Miami Waterkeeper, as part of Waterkeepers Florida, jointly provided final comments to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) on the proposed revisions to Florida’s surface water quality standards. The proposed revisions included changes to the turbidity criterion, in all waters as well as in areas where coastal construction projects like dredging may affect corals and seagrass. The proposed changes also included revisions to the Numeric Nutrient Criteria and thresholds for cyanotoxins in recreational water.

Matheson Hammock Park experiencing continued inundation (2019)

Miami Waterkeeper, in collaboration with Catalyst Miami and the Miami Foundation, recently provided comments to the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) on the Miami-Dade County “Back Bay” Coastal Storm Risk Management Feasibility Study. The study, designed to achieve improved resiliency from storm surge, targets flood-prone areas of Miami such as Little River and the Miami River, Cutler Bay, Arch Creek, and Aventura. Proposals for the project include building flood gates, floodwalls, and surge barriers, along with possible elevation of property and relocation. You can view the public meeting package of documents here. In our comments, we addressed concerns and made recommendations that asked the USACE for greater focus, definition, and expansion of the project's scope and objectives. 

On August 12, 2019, the EPA published revised rules and regulations under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). These finalized changes have serious implications for the Endangered Species Act as we know it. The changes revise the procedures and criteria used for listing or removing species from the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants and designating critical habitats. Specifically, the changes remove the Blanket Rule for FWS threatened species. Historically, this rule extended the same protection that the ESA affords endangered species automatically to threatened species as well. This rule revision would make those protections only available on a case by case basis to specific species. Other rule changes could have cascading impacts as well, including new and shorter timelines for reports and the ability of the agencies to consider economic impacts when making listing decisions.

Photo credit: Evan D'Alessandro

We are excited to announce that Miami Waterkeeper has been selected as a grant recipient by The Jorge M. Pérez Family Foundation at The Miami Foundation. The Jorge M. Pérez Family Foundation is the philanthropic vision of Jorge M. Pérez, chairman and CEO of The Related Group, and his family, is to develop South Florida as an exemplary world-class urban center.

On October 1, 2019, the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) announced that construction for the Port Everglades Dredging Project Construction will now be delayed until April 2021.

Photo: Google Earth

Threatened coral get second chance in South Florida

They were once in danger of dying off, but efforts to restore South Florida's coral reefs are paying off. A Nova Southeastern University team for two years has been growing staghorn coral in nurseries and then planting it off the Lauderdale-by-the-Sea coastline.

Facts First: Explaining Sargassum - Key News

If you've walked on the beach at all this year, you know what sargassum looks like. But beyond the unsightliness and the smell, what is really happening here? What is sargassum? Sargassum is a type of macroalgae that floats at the ocean's surface. Each stipe (that is, stalk) and frond can be several meters in length.

Bacteria Beach Advisories Increasing, While Research Finds No Link to Sewage Plant

South Florida's beaches are having a bad year, being closed more often and for longer periods of time due to the presence of bacteria that is associated with sewage. The chart above shows the number of advisories per year for beaches in Broward and Miami-Dade counties, according to data posted online by the Florida Department of Health.

Science, sargassum and no silver bullet at water workshop

Science took center stage at the Village of Key Biscayne's water workshop Tuesday night. The National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration defines sargassum as "a genus of large brown seaweed (a type of algae) that floats in island-like masses and never attaches to the seafloor."

Waterkeepers Fighting Climate Change: Eight Projects Making a Difference - Waterkeeper Alliance

U.S. Waterkeepers are fighting climate change by working to protect the areas they love best from rising seas, ocean acidification, and fossil fuel industry expansion. Their work shows that we can all do our part to keep the planet habitable.