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| Would you want to trade a sandy beach for this in your neighborhood? |
The living shoreline project at Navy Point has had some issues through its history post-construction.
Folks in the area have passionately requested the project be removed--as the oysters have come loose from the piles and the area's swimmers, boaters, and kayakers do not like the obstructions and potential for injury from the sharp shells that in many cases have washed ashore and been left scattered on the bayou's sandy bottom near the beach.
Folks are rightly concerned about Vibrio--a flesh destroying and often times fatal condition that is found in shallow, brackish and warm bayous. Many feel these oyster piles are an unnecessary risk to water sports enthusiasts in the area---given the issues with Vibrio.
Now, I am a supporter of thoughtfully considered living shoreline projects, like the one constructed in Pensacola Bay along Bayfront Parkway. The difference there and here is this: That area is not normally home to folks who swim and snorkel--so there hasn't been a "loss" of recreation opportunity for nearby residents. Same scenario elsewhere. Areas where folks often swim and kayak should have a different system implemented to improve water quality, in my opinion. I mean, imagine if Bruce Beach was targeted for a wall of these oyster bags like Navy Point was? What reaction might that trigger? Or here's a better one: What if these oyster bags were piled all over the shoreline near the Bayview Community Center near the dog beach down there? What would those residents think?
You know the answer to that.
So now comes a privately funded study of the effectiveness of this 5 year project at Navy Point authored by a licensed, professional Coastal Engineer.
Videos of what looks like a messy, yucky disaster of a project can be found here.
I'm not a scientist, but I can sure watch these videos and read the study's conclusions (p. 19 of the study), combined with the numerous emails I am now receiving, combined with videos I have now been sent combined with what I have seen with my own eyes as I have personally visited this area on multiple occassions.
Tonight we will discuss this project at our BCC meeting.
I do not yet know what the outcome of the discussion will be---but based upon the totality of all the issues around this project combined with the study's conclusions that the project has NOT prevented erosion (which has actually become worse since the oyster bags were deployed)--I would not be surprised if the board votes to remove these bags, regroup, and come back with a better, more effective and community-friendly environemental alternative to try later.
23 comments:
Chairman Bergosh, everyone who has been watching the destruction of our shoreline for years is profoundly grateful for this post. Thank you for speaking the truth about it, and supporting discussion of its removal.
Just one important correction in the grand scheme of things, which you've nailed on the head: oysters themselves aren't spilling, but the empty shells. A lot of people think that the way these projects work is that new oysters make their homes in the empty shells. Oysters only attach to the project by accretion in their own shells, which is why the bags are all a barnacle ridden mess of tiny sharp shells of various varieties, and a lot of what the locals call "razor clams." As Tim Day states in Jim Little's excellent reporting this morning,
"The stability of (the reefs are) fully reliant on (live) oysters being there," Day said. "We've seen periods where they've been mostly encrusted with oysters, and recently we saw a pullback in the oyster population."
https://www.pnj.com/story/news/2022/10/06/pensacola-florida-living-shoreline-project-report-questions-effectiveness/8179855001/
Tim is being polite here in the context of his superior, Chips Kirschenfeld, and Doug Underhill grossly exaggerating the project's success in recruiting full-sized adult oysters. It never has, at any moment of the project. What puny juvenile oysters have managed to attach typically die off during periods of low tide when the bags sit baking in the sun for days on end.
It was so gratifying to see a reporter at the PNJ finally print the truth of the project. We were also really grateful he pointed out that the Navy Point shoreline is the second largest stretch of publicly accessible beach in the County. So while your assessment of why Navy Point caught this horrible intrusion is spot on, it really isn't comparable to Bruce Beach or Bayview, because this is a *huge* public shoreline that the County's project is effectively destroying. It would be more like if they laid these things on 2200 linear feet of Perdido Key beach. (Amazed the PKA hasn't thought to attempt it as a sure-fire way to keep people off the beach.)
Really hoping that the Board finally understands we were never lying or politicking on this--that was all just a smoke screen--and votes to remove the mess so our shorelines can be restored.
Thank you Commissioner Bergosh.
On a couple things, these were sold as "Oyster Reef" built of "Oyster Bags".
These are not engineered "Oyster Reef" but a amateur non science based attempt to 'sandbag' a shore.
The plastic mesh bags are filled with oyster shells. Oyster shells are always made by the oyster who inhabits them and were grown layer by layer by that one oyster and when that oyster is gone the shell is going to forever be empty of an oyster.
Now the claim is that these bags deteriorate in sunlight, a surprising revelatory tidbit not previously mentioned even when we brought evidence that these were floating up with greater and greater frequency.
The public were told so many things at the dog and pony shows like these gems;
1, each bag would be home to XYZ numbers of oysters on every bag
2, every oyster would be filtering out 50 gallons of pollution from the water a day
3, that this was done because ECUA demanded that the poop station be protected at Gibbs Point
4, that this will not only stop erosion but that sand would migrate here to recreate on the very shoreline
5, that our concerns that the empirical evidence we saw very early on was just politicking.
