[Coral-List] Reminder - Sign On: Science Community Letter for Florida Keys Restoration

Phil Dustan dustanp at cofc.edu
Fri Jan 24 12:50:51 UTC 2020


Dear Shannon and Coral Listers,
 I finally decided to add my two cents, not that I think it will change any
of the wheels that are turning towards another attemp to manage a coral
reef system. I think echos of Clive Wilkerson are appropriate here, "We
can't manage reefs, only people".
  Phil


                                            January 24, 2020



Sara Fangman

Sanctuary Superintendent

Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary

33 East Quay Road

Key West, FL 33040

And



Shannon (Yee) Colbert
Policy and Conservation Director
National Marine Sanctuary Foundation
8601 Georgia Avenue, Suite 510
Silver Spring, MD 20910



Re: Docket Number NOAA-NOS-2019-0094



Dear Ms. Fangman and Colbert,



As a research scientist who has studied the ecology of the Florida Keys
since 1974, one of the creators of the USEAP Florida Keys Coral Reef
Monitoring Project in 1994-2000, former Science Advisor of the Cousteau
Society, and an academician for 38years, I would like to add my scientific
opinion to the discussion.



The plan to restore some of the most well-known reefs is the Florida Keys
is a failed project before it begins.  It will generate millions of dollars
in funding for programs, and will generate a lot of publicity, but it will
not accomplish the fundamental task of coral reef restoration in the
Florida Keys. This is because the ecological conditions necessary for
vibrant coral reefs do not exist in the Keys anymore This is why they have
receded and are now less than 1-2% of what they were in the 1970’s when we
began to track their change. The simple fact of the matter is that the
ecological condition that enable reefs to flourish make them vulnerable to
humans including: low nutrients, high sunlight, low sediments, high rates
of herbivory, low rates of removal, high fish biomass, low rates of human
physical destruction. From a systems point-of-view both terrestrial and
marine systems must be operating at peak efficiency with respect to
nutrient cycling and retention.  They are biologically accommodated
communities of the highest order and cannot be “restored” by simply adding
coral. This is hubris of the highest order, a brash form of scientific
malpractice.



Land development in the Florida Keys, South Florida, and much or the United
States that drains into the Gulf of Mexico also inhibits the development of
reefs in the Florida Keys as well as South Florida. Land-based effluent is
a toxic mix of metabolic inhibitors, poisons, oxygen-sucking BOD,
microorganisms, and geological sediments so as to preclude healthy
conditions for reefs in the region. People point to the Dry Tortugas as a
success story but in fact, those reefs, since monitored in the 1970’s, have
probably lost 25-50% of their living coral.



The heterotrophic structure of the water column now supports higher levels
of bioerosion to the extent that the reef substrate is decreasing in
volume! Reefs require oligotrophic condition for long term vitality. Water
quality must be improved before any serious long-term restoration should be
considered. Much of the degradation is a product of local, regional, and
national land development. The State of Florida exudes hundreds of millions
of gallons of polluted runoff and sewage with various level of treatment.
This nutrient and carbon laden watershed effluent preclude the development
of healthy reefs along the coastlines of Florida and the Florida Keys. To
be sure, the technology exists to clean it up, but the political will
refuses to understand the importance over commerce and profit.



 Furthermore, the “conservation practices” that have been instituted by the
Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuaries have mostly failed.  No-take zone
were so small as to be useless; spearfishing and commercial fishing is
still allowed throughout much of the entire Keys; commercial sport diving
operations have resulted in reef trampling that eclipses the damage done in
many national parks on land. Commercial interests have reigned supreme with
merely mild lip service granted to the ecological rights of reefs.
Sanctuary Programs have done almost nothing to curtail the downward spiral
of reefs since the 1970’s. The management programs allowed commercial
interests to swamp ecological concerns, the expensive sewer system may have
improved nearshore bacterial counts but has not stopped the flow of
nutrients to the reef as treated effluent is being pumping into the path of
tidal pumping as noted by the work of Gene Shinn and his colleagues.



This list of ecological issues could go on and on but I feel that I have
made my point without even bringing up increasing atmospheric carbon
dioxide levels. To think that it is possible to reestablish a coral reef
community in the midst of the catastrophic environmental degradation still
underway in the Keys is fallacy. To throw tens of millions of critical
dollars in to mix is near criminal. The funds could be used to further
restore water quality, curtail land-based sources of pollution, and begin
to move commerce out of the Florida Keys. Were the requisite ecological
conditions met, the reefs would initiate their own restoration faster,
stronger, and more widespread than humanly possible. But this requires a
nature-based approach, not the *glorious, shining top-down, plant it and
they will grow approach* being proposed.  Just like any farmer planning a
crop, the planting conditions must be prepared beforehand before the
seedlings are set.



While I like the idea of restoring the Florida Keys Reefs and would, almost
more than anything else, love to see the reefs once again attain their
luxuriance, I am sorry to say that this project will not begin accomplish
that task.



