The Florida Seagrass Recovery Project was created to help restore seagrass habitats in the Florida Panhandle that were affected by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill and related response activities. This project focuses on addressing boat damage to seagrass habitats by restoring scars located primarily in turtle grass (Thalassia testudinum) habitats. Turtle grass is a common species of seagrass in the Panhandle that is slow to rejuvenate naturally when injured and, in severe cases, may never completely recover.
When boats travel through shallow waters, their propellers can leave behind long, narrow scars in the seagrass by cutting through its roots and stems. In addition to destroying the seagrass, these propellers also leave behind deep divots in the substrate, which prevents seagrass outside of the scarred area from spreading and repopulating the afflicted area. If left untreated, these scars may never recover and can even contribute to further seagrass loss by making the area more vulnerable to erosion and scouring.
To support recovery, this project focused on identifying and restoring damaged areas in St. Joseph Bay Aquatic Preserve, as well as promoting education and boater awareness in St. Joseph Bay, Alligator Harbor, and St. Andrews Bay.
As part of the restoration efforts, this project focused on both restoring scarred areas, as well as increasing boater awareness, through:
These restoration and educational outreach initiatives aimed to both repair existing scars and hope to prevent further scarring.
Seagrass meadows provide numerous environmental and ecological services, such as:
This project works to preserve these services by repairing damaged seagrass habitats and preventing future loss.
All 379 of our restored scars are monitored. When a scar is located, we first measure the total scar length to determine how the length of the scar has changed since restoration. From there, scar width is measured every 10 meters along the scar and a 0.0625m² quadrat is placed in the center of the scar. Within the quadrat, seagrass and macroalgae species are noted, and species and total coverage are determined on a scale of 0.1-5 using Braun-Blanquet (B&B) methodology. Sediment type, height, and epiphytic algae density are also recorded.
The collected monitoring data is analyzed by CPAP staff to determine the success of the restoration work and compiled into annual monitoring reports.
Along with the annual monitoring reports that are published by CPAP, an interactive PowerBI dashboard was created which enables users to explore our monitoring data through dynamic visuals, making the complex data more accessible and engaging — far beyond what static graphs or traditional reports can offer.
In total, it is estimated that 2.018 acres of scar were treated. Slight discrepancies in bag placement may mean the actual area is slightly greater or less than this calculation, but this does achieve our goal of treating over 2 acres of scars.
At Year 3, approximately 21.73% of treated propeller scars have achieved a B&B score of at least 3. Although the majority of scars sampled to date have not achieved the desired level of restoration, this is a notable increase from Year 2's percentage at 9.41%. As of Year 3, approximately 57.38% of scars have achieved a B&B score of at least 1, which is only slightly higher than the previous year's 54.30%. The average B&B score for the entire restoration area was approximately 1.63 in Year 3, which is a significant increase from the Year 2 average score of 1.15.
The 49 buoys that made up the non-regulatory Shallow Seagrass Area buoy system were removed in summer 2020 due to damage. The Shallow Seagrass Buoy System, comprised of 49 buoys marking shallow seagrass areas in the southern end of St. Joseph Bay, was completed in May of 2016. In 2017, nine of the buoys were leaning and/or had been damaged and were replaced. Over the next few years, most of the buoys went missing or were damaged due to careless boaters and/or severe tropical storm activity. Much of this damage was caused by Hurricane Michael in October 2018. Due to the extent of the damage, the system became a navigational hazard to boaters and was removed in June 2020. As an alternative to the buoy system, efforts are now focused on increasing boater awareness of seagrasses through outreach, education, and signage. Some of these efforts include updates to existing signage where applicable, installation of new educational signage, and provision of brochures about best practices for protecting seagrass habitats at popular boat ramps in St. Joseph Bay, Alligator Harbor, and St. Andrews Bay.
In Year 2, AquaTech Eco Consultants (ATEC) and EcoSphere Restoration Institute, Inc. (ERI) collaborated with CPAP to install approximately 28,800 Thalassia testudinum planting units (PUs) in St. Joseph Bay to enhance propeller scar restoration efforts, with particular focus on the heavily grazed areas identified in PSR6. In addition to the turtle grass planting units, ATEC also installed approximately 4,800 Halodule wrightii (shoal grass) PUs in previously identified areas of concern. In total, approximately seven acres of seagrass were replanted to help increase restoration success.
ATEC utilized nursery-grown plants to install approximately 33,600 total plants, the equivalent of seven acres within PSR6. Within hours, some urchins were already observed grazing on the newly planted seagrass. Some recognizable signs of turtle grazing were also observed on the PUs; however, grazing by sea turtles is much less widespread and destructive than urchin grazing, as the turtles only feed on the grass blades and leave the roots of the grasses intact for future growth. It was hoped that the supplemental installation of PUs would enhance recovery in areas most heavily impacted and in turn restore ecosystem services that seagrasses provide.
Unfortunately, most of the planting units did not survive. The PUs were installed in PSR6, a vast, bare and/or sparsely vegetated area. Most of PSR6 has been denuded from urchin grazing, and seagrass recovery has been minimal to none. In addition to herbivorous grazing impacts, the lack of adjacent seagrasses and unstable sediments most likely contributed to these planting units not surviving and seagrasses not recovering.