ANNA MARIA – The Anna Maria City Commission has deferred for two weeks a decision on a $50,000 funding request for proposed clam and seagrass restoration projects.
The previously discussed request, spearheaded by local restaurant owner Ed Chiles, was presented in more detail to the commission on Jan. 13. Chiles and his associates are requesting the city contribute $50,000 from the approximately $850,000 in federal American Rescue Plan (ARP) funds the city will receive over a two-year period.
Chiles said a group of private individuals has committed to a dollar-for-dollar match for up to $50,000 in additional funds if donated by community members and others in support of the proposed projects. Chiles said $50,000 from the city combined with $50,000 in community donations and $50,000 in matching funds could turn the city’s $50,000 investment into a $150,000 project, with the Sea Grant Florida program potentially providing some additional funding.
The fundraising efforts for the proposed local restoration projects coincide with the group’s pursuit of state and federal funds for larger-scale bivalve and seagrass restoration projects.
Gulf Shellfish Institute Executive Director Stephen Hesterberg presented the funding request with assistance from Chiles, Sea & Shoreline President Carter Henne, Terra Ceia-based clam hatchery operator, Diatom Initiative founder and Gulf Shellfish Institute co-founder Curt Hemmel and Angela Collins from the University of Florida Sea Grant Florida program.
Hesterberg said clams and other bivalves help filter and clean the water they live in. He said seagrass beds provide habitats for fish and other marine life, support commercial fishing industries and help counteract global warming by sequestering carbons.
The presentation included maps that indicate where the clam and seagrass restoration efforts would occur.
The group proposes the Diatom Initiative be contracted to place a total of 20,000 southern hard clams and sunray venus clams in various locations along the Tampa Bay shoreline of Anna Maria and Holmes Beach, including Bimini Bay, which is located near the Anna Maria-Holmes Beach border and encompasses both cities. The clam restoration efforts would include the installation of protective predator netting and quarterly monitoring and reporting for one year.
The group proposes Sea & Shoreline be contracted to place 803 seagrass units and 1,250 sediment tubes in Bimini Bay, including acquiring the necessary permits and three years of monitoring.
The non-profit Gulf Shellfish Institute would disburse the funds and provide third-party oversight and long-term monitoring and evaluation.
Clam restoration
City Public Works Manager Dean Jones asked if the clams could be poached from their new environments. Hemmel said the clams would be subject to predators, including humans, but most would be placed at depths where they can’t be easily removed.
Hemmel also said, “You have one of the few sunray venus clam populations in the country. I would assume thousands of people have gone out and pulled sunray venus clams because they taste so delicious. We propose putting some of those back where the population used to be significantly larger.”
Hemmel said he’s worked with townships in Northeastern states that place clams in the water for residents, visitors and commercial fishers to harvest.
Commissioner Mark Short asked if the 20,000 clams would breed and produce significantly more clams. Hemmel estimated 5,000 to 15,000 would likely survive, but the long-term goal is to keep those clams reproducing at an exponential rate. Hesterberg said the surviving clams will filter more water as they become larger and help provide sustainability for a growing clam population.
Red tide mitigation
Commissioner Carol Carter asked what impact the proposed projects would have on lessening the impacts of red tide.
Hesterberg said red tide is “a very complex issue” but water quality and clarity are directly tied to making Anna Maria more resilient to red tide. He noted red tide is a microscopic organism that exists naturally in the water column and is filtered out by filter-feeding bi-valves, including clams.
Henne said drift algae also gets into canals and reduces the oxygen in those areas for fish and other marine life.
“Is it going to fix red tide completely? No, but it will reduce the effects by absorbing nutrients and extracting algae out of the water column and reducing the sore spots,” Henne said.
Hesterberg said the Anna Maria projects could serve as a learning ground and a research area for future restoration projects elsewhere in the state and beyond.
Chiles said he hopes some of the funds acquired from additional donors could be used to help Sarasota-based Mote Marine design an exhibit for the pending Mote Educational Outreach Center on the Anna Maria City Pier that highlights the importance of clams and seagrass.
Chiles said the city of Bradenton Beach previously funded a clam restoration project and he hopes the city of Holmes Beach will too.
Crane’s concerns
Commissioner Jon Crane requested the delay of the vote. The meeting packet included a Dec. 24 email he sent to Mayor Dan Murphy regarding Mote Marine’s ongoing red tide remediation efforts.
“I am told that clams and oysters do generally clean water, but there is no evidence that clams or oysters remediate red tide. Before voting on Ed Chiles’ proposal, I strongly suggest that we invite Kevin Claridge of Mote to speak to the commission,” Crane stated in his email.
During Thursday’s meeting, Crane reiterated his desire that Claridge address the commission before a decision is made regarding the $50,000 request.
“This is a great water quality and restoration project, but I’m told – and we can bring in Mote people to confirm this – that there’s no proof, no evidence, that red tide is mitigated at all in this process,” Crane said.
Crane said Claridge is willing to attend the Jan. 27 commission meeting to discuss Mote Marine’s red tide mitigation and research projects.
Crane noted the commission previously designated $50,000 in ARP funds for red tide mitigation and he asked whether those ARP funds could be used for the proposed restoration projects that may or may not help mitigate red tide.
Murphy said the red tide mitigation designation included in the city’s ARP spending plan was a commission decision and the city is not bound to use the federal funds specifically for that purpose. He said the commission could amend its spending plan to include a water quality project instead.
While agreeing to delay the funding decision, Commissioner Deanie Sebring said she’s researched the positive impacts of clam and seagrass restoration projects. She expressed her enthusiastic support for the proposed projects and the commission as a whole was receptive to the proposed restoration projects.
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