ANNA MARIA – A city commission decision on a $50,000 funding request for proposed clam and seagrass restoration projects has been further delayed as opponents voice concerns.
The additional delay is partially due to revisions made to the proposals that Ed Chiles and his associates previously presented to the city commission on Jan. 13, when Chiles and representatives from the Gulf Shellfish Institute, The Diatom Initiative and Sea & Shoreline requested $50,000 for the proposed restoration projects.
The money sought would come from the approximately $850,000 in American Rescue Plan (ARP) funds the city of Anna Maria will receive from the federal government. The city’s 2021-22 fiscal year budget earmarked $55,000 in ARP funds to address red tide/environmental issues.
The funding decision is also being delayed pending an appearance before the commission by 35-year Manatee County resident and retired marine ecologist Dr. Randy Edwards, who opposes the plan. Edwards will address the commission during the Thursday, Feb. 10 meeting that begins at 2 p.m.
On Jan. 13, Chiles told the commission a group of unnamed private donors would match dollar for dollar up to $50,000 in additional funds donated by the community at large. Chiles said this could turn a $50,000 effort into a $150,000 effort.
The group’s original proposal called for 20,000 southern hard and sunray venus clams to be placed in the Tampa Bay waters offshore of Anna Maria and in local canals. The proposal also calls for a seagrass restoration project in Bimini Bay – an interior body of water located in both Anna Maria and Holmes Beach.
Citing lingering concerns as to whether clams help remove red tide cells from the water, Commissioner Jon Crane requested the commission delay its funding decision until first hearing from Kevin Claridge regarding Mote Marine Laboratory’s red tide research and mitigation efforts. Claridge is vice president of Mote Marine’s sponsored research and coastal policy programs.
“I am told that clams and oysters do generally clean water, but there is no evidence that clams or oysters remediate red tide,” Crane said on Jan. 13.
He also questioned whether the red tide cells removed from the water by clams are redeposited into the water via the clams’ excrement.
On Wednesday, Jan. 26, Mayor Dan Murphy received a revised proposal from Diatom Initiative founder and clam hatchery operator Curt Hemmel. The proposal increases the number of clams from 20,000 southern hard and sunray venus clams to 1-2 million southern hard clams, with no sunray venus clams, which are often harvested for dining purposes.
Hemmel’s revised proposal was accompanied by a letter of support from Gulf Shellfish Institute Executive Director Stephen Hesterberg.
“It is empirically well supported that filter-feeding, bivalve shellfish improve water quality, support adjacent marine habitats and eliminate the organism that causes red tide. Although it is true that some nutrients delivered to the sediments are resuspended, a substantial amount of nitrogen can also be rendered inert by bacteria or utilized by beneficial submerged aquatic vegetation such as seagrass. Numerous peer-reviewed studies demonstrate that bivalves can facilitate seagrass production through improved water clarity and nutrient transfer,” Hesterberg stated in his letter.
“The exciting technologies being developed at Mote Marine Laboratory, such as clay application and ozonation/cavitation/oxidation, should absolutely be included in our arsenal of means to mitigate red tide. However, it is important to clarify these methods are reactive to when red tide blooms arise, and do not prevent or address the root causes of harmful algal blooms. In other words, such tools fight a wildfire once it is raging, but do not lower the risk of one starting,” Hesterberg stated in his letter.
Mote presentation
When appearing before the city commission on Thursday, Jan. 27, Claridge provided an overview of the red tide research being conducted by Mote Marine and its research partners.
He said the potential red tide mitigation methods being researched include natural algaecides, ozonation, clay disbursement, UV light rays and more. Claridge said tiered testing of these potential mitigation strategies is taking place in inland test tanks before being introduced to the natural waters.
Claridge noted this research pertains to red tide mitigation rather than habitat and marine life restoration. He also noted Mote Marine is not directly involved in studying the effectiveness of clams and other bi-valves regarding their ability to filter out red tide cells.
Additional comments
Crane addressed a point raised in a letter he received from Edwards, who listed his past associations with Mote Marine, the U.S. Geological Survey and the University of South Florida. Crane asked if the 20,000 clams originally proposed would equate to a “drop in the bucket” in terms of addressing water quality issues.
In his letter, Edwards stated, “20,000 clams would filter an infinitesimally small volume of the bays. Their filtration effect would be so small, compared to the volume of water in the bays, to be totally insignificant and would have no meaningful positive impact. The question is what better could be done with the $50,000 by the city; it would be far better to invest it in reducing stormwater nitrogen runoff to the bay.”
Commission Chair Carol Carter noted Mote Marine is not seeking any project funding from the city and that Claridge appeared at the city’s request.
Carter noted both restoration projects propose restoration efforts in and offshore of Anna Maria and Holmes Beach. She suggested the group either seek some of the funding from the city of Holmes Beach or limit the scope of the restoration projects to Anna Maria. Carter also noted the city has not yet received a formal written proposal regarding a funding request and she recommended one be submitted. Murphy also recommended a more formal written proposal be submitted.
