 98 feet deep. All reef stuctures capable of supporting elkhorn and staghorn coral within the designated area are protected.  Unable to deny the existence of the largest stand of staghorn coral in Palm Beach County, recently discovered offshore of Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate, the Town of Palm Beach backed down on their opposition to habitat protection for some – not all of the neighboring reefs.

The catch – off the Town of Palm Beach they say nothing in less than 45 feet of water should be protected.  Why?  Not much has changed – the reefs interfere with the town’s beach renourishment projects – or so they claim.

The dive community’s search for new staghorn locations is designed to negate Palm Beach’s opposition. Since, once staghorn is found in less than 45 feet of water or anywhere north of Breakers (deep) Reef another of the town’s contrived excuses unravels.

Check with your dive operator for details, some are offering rewards.  All staghorn sightings must be reported to Reef Rescue and verified.

Judge Approves Historic EPA Settlement

EPA and Florida Must Set Limits on Pollution in State Waters

Polluters’ arguments rejected in favor of the environment

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – November 16 – A federal judge in Tallahassee today approved a historic consent decree which requires the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to set legal limits for the widespread nutrient poisoning that triggers harmful algae blooms in Florida waters.

Nutrients like phosphorous and nitrogen poison Florida’s waters every time it rains; running off agricultural operations, fertilized landscapes, and septic systems. The poison runoff triggers slimy algae outbreaks which foul Florida’s beaches, lakes, rivers, and springs more each year, threatening public health, closing swimming areas, and even shutting down a southwest Florida drinking water plant.

Ruling from the bench, U.S. District Judge Robert Hinkle rejected arguments made by polluters who sought to delay cleanup and get out of complying with the Clean Water Act. Florida Agriculture Commissioner Charles Bronson, the Florida Pulp and Paper Association, four of the state’s five water management districts, sewage plant operators, the Florida Farm Bureau, and others tried to derail the settlement.

Press Release Link

Click here to sign petition and help protect Florida nearshore coral reef coastal waters.

Breakers Shallow Reef to go without federal protection if the Town of Palm Beach gets their way

The Palm Beach Daily News article posted below (see Reef Rescue 11/11/09 blog) might give one the impression the Town of Palm Beach is acquiescing to federal critical habitat protection for ESA listed corals off their coastline. Not quite true – the devil is in the details. The town council has only agreed to what they know will inevitably be taken away from them by the National Marine Fisheries Service. They still refuse to give up their objection to habitat protections for inshore reefs such as Breakers Shallow and miles of offshore barrier reefs.

The Town of Palm Beach agreed to back down on their opposition to federal critical habitat protection for Bath & Tennis Reef; location of the largest stand of ESA listed staghorn coral in Palm Beach County and the barrier reefs (Breakers Deep) for two miles north of B&T Reef. An additional 4 miles of offshore reefline will go unprotected if NMFS were to accept the town’s position.

Also off the table, if the Town of Palm Beach gets their way, is federal protection for Breakers Shallow Reef, which according to a Florida Fish & Wildlife Commission press release is: “…a popular local dive and snorkel spot, approximately one-half mile directly offshore of the Breakers Hotel on Palm Beach.  This diverse shallow reef is home to sponges, hard corals and abundant marine life, including protected species.” 

As of today over 1,000 emails have been sent to the Town of Palm Beach asking them to withdraw their objections to the critical habitat protections for the ESA listed staghorn coral.

Florida Fish & Wildlife Commission Breakers Shallow link: http://myfwc.com/NEWSROOM/09/south/News_09_S_MooringBuoys.htm

Wildlife Foundation of Florida Breakers Shallow link: http://www.wildlifeflorida.org/default.tpl?PageID=115

Breakers Shallow Reef

By WILLIAM KELLY
Daily News Staff Writer

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

The Town Council voted 4-1 Tuesday to accept a consultant’s recommendation that the town go on record in favor of extending a critical habitat designation zone for staghorn coral from the Boynton Inlet north to The Breakers.

The recommendation is that the habitat designation zone come no closer to shore than a depth of 46 feet.

The town had previously opposed the habitat designation for the endangered staghorn coral in Palm Beach County waters, saying there wasn’t enough of it to warrant the habitat protection.

