The Coral Reef

In the Florida Keys, Things are Different

Protecting the Reef
What you can do:

If you're diving or snorkeling over a reef, don't touch! The touch of your hands or feet can destroy hundreds of tiny coral polyps.
Use mooring buoys when they're available.
Don't use a private boat to go diving. Instead, dive from a commercial dive boat with a captain who knows the area.

The shark took me by surprise. I was following a school of silvery bluestriped grunts, entranced by the way they moved together. Hundreds of fish, twisting and turning, rising and diving as if one organism, always just out of reach. Heading toward the surface, I caught movement out of the corner of my eye. Slow, stealthy movement, that made my heart lurch. But after a closer look I was glad no one was aware of my panic. This "demon of the deep" was a harmless lemon shark, about 3 feet long, cruising slowly along the outermost portion of the reef. Shark sightings are not uncommon in the shallow waters off the Florida Keys, and seeing the lemon shark added just the right note of excitement to my first dive at John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park in Key Largo. Not that I needed any more excitement. The phenomenal variety of corals, fish and other sea life thriving in the turquoise waters took my breath away. Neon colored fish swam through a landscape rich in color and variety. A close-up look revealed vivid red firesponges tucked among waving purple fan coral. Giant yellow elkhorn coral spread their branches wide, sheltering parrotfish, blue angels, damselfishes and tangs. Cigar-shaped barracuda hung motion-less, watching for passing prey. Plate-like lettuce coral cascaded down the reef face. A sea turtle swam gracefully toward the seagrass beds.

While the Keys' coral reefs get a lot of attention, this ecosystem consists of a number of habitats that are closely linked to the reef and the creatures that live there. Shallow seagrass beds and mangrove forests are crucial to the reefs. They serve as nurseries for young fish and shellfish, as well as a nightly feeding ground for many fish that spend their days at the reef.

Be a Responsible Boater
There are more than 715,000 boats registered in Florida. On some summer days, it seems like every one of them is in the Keys! Boating is probably the best way to see the Keys, and the only way to see the coral reefs. But boats can be a particular hazard here. The waters of the Keys are extremely shallow. Many creatures that live on the reefs start their lives in inshore waters, and some still spend parts of the day here. These shallow waters, lined with seagrass beds or rocky bottoms, help protect the reef. Unthinking boaters can tear up seagrass beds, damage the reefs, pollute the waters, and disturb nesting birds. One of their greatest sins is dumping raw sewage instead of using pump-out stations.

What you can do:

Boat in deep water and use designated channels to get there. Avoid shallow water where the boat's propeller can churn up the homes of creatures living in the sandy bottom.
Use mooring buoys or drop anchor in a sandy area to keep from damaging the reefs.
Stay out of seagrass beds. If you find yourself in one unexpectedly, turn off the motor, raise the engine, and row or pole your boat back to the channel. If you can't drift free, contact the Coast Guard, Marine Patrol or Sanctuary Patrol on VHF 16 for assistance.
Observe speed limits and no wake zones.
Be very careful when fueling. Do not spill fuel or overfill the tank.
Discard all trash properly, and use onshore bathrooms whenever possible. If your boat has an onboard holding tank, empty it at a designated pump-out station.
Respect other boaters and wildlife.

The coral reefs of the Keys are truly gifts of the sea, the work of billions of tiny coral polyps over thousands of years. They are the only living coral reefs in the continental United States. Pennekamp Park was established in the early 1960s to protect a 25-mile stretch of reef off Key Largo, the largest and northernmost of the Keys. The area was rededicated as the Key Largo National Marine Santuary in 1975, becoming one of the first federally-protected marine preserves in the country. (Looe Key Nationa l Marine Sancturary in the lower Keys is another.) In 1990, Congress designated the remaining 2,800 square nautical miles surrounding the Keys as the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. Unfortunately, protecting the reefs' coral formations may not be enough to save them. Every year a little more is lost, through looting by collectors, damage by boaters, divers and snorkelers, and -- the most insidious threat of all -- pollution by development on-shore. And not just in Monroe County. The Keys are part of a much larger ecosystem that includes the Everglades and Florida Bay. This enormous water system begins south of Orlando, then flows south through the Kissimmee River and Lake Okeechobee and finally through the broad, shallow Everglades itself. Pollutants picked up by the water along the way have a direct effect on Florida Bay and ultimately, on the coral reefs of the Keys. The natural environment's breathtaking beauty has attracted visitors and residents to the Keys since the beginning of the century. If it is unrealistic to expect people to stop moving to the Keys, it is also unrealistic to expect that the area's natural beauty -- what brought people here in the first place -- can be saved unless the community gets a handle on where and how growth will occur. We must preserve the reefs, not just because they're pretty, but because the Keys' economy depends upon them. Commercial and recreational fishing focus on fish that live in the reefs during all or parts of their lives. Boating, diving, snorkeling, and educational activities also are major producers of revenue. I've snorkeled several sections of the coral reef since that first trip, and it's always a thrill. But each time I visit the Keys it seems there are more people, more traffic, more houses and businesses crowded together. This little bit of paradise is facing some critical decisions in the next several years, and I fear for the reef and its treasures.

