|
||||||
|
|
|||||||
|
||||||||
|
Oyster-Reef Restoration Is Part of Earth Day Celebration
Tampa Bay Watch, a nonprofit group dedicated to preserving the Tampa Bay estuary, teamed up with the Boy Scouts of America to help shore up erosion and provide habitat for oyster beds on the east side of Tampa Bay as part of this year's celebration of Earth Day. Rob Parris, an Eagle Scout candidate from Troop 339, organized the effort to provide 2 days of volunteer help to bag as much as 24 tons of fossilized shell material to use as the basis of a submerged 100-yd-long reef on the west side of Whiskey Stump Key. The site has historic significance because it was preserved in 1934 as one of the first wildlife refuges in the Tampa Bay area. (See article about a similar effort, "Growing Oyster Habitat in Tampa Bay," in Sound Waves, April 2005.) The shell material was initially dumped in big piles next to the boat landing on the Alafia River. Volunteers placed the shells into net bags and hand-trucked them to waiting boats. Keith Ludwig of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Center for Coastal and Watershed Studies in St. Petersburg, FL, volunteered to pilot a USGS drilling barge and transport the bagged shells approximately 5 mi from the Alafia River landing to Whiskey Stump Key. With its shallow draft, large capacity, and low sides, the barge is the perfect craft to haul the bagged shell material out to the reef site. Earth Day, April 22, was cool with little wind, making conditions ideal to build the reef. More than 70 volunteers showed up and quickly filled the available watercraft. After the first trip, an award ceremony was held for Parris, a sophomore at Chamberlin High School, whose leadership of the project helped him achieve the rank of Eagle Scout. Representatives from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Tampa Bay Watch, Audubon of Florida, Senator Bill Nelson's office, Congressman Mike Bilirakis' office, Tampa Electric, and the Pinellas County Environmental Fund, among others, gave speeches crediting the good work Parris had done working with adults from a host of organizations to lead this year's event. After a catered lunch, the volunteers were reenergized and made a second trip to the Whisky Stump Key site. Volunteers from Tampa Electric's Environmental, Health, and Safety Division were well represented on the second leg, which more than doubled the morning's output. For more information on Whiskey Stump Key and the oyster-reef restoration project, visit these Web sites:
|
 |
in this issue:
Habitat Mapping to Assess Health of Apalachicola Bay Oyster Fishery Submarine Ground-Water Discharge Along the Suwannee River Delta
Earth Day Celebration at Elementary School Oyster-Reef Restoration Department of Commerce Science and Technology Fellows Visit USGS USGS and American Ground Water Trust Expand Teacher Institute Program Youth Enrichment Service E-Team Visits USGS
USGS National Education Coordinator Visits St. Petersburg Office Kurt Rosenberger Joins the Western Coastal and Marine Geology Team  |
||||||||||||||||||||||||
U. S. Department of the Interior | U.S. Geological Survey
previous story
cover story:
