Sarasota Bay Watch (SBW) has continued to grow and provide the community with an understanding of the importance of a healthy bay to the community through many projects from scallop restoration, island clean ups, monofilament clean ups and much more.

Recently SBW was awarded a $25,000 grant from the Disney Conservation Fund (DCF). The conservation grant recognizes Sarasota Bay Watch’s ongoing efforts to restore bay scallops to Sarasota Bay.

Larry Stults, Chairman of Sarasota Bay Watch noted “This is the second year that the Disney Conservation Fund has awarded a grant for this project, which underscores the importance of marine species restoration, as well as the collaborative community effort behind it.”

To date, community volunteers have released in excess of 70 million scallop larvae and over 100,000 juvenile scallops into Sarasota Bay. Additionally, SBW this year initiated its Scallop Sanctuary project, where young adult scallops are placed in protective cages around the bay. The cages deter predators while the scallops mature and keep the scallops close together to promote a successful natural spawns. This project holds promise and is being expanded with the help of SBW and student volunteers.

These restoration measures through the support of various segments of the community not only help achieve the goal of re-establishing stable breeding populations of bay scallops in Sarasota Bay, but also creates a sense of community stewardship for our marine environment.. This program depends upon and has been supported by the generous ongoing work of volunteers and organizations like the DCF

The DCF focuses on protecting wildlife and connecting kids and families with nature. Since its founding in 1995, DCF has provided more than $30 million to support conservation programs in 115 countries. Projects were selected to receive awards based upon their efforts to study wildlife, protect habitats and develop community conservation and education programs in critical ecosystems.

For information on Disney’s commitment to conserve nature and a complete list of 2015 grant recipients, visit www.disney.com/conservation. To become involved in Sarasota Bay Watch’s efforts and see how you can help visit Sarasota Bay Watch’s web site at www.sarasotabaywatch.org.