Sincerely,



Phillip Dustan PhD FLS, College of Charleston, SC

Phil.dustan at gmail.com




On Tue, Jan 21, 2020 at 5:29 PM Shannon Colbert <shannon at marinesanctuary.org>
wrote:

> CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not
> click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know
> the content is safe.
>
> Hello again,
>
> I wanted to send a quick reminder, if you have not already done so...
>
> *Please consider signing on to this science community support letter to
> support the Florida Keys.* We need to have your voice heard!
>
> *To Sign On*: Send your first and last name, including degrees,
> affiliation, and organization/business name as it should appear on the
> letter signatures to Shannon Colbert (shannon at marinesanctuary.org). *Deadline
> to Sign On: Wed, Jan 29. *
>
> If you have already signed on, please consider sharing this with other
> partners and colleagues for their support.
>
>   --
> Sincerely,
> *Shannon (Yee) Colbert*
> Policy and Conservation Director
>
> *National Marine Sanctuary Foundation*
> 8601 Georgia Avenue, Suite 510
> Silver Spring, MD 20910
> Office: 301-608-3040 x 304
> Cell: 202-870-0387
> Twitter: @MarineSanctuary | Facebook: /MarineSanctuary
>
> DISCOVER WONDER – learn more at www.MarineSanctuary.org
> <https://nam03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmarinesanctuary-dot-yamm-track.appspot.com%2FRedirect%3Fukey%3D1vMT38NIZKcJAMcULW-3PRGfA5_w8FiCA4dkeFYB_ZAI-1775483685%26key%3DYAMMID-45757750%26link%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.MarineSanctuary.org&data=02%7C01%7Cdustanp%40cofc.edu%7C27d2e00a76204fa64a9208d79ec15d98%7Ce285d438dbba4a4c941c593ba422deac%7C0%7C0%7C637152425669056592&sdata=2M249GatSHf8Uc%2F2fTuI9jdnuwBcHz4dp4IHAwaSjm0%3D&reserved=0>
>
> -------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Hello Phillip,
>
> Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary is a national treasure and a
> hotspot of marine biodiversity. But, the threats to the Florida Keys’
> marine environment are greater than ever. Sound science needs to be the
> foundation of decision-making for adaptive management and restoration of
> the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. The Florida Keys Restoration
> Blueprint
> <https://nam03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmarinesanctuary-dot-yamm-track.appspot.com%2FRedirect%3Fukey%3D1vMT38NIZKcJAMcULW-3PRGfA5_w8FiCA4dkeFYB_ZAI-1775483685%26key%3DYAMMID-45757750%26link%3Dhttps%253A%252F%252Ffloridakeys.noaa.gov%252Fblueprint%252F&data=02%7C01%7Cdustanp%40cofc.edu%7C27d2e00a76204fa64a9208d79ec15d98%7Ce285d438dbba4a4c941c593ba422deac%7C0%7C0%7C637152425669056592&sdata=RkgW0sCjpMMgi%2BI2XvPy%2FT1osbOAI6PDg0L%2BmZbV9PM%3D&reserved=0>
> offers an opportunity to address threats to the sanctuary, restore
> habitats, protect marine wildlife, and safeguard ecosystem services.
>
> *Sign our science community support letter (attached with some early sign
> ons) urging the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to ensure
> that sound science underscores management decisions to protect and restore
> the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. *Public comment is open until
> Jan 31, 2020.
>
> Please take the following actions to speak up and amplify support for the
> Florida Keys.
>
>
> *1. Sign On to this Science Community Letter: *Send your first and last
> name, including degrees, affiliation, and organization/business name as it
> should appear on the letter signatures to Shannon Colbert (
> shannon at marinesanctuary.org). *Deadline to Sign On: Wed, Jan 29. *
>
>
> *2. Use this Letter to Start Your Own Letter to Submit: *If you want to
> sign a letter of your own, please use this letter as a starting point and
> submit it directly to Regulations.gov (Docket Number NOAA-NOS-2019-0094)
> <https://nam03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmarinesanctuary-dot-yamm-track.appspot.com%2FRedirect%3Fukey%3D1vMT38NIZKcJAMcULW-3PRGfA5_w8FiCA4dkeFYB_ZAI-1775483685%26key%3DYAMMID-45757750%26link%3Dhttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.regulations.gov%252Fdocument%253FD%253DNOAA-NOS-2019-0094-0001&data=02%7C01%7Cdustanp%40cofc.edu%7C27d2e00a76204fa64a9208d79ec15d98%7Ce285d438dbba4a4c941c593ba422deac%7C0%7C0%7C637152425669066584&sdata=Z9ep%2FKlRa%2FxETdmwIaWUGqbim%2FnNN31Bg0GfUfBLYog%3D&reserved=0>
> .
>
>
> *3. Share this Letter with Your Colleagues and Networks: *Share our
> letter in your own colleagues and partners and encourage them to sign on
> today. Feel free to use this email as a template.
>
> --
> Sincerely,
> *Shannon (Yee) Colbert*
> Policy and Conservation Director
>
> *National Marine Sanctuary Foundation*
> 8601 Georgia Avenue, Suite 510
> Silver Spring, MD 20910
> Office: 301-608-3040 x 304
> Cell: 202-870-0387
> Twitter: @MarineSanctuary | Facebook: /MarineSanctuary
>
> DISCOVER WONDER – learn more at www.MarineSanctuary.org
> <https://nam03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmarinesanctuary-dot-yamm-track.appspot.com%2FRedirect%3Fukey%3D1vMT38NIZKcJAMcULW-3PRGfA5_w8FiCA4dkeFYB_ZAI-1775483685%26key%3DYAMMID-45757750%26link%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.MarineSanctuary.org&data=02%7C01%7Cdustanp%40cofc.edu%7C27d2e00a76204fa64a9208d79ec15d98%7Ce285d438dbba4a4c941c593ba422deac%7C0%7C0%7C637152425669066584&sdata=jDtJBUzg4FDOaPmglmRcOkdl9NiK5tAs0i9DS6UELy4%3D&reserved=0>
> [image: beacon]
>


-- 
Phillip Dustan
Department of Biology
College of Charleston
Charleston SC  20401
Charleston SC
843 953 8086 (voice)
843-224-3321 (m)

"When we try to pick out anything by itself
we find that it is bound fast by a thousand invisible cords
that cannot be broken, to everything in the universe. "
*                                         John Muir 1869*


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