Whose Home Is It?
The Keys are quite different from the beach and barrier island systems that make up much of coastal Florida. They are a chain of 97 low-lying, limestone islands extending in an arc around the tip of the Florida peninsula, in reality the high points of an old barrier reef system. There are few natural beaches in the Keys. Usually the shoreline is bare limestone or mangrove forest.

What you can do:

Don't come to the Keys and try to re-create your northern lawn and garden. You'll ruin the character of the islands, and hurt wildlife . Plant (or leave standing) native vegetation that requires little or no irrigation, pesticides and fertilizer.
Recognize your responsi-bility to the future of the Keys. Learn about your new home, vote for com-munity leaders who under-stand how inextricably linked the environment and economy are. Get involved!
Support nonprofit groups: dedicated to cleaning up the reef and educating tourists and newcomers.
Support local government efforts to link development with protection of the Keys.

Planning for the Future
Concern for the fragile ecosystem of the Florida Keys led to passage in 1990 of the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary and Protection Act. The Act designated the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, and required the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOM) to protect the ecosystem by managing multiple, compatible uses of its resources. NOM has developed a draft management plan for the Keys that proposes "marine zoning" to set aside areas for specific activities, as well as additional goals relating to channel marking, education, enforcement, mooring buoys, regulation, research and monitoring and submerged cultural resources. A Water Quality Action Plan is aimed specifically at improving water quality.

Water Cleanser
Water quality in the Keys is directly affected by water entering Florida Bay through the Everglades. Improving the quality of that water is the goal of the Everglades Nutrient Removal (ENR) project, a facility owned by the state and operated by the South Florida Water Management District. The ENR is the world's largest con-structed wetland specifically designed to treat farm water runoff. The experimental project was created by the Everglades Forever Act passed in 1994. Located 20 miles west of Palm Beach, the ENR consists of 40,000 acres of wetlands designed to filter phosphorous and other nutrients from water entering the Everglades from agricultural lands around Lake Okeechobee.

What you can do:

The ENR is open to visitors. Plan a trip there to see the state's effort to clean up water entering Florida Bay.

Where Does the Water Go?
The most direct threat to the waters of the Keys is wastewater, the water that flows down people's drains. There are only two sewage treatment plants in the Keys. Every other house and business uses a septic tank. When located and functioning properly, septic tanks and their drainfields act like giant filters to cleanse wastewater and recycle it to the groundwater. In the shallow, sandy soil of the Keys, most septic tanks flush nutrients through the soil and directly into the coastal waters. These nutrients are killing the reefs. Algae blooms are widespread, blocking out the sunlight and killing organisms below. Threats from septic systems are not limited to the Keys. There are 1.6 million septic systems in Florida, serving 30 percent of the state's population. That's one out of every 10 septic tanks in the country!

What you can do:

Invest in new on-site septic technology that removes nutrients from wastewater.
Don't use garbage disposals. They place an unnecessary burden on a septic tank system.
Minimize water flow through the septic system by installing low-flow shower heads and toilet tank inserts.
Never dump used motor oil, chemicals or other household hazardous waste in the street, down a storm drain, on the ground, or down a sink or toilet. They will wind up in the coastal waters, poisoning the plants and wildlife.
Support local government efforts to improve wastewater treatment.