Fertilizer Awareness Week: Keep Biscayne Bay Blue, Not Green!

Lush, verdant, and lovely: subtropical South Florida is a paradise. We know that communities take pride in their beautiful lawns and gardens by nourishing the land to keep it healthy. Given our proximity to sensitive waters like Biscayne Bay, fertilizer application must be done with care. Nutrients found in fertilizers can run off into local waterways when it rains, contributing to seagrass die-offs, promoting algae blooms, and depriving the water of oxygen. We need your help in educating the community about excess fertilizer nutrients in our environment.

Miami-Dade County passed a fertilizer ordinance that was written and advocated by Miami Waterkeeper in April of 2021 to reduce fertilizer pollution in the Bay. The future of Biscayne Bay and South Florida’s waterways brightened with this news! 

This ordinance helps waterways by the following;

• prohibits the application of fertilizer during the rainy season from May 15 and October 3,

• prohibits fertilizer containing phosphorus 

• limits nitrogen application and 

• requires at least 65% slow-release nitrogen in fertilizer mix, and establishes setbacks between the application of fertilizer and waterways or storm drains.

Now, on April 5th, the Board of County Commissioners (BoCC) will be voting on a resolution to annually hold a “Fertilizer Awareness Week” as part of the County’s fertilizer education campaign. This will be held on the week of May 9, 2022, and the second week of May each following year. 

During Fertilizer Awareness Week, residents, property owners, and businesses that work with fertilizer will be reminded of and educated about fertilizer application to ensure that Biscayne Bay is not further degraded. 

Please contact the members of the BoCC to let them know that this issue is important to the community and thank them in advance for their support.