State Of Florida Votes To Protect Tortugas

The Ocean Conservancy
Tuesday, 24 April 2001

Unanimous Vote Cast to Save One of Florida's Last Wild Ocean Places

TALLAHASSEE, FL – Today, the Governor and Cabinet for the State of Florida took final action to create the Tortugas Ecological Reserve voting to include state waters within the reserve. Pending action to fully protect an adjacent area within the Dry Tortugas National Park would complete the process of creating this truly world-class reserve, comprised of nearly 200 square nautical miles of amazing marine environment.

"This process has been an amazing cooperative effort among various government entities. The decision to protect this area for present and future generations is a truly precedent-setting achievement," said Marianne Cufone, Regional Fish Conservation Program Manager, for the Center for Marine Conservation (CMC).

The Tortugas, a remote area about 70 miles west of Key West, boasts a relatively pristine ocean environment with clear, blue waters, extensive coral reefs, fish, sharks, lobsters, and other marine life. Until recently, the area's remoteness and a prohibition on commercial fishing inside Dry Tortugas National Park provided some protection from over-exploitation. However, fishing pressure from commercial vessels outside the national park and recreational users throughout the area have increased dramatically in recent years. Declining fish populations throughout the Keys, improved navigation, and more efficient gear have all added up to fewer fish, and damage to the Tortugas ecosystem.

"The Tortugas Ecological Reserve is crucial to the protection of Florida's most important marine wilderness and is being viewed throughout the country as a blueprint for protecting our oceans in the future," said David White, Director of CMC's Florida Regional Office.

The Tortugas Ecological Reserve is expected to provide tangible, long-term benefits to commercial fishermen. The Tortugas are one of the most important spawning areas for reef fish in the southeastern United States. Groupers, snappers, spiny lobsters, and other valuable species reproduce in the Tortugas. Ocean currents return some of the offspring back to the Tortugas and sweep others as far north as Georgia, helping to sustain fisheries and ecosystems throughout the Keys and beyond.

"Research by CMC and others has demonstrated that currents connecting the Tortugas to the Florida Keys and southeast coast deliver larvae from the Tortugas to these areas," said Jack Sobel, Director of Ecosystem Programs for CMC. "Today's decision to protect the Tortugas will not only benefit the immediate areas, but could help restore degraded reefs and depleted fish populations throughout the Keys and elsewhere," added Sobel.

The adjacent coral reefs contain plants and animals not found elsewhere in the Keys. In fact, the ecological and economical benefits are so great that the Tortugas Ecological Reserve has been referred to as the "savings bank" for local fishermen.

The various government bodies participating in the creation process of the Tortugas Ecological Reserve include the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, the Dry Tortugas National Park, the National Marine Fisheries Service, the National Ocean Service, the National Park Service, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, and the Florida Governor and Cabinet.

For more information, or to contact The Ocean Conservancy, see their website at: www.oceanconservancy.org