But Palm Beach County Reef Rescue petitioned the National Marine Fisheries Service, which will decide on the coral protection zone, to extend the designation to the Palm Beach Inlet. Reef Rescue said it discovered a field of staghorn coral about a mile off the coast of the Bath & Tennis Club.

The town hired consultant Cheryl Miller to dive the site of the coral field, and Miller told the council Tuesday she thinks the habitat designation is warranted as far north as The Breakers.

“I found an area of unusually high density of staghorn coral for this area,” Miller said.

A Florida Department of Environmental Protection official, Dr. Vladimir Kosmynin, also spoke in favor of extending the protection zone. He said it would make no sense to extend the zone closer to shore because the amount of sediment and other features prevent the staghorn coral from propagating in that area.

The fisheries service has said it will announce a decision Jan. 6.

A few divers, including Reef Rescue leader Ed Tichenor, spoke in opposition to Tuesday’s decision, saying the protection zone should be extended farther north.

Town resident Connie Gasque said she’s done thousands of dives in offshore from Palm Beach County and “the coral does not stop at The Breakers.”

Unable to deny the existence of the largest stand of staghorn coral in Palm Beach County, Palm Beach’s coral reef consultant recommends protection for the Bath & Tennis Reef, but not much else.

Town of Palm Beach splitting hairs over coral protection

In a report dated November 3, 2009, Coastal Eco-Group Inc. (CEG), recommended the Town of Palm Beach allow critical habitat protection designation for the Bath & Tennis Reef staghorn coral, discovered by Reef Rescue volunteer divers. But, CEG proposes the northern boundary for staghorn coral habitat protection be established south of the Breakers Hotel eliminating the north end of Breakers Reef, Turtle Mound, Double Ledges and all reefs to the north from the protection zone. Some of the best diving spots in Palm Beach County and reefs that contain the features essential for the survival of the ESA listed staghorn coral would go unprotected.

The NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) has designated staghorn and elkhorn coral critical habitat boundaries along the east coast of Florida from 6 to 90 feet deep. CEG argues the rules for the Town of Palm Beach should be different and recommends no shallow habitat protection in waters less than 45 feet deep. This effectively eliminates habitat protection for all of Breakers Shallow Reef, where mooring buoys were recently installed by Palm Beach County to help protect the reef from anchor damage. 

The report also uses the increasingly tiresome argument that since no staghorn coral has been documented north of the Bath & Tennis reef, no staghorn habitat protection is warranted for the reefs to the north. This is the same logic employed by the town’s former consultants who argued none of Palm Beach County should be designated as critical habitat because the only staghorn sightings were reported by recreational divers. It’s the old, if you don’t look for it, you can’t find it ruse. 

To view the entire CEG report click here. 

TAKE ACTION: Send an email to the Town of Palm Beach and ask them to stop the hair splitting and withdraw their objection to ESA listed coral habitat protection click here.

Not too many years from now, a new generation will look back at us in this hour of choosing and ask one of two questions. Either they will ask, “What were you thinking? Didn’t you see the entire North Polar ice cap melting before your eyes? Did you not care?”

Or they will ask instead, “How did you find the moral courage to rise up and solve a crisis so many said was impossible to solve?”

We must choose which of these questions we want to answer, and we must give our answer now—not in words but in actions.

From Our Choice: A Plan to Solve the Climate Crisis by Al Gore . Copyright © 2009 by Al Gore. To be published in the U.S. by Rodale on November 3, 2009.

Watch: Palm Beach opposes coral protection video

Emails from across the world urge the Town of Palm Beach to withdraw their objection to federal coral habitat protection.
 
On October 14, Reef Rescue escorted town representatives on a dive to the recently discovered staghorn coral patch, found offshore of Donald Trump’s Mar-a-lago estate. The town is now awaiting their consultant’s recommendations.

While the Town of Palm Beach ponders the decision whether to withdraw their objection to critical habitat protections, letters from concerned citizens from as far away as Australia, are still pouring into the town. The emails, many of which threaten a boycott of Palm Beach hotels and restaurants, have now topped 800+.

