Coastal Program
Agreements
Project GreenShores
The Panama City Field Office is one of many partners in
Project GreenShores, a project working to restore seagrass,
salt marsh and oyster reefs in Pensacola Bay. Project GreenShores
used lime rock to provide a hard bottom area in the bay
for oyster growth and to help break wave energy to protect
newly planted seagrass and salt marsh. This project has
already restored 12 acres and plans to restore 20 additional
acres. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service also provided
the funding for the American Star, a boat used for educational
cruises of the restored habitat. Learn more about Project
GreenShores.
West Bay Pilot Project
The Panama City Field Office partnered with the Bay
Environmental Study Team (BEST) for a small project
in west Bay County to test techniques for planting seagrass.
West Bay has lost more than 1,000 acres of seagrass. This
pilot project is testing one site where replanted seagrass
is protected by wave attenuation (or wave energy) using
concrete pyramids surrounding the growth in a semi-circle
and comparing those results to another site where no protection
is provided. This research will help determine how seagrass
can be restored in Bay County.
State Parks Sea Oat Planting
The Panama City Field Office has partnered with the Florida
State Parks Service to plant sea oats for sand dune restoration.
By trapping sand, sea oats form and preserve sand dunes,
which serve as the habitat for many endangered and threatened
species in the Panhandle. More than 80,000 sea oat seedlings
have been planted in Camp Helen and Shell Island, both recreation
areas in Bay County, and St. Joseph Peninsula State Park
in Gulf County. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has provided
more money to fund additional sea oat planting, as well
as construction of two boardwalks in state parks to protect
sand dunes and bird nesting areas.
Seagrass Mapping
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has a cooperative
agreement with the U.S. Geological Survey, Florida
Department of Environmental Protection and Northwest
Florida Water Management District to photograph
and map all seagrass beds in northwest Florida. This
involves taking aerial photographs, digitizing maps
and analyzing the data collected
to chart the growth and loss of seagrass. Comparisons
will be made with similar maps from 1953, 1964, 1980
and 1992. The Panama City Field Office
is providing the funding for the project and is helping
with the field work.
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