6, that this is the only way 'protecting the shore can happen'
Over the years so many have said why did the county do one thing when there are so many options and why did you not try to teach the county and collaborate with other options but the reality is yes we did speak up yes we were shouted down.
Even Rainman would be hard pressed to look down and say "7,000,000. I see seven million ouster shells in bags" followed with "140,000,.. I see 140,000 shells that the county is responsible for littering on a sandy beach".
Watch my video and you will see a few oysters here and there and ask yourself just how many oysters would be here in 5 years time of this project actually being put in an area that is truly conducive to oyster life.
Oyster farming a a very serious science and just look to where farmers have chosen to grow oysters... I do not need much to prove to you that there is zero interest in the Bayou Grande as an oyster farm and even in the Pensacola bay there are very specific favored areas to farm because of Salinity and favorable phytoplankton and zooplankton, aka 'oyster food'.
Reality check here, phytoplankton and zooplankton are from the Greek The word 'plankton' derives from a Greek word meaning “to wander” and encompasses a big group of stuff that drifts around in the ocean.
Phytoplankton thrive in the shallower layers of the pelagic zone where abundant sunlight and gas exchange are available. Do we need to define Pelagic here?
Pelagic : of, relating to, or living or occurring in the open sea.
Open SEA
Pull a doug and drink a cup of Bayou Grande and notice that it is slightly salty but only slightly because this body of water if fed from Jones and other swamps.... Bring in that goofus who suggested placing these piles in Carpenters Creek or behind Lexington Apts, le' sigh. Believe me the generations of children who learned to swim here have probably all drank a fair share and of this bayou and they walk amongst us every day.
Thank you for linking to the videos and the report.
To successfully farm oysters, you have to have spat in the area. Is the county wanting to start an oyster farm there? Oysters don't just appear.
Ask an oyster farmer to come get them.
Clear them out.
Do not let Chips BS you. A real man admits failure and doesn't try to blame his short comings on Mel Pino. We know the drill.
Thanks for the blog.
Don't let it go into the drama triangle.
Use science and reason.
Simple biology.
What is the BCC going to get a consultant to do? Are you starting an oyster farm in a public park? NO.
Remove them. Let the oak leaves stay on the shore, contact a native nursery and plant low growing appropriate plants. I doubt you need a permit, a study nor a consultant to just use common sense.
Plants stop erosion. Didn't we learn that in elementary school.
And sexual reproduction of bivalves in middle. They don't appear out of nowhere.
While your are at it, don't you think the inlet project to keep Perdido private and not actually restore the critically eroded shoreline was a bust also? What if Ian had hit the now county road on a barrier island? Hint don't ask Chips, ask FDEP.
Surplus them as disposable property and give them to an oyster farmer, tell him/to come and get them.
Tell the road crew to stop raking leaves.
Problem solved.
Let each home owner adopt a spot in front of their home and coordinate with Florida Forestry for free giveaway native plants.
Bypass hard-headed bureaucrats that bluffed their way into this mess.
I’m a resident in this neighborhood and hope they will be removed. It’s not helping our shoreline and now is detracting from enjoyment of the park.
Contact Pete at Pensacola Bay Oyster Farm and ask him to come get them. They seed and farm them and check salinity and use science to grow shell fish.
You can't dump shells on a hot shore and farm oysters.
This was so and ill conceived and stupid.
You will get blow back because Chips lined up more grants for more of this. What's in it for him?
Also ask where the trailor is that was used to haul oysters. I wonder if it is in Arizona this weekend. Just who cashed the change order checks about April 2018?
This is not a maintenance issue. It's a bunch of oyster shells put in the wrong place.
God, I can't wait to see Chips called to the podium. Ask him if he is going to start farming oysters there. Hire a consultant. Pffftt.
How about this, ask a school class. Bhhaaa ha ha.
Let's see if he has the integrity to say, he was WRONG.
All eyes.
If you had seeded them, they may have had oysters. This is how they farm oysters.
Local guy in on this video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S0OpUeovaLQ
https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/habitat-conservation/oyster-reef-habitat#:~:text=Oysters%20live%20in%20salty%20or,other%20marine%20animals%20and%20plants.
https://science.unctv.org/content/video/oyster-reef
Oyster Lifecyle https://hatchery.hpl.umces.edu/oyster-life-cycle/
Great to see you running again! Thanks for all you do. The Best! Thank for sifting through the BS and calling it like it is.
I am sure with the other living shorelines on the horizon it took some bravery to admit this one was done inappropriately.
Thanks for taking on the tough issues yet still being congenial with your peers.
Your parents raised you and your brother right.
It's funny to read the grumbling comments on ECW. I LOL ed when Peacock joined in about you running. They have the loose cannon that was pointing fingers announcing he was running for sheriff but of course the other guy who runs for everything says he is.