For background on the staghorn coral debate see the Reef Rescue September 3rd Coral Reef Blog.

and

September 30th Reef Rescue Blog: Divers make amazing discovery on Palm Beach reef.

Take Action to help protect this coral. Tell the Town of Palm Beach to withdraw their objection to federal habitat protection.

http://reefrescuealert.wordpress.com/

 

The US Coral Reef Task Force is scheduled to meet in Puerto Rico from October 30 to November 5, to discuss US coral management policies. The letter below presents Reef Rescue comments for that meeting.

Palm Beach County                    

REEF RESCUE                              

P.O. Box 207

Boynton Beach, Florida 33425

(561) 699-8559

Email: etichscuba@aol.com

www.reef-rescue.org

October 16, 2009

Comments/Recommendations to the US Coral Reef Task Force Regarding coral reef management policy

Today the global atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration is 387 parts per million (ppm). Credible climatology models suggest a level of 400 ppm may be reached by 2015 and 450 ppm is likely to occur between 2030 and 2040. Carbon dioxide concentrations over 400 ppm are projected to increase seawater temperatures to the point where mass coral bleaching events have potential to become an annual occurrence.

As carbon dioxide levels increase and seawater alkalinity decreases corals will be increasingly stressed as the synergistic effects of elevated temperature and reduced skeletal calcification capacity result in the decline of coral health leading to increased incidence of coral disease and reef degradation. We can already see the effects of elevated carbon dioxide at the ecosystem level.  

If we continue to emit carbon dioxide at the present rate, the worst years of past mass bleaching may become the norm by 2030. With the current business-as-usual governmental policies it is not unreasonable that we may be facing severe coral reef depletion by 2030 or even as early as 2020 from the effects of carbon emissions.  

If we do not have a drastic reduction in atmospheric carbon dioxide and a return to a level of 350 ppm, by the middle of the century ocean acidification is likely to severely impact global coral reef development with resulting economic impacts, societal disruption and human tragedy.

By comparison all other coral reef management programs become moot if policy makers are unable to limit carbon emissions. Therefore, it is our recommendation that the US Coral Reef Task Force (USCRTF) embark upon an aggressive initiative to educate the public and governmental leaders about the importance of coral reefs and their susceptibility to the already excessive carbon dioxide concentrations.

Further, we request USCRTF communicate with the Obama administration and provide guidance to enable the US to take a leadership role at the upcoming Copenhagen Climate Summit and to help craft a carbon emission policy that will achieve coral reef sustainability.

 

Sincerely,

Ed Tichenor, Director

Palm Beach County Reef Rescue

 

________________________________________________________________________

To monitor, preserve and protect the coral reef ecosystem of South Florida through

research, education and public aware

Climate Change and Coral Extinction

There is a real possibility that coral reefs may be the first ecosystems on the planet to face extinction from excessive atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO₂) levels. Respected scientists from across the globe warn that today’s 387 ppm CO₂ level is already too high and is beginning to degrade the world’s coral reefs.

Credible climatology models predict 400 ppm CO₂ may be reached by 2015. Carbon dioxide concentrations over 400 ppm will increase ocean temperatures to a point where mass coral bleaching events can become an annual occurrence. As carbon dioxide levels continue to increase and the oceans become more acidic, corals and shellfish will be unable to build skeletons.

On Saturday, October 24, concerned citizens from across the globe will rally to focus attention on the carbon dioxide threat facing the planet. If you care about the environment and future generations –  join us to help raise the public’s awareness about one of the most challenging problems facing humanity.

 

In Palm Beach County join us Saturday October 24, 3 PM at:

Atlantic Dunes Beach Park, Linton & A1A Delray Beach, FL

Visit www.350.org/palmbeachcounty350 for details.

 

To learn more about the International Day of Climate Change or to find a rally near you go to: www.350.org

 

To see how elevated CO₂ and ocean acidification is killing the world’s coral reefs watch: 

Is the Great Barrier Reef on death row?  Link:  Datpresenter® 2.0 Build #1854 for [dpx_v12]

 

 

 

 

.

