Help Protect Everglades National Park - Comments due this Friday!

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Dear Friends,For the first time in 30 years, the National Park Service (NPS) is revising its General Management Plan for Everglades National Park. This is a fantastic opportunity for Sierra Club members and supporters to help protect one of our planet’s unique ecosystems.Everglades National Park's distinctions are extensive: the first ‘biological park’ in our nation’s history (1947); an International Biosphere Reserve (1976); the largest designated wilderness in the eastern United States (Marjory Stoneman Douglas Wilderness - 1978) a UNESCO World Heritage Site (1979); a Ramsar Wetland of International Importance (1987). Among the thousands of resident plant and wildlife species, 14 animals classified as endangered (on the verge of extinction) find a home here. Yet Florida’s most famous park is also a park at

risk. Comprising only the lower 25% of the original Everglades, development ‘upstream’ (and just about all 6 million of us who call south Florida home live upstream) has turned a biological paradise into something very different. Wading bird populations have shrunk by up to 95 percent while virtually all fish caught in Everglades National Park waters now come with their own health advisory. Fresh water is not getting to the park in anywhere near the quantity it once did (south Florida is currently experiencing its greatest drought in recorded history) while the quality of the water that does arrive has led to massive changes in the health of the ecosystem.None of this is the result of NPS management policies. What the agency does have under its direct control is how we make use of this severely stressed ecosystem. Years of research including a recently completed NPS survey have demonstrated the enormous damage

caused by motorized recreation within park waters. With an average depth of only 3 feet, powerboat hulls and propellers have directly damaged thousands of acres of seagrass beds in Florida Bay and the substrate in which it grows. The damage is widespread and, with an ever expanding population and more boats on the water, growing worse every year.Ecological impacts to Florida Bay as a result of years of nearly unregulated boating (the bay bottom is federally designated wilderness and must be managed so as to leave it 'untrammeled' by man) have been severe. Seagrass is a direct food supply for endangered manatees and green sea turtles, and also serves as a nursery for young, habitat for countless crustaceans and micro-organisms, and a hunting ground for wading birds and marine predators. Seagrass beds are also vital for filtering water necessary to the health of the nearby Florida Keys coral reefs. Boats

approaching too close to the many small islands and shorelines cause wading birds such as roseate spoonbills to leave nests. This allows the young to be preyed upon by crows and scavengers intelligent enough to have learned that an approaching boat can also be a dinner bell. A government study conducted in 2006 found that powerboat collisions were the single largest cause of death for slow moving manatees inside the waters of Everglades National Park. Finally, there are many non-motorized paddlers and fishermen utilizing the park's marine waters who desire a more natural experience and whose use and enjoyment would greatly benefit from dedicated non-motorized areas.With all this in mind, the Sierra Club is strongly supporting ALTERNATIVE 4 as laid out in the current management alternatives. The provisions of this alternative are summarized below.1. Manage Florida Bay by water depth.

Combustion engines would not be allowed in waters of 2 foot depth or less (the depth at which NPS research has concluded most of the damage to the seagrass and substrate occurs). Instead, boaters would have to pole, switch to electric trolling motors, or go into shallows using paddlecraft (which could be carried aboard one’s boat). Well marked deeper water channels would indicate safe passage and their use would be mandatory. The Sierra Club also strongly recommends utilizing the same 2 foot depth in the marine waters of the Gulf and Ten Thousand Islands for the same protective reasons. While some boaters might view these restrictions as an inconvenience, research in similar areas such as Mosquito Lagoon (near the Kennedy Space Center) have clearly shown that closures do work in restoration and protection of seagrass beds and in a vastly improved fishery. See article from The Florida Sportsman here

–http://www.floridasportsman.com/features/mosquito_lagoon/2. Maintain a 300 foot non-motorized buffer zone around all keys (with the exception of those open to camping) to protect bird rookeries.3. Create an alternative ‘wilderness waterway’ between Flamingo and Everglades City with areas dedicated to paddlecraft only. This would again provide sanctuary to important nesting sites in the park’s narrow interior waterways, afford some protection to manatees, and provide canoeists and kayakers with a true wilderness experience.4. Maintain the current closures of Little Madeira Bay, Joe Bay and other small bays in the northeast section of Florida Bay for all but scientific researchers. This area is also known as the crocodile sanctuary. The current level of protection has helped bring the American crocodile back from the brink of extinction and led to its

current status of ‘threatened’ as opposed to ‘endangered’. The bays are also extremely important as some of the only areas of south Florida which can be said to be free of human disturbance. They allow scientists to study the effects of pollution and Everglades restoration efforts in a controlled environment.5. While not an official part of ALTERNATIVE 4, the Sierra Club also believes the NPS should limit boat draft and engine size in the sensitive parts of Florida Bay. A single engine of no more than 150 horsepower is more than enough to move quickly around the marine waters of the park without the negative effects of greater engine power.This is a great opportunity to have a say in how the very symbol of natural Florida and a national treasure wholly owned by the American people is to be managed for decades to come. Let’s take advantage of it. To enter your comments please use the

form provided on the easy to use NPS website here. Remember, the deadline for submitting comments is Friday, May 15th at midnight (Mountain Time).http://parkplanning.nps.gov/commentForm.cfm?parkID=374 & projectID=11170 & documentId=26021You can also download the entire NPS newsletter (#5) with a full description of all alternatives (numbers 1, 2, and 3, are far less protective of the fragile natural marine resources) here –http://parkplanning.nps.gov/document.cfm?parkID=374 & projectId=11170 & documentID=26021The above recommendation of Alternative 4 is the Sierra Club’s preferred alternative—feel free to share your own ideas and/or experience of Everglades National Park. Folks wishing to learn more about the Sierra Club’s position can read our comprehensive recommendations prepared for the first round of public comments (2007) on the Broward Group of the Sierra Club’s website

( on the left hand side of the home page).http://florida.sierraclub.org/broward/Here are a couple of links I found which some of you might enjoy. For those nuts about birdwatching, NPS has provided a complete checklist of all 366 species of birds that can be found within park borders. You can download it here http://www.nps.gov/ever/planyourvisit/upload/Bird%20Checklist%202006.pdfAnd for those with children, this NPS Jr. Ranger book is a great illustrated guide and introduction to the plants, animals and ecosystems of all three of south Florida’s national park units—Everglades and Biscayne National Parks and Big Cypress National Preserve. http://www.nps.gov/bicy/forkids/upload/Jr%20Ranger%20book%20English.pdf‘Nature Deficit Disorder’ is rampant these days among kids tied to their cellphones and MySpace pages. Getting out into nature

once in a while is the cure. The Sierra Club also runs outings by kayak and on foot for kids and adults during the cooler weather. Feel free to contact me for more information.Thanks for your help,Matthew SchwartzBroward Sierra Club Everglades Issues Chair and Outings LeaderSierra Club Everglades and National Wildlands Committeesmatthew.schwartz