What a collection.
Yes, these shorelines, people would like for these areas to be abundant like they used to be. There are several factors involved in a thriving ecosystem.
Melissa Pino was right all along and has endured much abuse from the Doug Underhill fan club.
I know a big I told you so is a bit of a delight.
Now to find that middle ground. It probably is not that hard.
Oysters will grow under water on the bottom, one reason farmers turn them and float is to remove algae and barnacles. Check the salinity of the water. Monitor the seagrass.
The engineer was right.. what are the goals.
Let's see if new D2 can handle this.
Glad you voted to Unwind the garbage on the sandy shore. Back to the drawing board.
About time. Note date of Link. MARCH 2018.
https://www.pnj.com/story/news/2018/03/30/navy-point-living-shore-oyster-project-causes-concern-among-some-residents/466894002/
Thank you SO MUCH to Chairman Bergosh and the BCC, and everyone else who has supported the efforts to restore our Navy Point shorelines!
Looks like we will have to deal with one last wave of the disinformation brigade on it, although their ranks have dwindled considerably. There's JC Tellefson pretending that he's gotten anywhere near the things since he volunteered a couple of days to put them in, and then there's Britney Hirras coming onto ECW with the most outlandish statement (since deleted) I've seen yet supporting the failed project: "it's never going to be a 'swimming' destination."
It's just mind boggling the lies people are willing to put down, in public, towards the perverse goal of keeping the public off our beaches.
Anyone who would like to see the amazing vintage marketing brochures from back in the day when the real estate went on the market, I posted them on my Facebook this morning:
https://www.facebook.com/melissa.pino.3910/posts/pfbid027wMj47mx6mkekwdzuKjNXm9u1v618CoYsUMnDGhvewqVs7q3UPnRqreCAuYa3x9Tl
"If you've got the spirit, you can't possibly resist with all the opportunities just beyond your doorstep.....With three and one quarter miles of waterfront surrounding Navy Point, no home is more than a five-minute walk to the nearest bathing beach."
My favorite thing from the brochures is the Betty Boop in her bikini kicking the water as she wades into the water on Gibbs Point. :)
What is Spat?
Note when the water is clean it promotes grow of underwater grasses.
Seems you could roll,the oyster out deeper, maybe bring in a little clean sand for the shore and plant a few things.
Maybe add some spat to the water if the salinity is right, or move them to another location conducive to oyster growth.
https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/spat.html
I know you can't direct staff directly. It was good Tim Day took the fallout. I imagine he does have to navigate the bureaucratic red tape of permits and grants and such.
Thank to Melissa and Kevin and others. Remember Ms Albret (sp) of Bream fisherman was involved in 2018. Most don't have the stomach to fight city hall but now was the time to move on this, since Underhill is finally defanged and toothless and powerless.
Good riddance.
You can purchase spat in Fairhope.
https://www.oystergardeners.com/resources/where-can-i-buy-spat
Really the shells need to be going back in the water, not the garbage.
Juvenile oysters will attach to both living oysters or in empty shells, if the conditions are right. True, they don't grow in the dry sunshine.
Nor in fresh water.
Underhill did post he had helped with a boyscout project and one of his boys made one when they lived on Perdido Bay...
If you want to clarify the water, prevent erosion of a sandy shore and maintain a public beach, this was not the solution.
Clearly.
They empty shells certainly could be the start of an artificial reef, once started and protected it might begin to regenerate itself. I know about the decline of the oyster in Apalachicola. Overharvested and Atlanta made the waters too salty with the water wars over Lake Lanier.
It is really sad.
That's all I got to say about that.
One more. I would think the FWC and the UWF could be consulted. Look at all info available with FSU and the Appalicola Bay Oysters. I certainly hope Kohler is enthusiastic about the environment. https://marinelab.fsu.edu/absi/faqs/
The ABSI
https://marinelab.fsu.edu/absi/
So if they won't grow here what does that say about the other living shorelines for NAS. Didn't Chips and crew check the salinity and reports before going for all those grants?
Upon further research myself, I found the FWC and UF HAVE been looking at oyster growth locally and they are doing research in Pensacola Bay and a study says they grow best in East Bay.
Bayou Grande looks like it is fed by fresh water.
They NR department gets to the podium and say they don't want to jeopardize grants but it seems to me they didn't do their homework and just pushed through on not only this one but perhaps the other one, if it is located in Bayou Grand on the opposite shore.
White Island location may be salty enough for oysters.
I see they are using clams in other locations in South Florida for water quality, which in turn helps sea grasses grow.
Looking at the agenda for tomorrow.
It looks like Chips found the most expensive way to remove this on purpose.
One thing about observing meetings for a few years is I think I can read between the lines. I think I heard that the Administrator is probably going to get the road crew to go clean the garbage out of the swimming areas at no cost to the taxpayer. I may be wrong. That's what it sounded like to me. Off the nights agenda. Problem solved.
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