SAN FRANCISCO— The Center for Biological Diversity today filed a formal petition seeking to protect 83 imperiled coral species under the Endangered Species Act. These corals, all of which occur in U.S. waters ranging from Florida and Hawaii to U.S. territories in the Caribbean and Pacific, face a growing threat of extinction due to rising ocean temperatures caused by global warming, and the related threat of ocean acidification. 

Scientists have warned that coral reefs are likely to be the first worldwide ecosystem to collapse due to global warming; all the world’s reefs could be destroyed by 2050.

“Coral reefs are the world’s most endangered ecosystems and provide an early warning of impacts to come from our thirst for fossil fuels,” said Miyoko Sakashita oceans director of the Center for Biological Diversity. “Within a few decades, global warming and ocean acidification threaten to completely unravel magnificent coral reefs that took millions of years to build.”

Corals are among the species most imperiled by climate change. When corals are stressed by warm ocean temperatures, they experience bleaching — which means they expel the colorful algae upon which they rely for energy and growth. Many corals die or succumb to disease after bleaching. Mass bleaching events have become much more frequent and severe as ocean temperatures have risen in recent decades. Scientists predict that most of the world’s corals will be subjected to mass bleaching events at deadly frequencies within 20 years on our current emissions path.

Not only is greenhouse gas pollution causing corals to bleach and die, but it also makes it difficult for corals to grow and rebuild their colonies. Ocean acidification, caused by the ocean’s absorption of carbon dioxide, is already impairing the ability of corals to build their protective skeletons. At CO2 levels of 450 ppm, scientists predict that reef erosion will eclipse the ability of corals to grow.  Moreover, ocean acidification and global warming render corals even more susceptible to other threats that have led to the present degraded state of our reefs, including destructive fishing, agriculture runoff, storms, sea-level rise, pollution, abrasion, predation, and disease.

Leading coral biologist Charles Veron warned in a recent scientific paper that at current levels of CO2 in the atmosphere (387 ppm) most of the world’s coral reefs are committed to an irreversible decline. Other scientists have warned that CO2 concentrations must be reduced to levels below 350 ppm to protect corals and avoid mass extinctions on land and sea. The CO2 reductions proposed in the climate bill now making its way through Congress are unlikely to result in an atmospheric concentration below 450 ppm, much less 350 ppm.

“The coral conservation crisis is already so severe that preventing the extinction of coral reefs and the marine life that depends upon them is an enormous undertaking. The Endangered Species Act has an important role to play in that effort,” added Sakashita. “But without rapid CO2 reductions, the fate of the world’s coral reefs will be sealed.”

In 2006, elkhorn and staghorn corals, which occur in Florida and the Caribbean, became the first, and to date only, coral species protected under the Endangered Species Act. The listing of staghorn and elkhorn corals as threatened, which also came in response to a petition from the Center for Biological Diversity, marked the first time the U.S. government acknowledged global warming as a primary threat to the survival of a species. As documented in today’s petition, many other corals are also at risk.

Protection under the Endangered Species Act would open the door to greater opportunities for coral reef conservation, as activities ranging from fishing, dumping, dredging, and offshore oil development, all of which hurt corals, would be subject to stricter regulatory scrutiny. Additionally, the Endangered Species Act would require federal agencies to ensure that that their actions do not harm the coral species, which could result in agencies approving projects with significant greenhouse gas emissions to consider and minimize such impacts on vulnerable coral species.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration must respond to the Center for Biological Diversity’s petition to list 83 species of coral within 90 days and determine whether listing is warranted for each of the coral species within one year.

For more information about the Center’s coral conservation campaign, visit: http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/campaigns/coral_conservation/index.html.

Coming this Thursday, many of the petitioned-for corals will also be featured in 350 Reasons We Need to Get to 350 – the Center for Biological Diversity’s photo installation of 350 species we may lose to global warming if we don’t act soon.

The Center for Biological Diversity is a national, nonprofit conservation organization with 240,000 members and online activists dedicated to the protection of endangered species and wild places

 

 

____________________________

Miyoko Sakashita w Staff Attorney

Oceans Program Director

miyoko@biologicaldiversity.org

 

CENTER FOR BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY

351 California Street, Suite 600

San Francisco, CA 94104

415-436-9682 w Fax 415-436-9683

www.biologicaldiversity.org