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Tag: Coral Shores

red tide canal shores

Canal cleanup revisited

Written by Joe Hendricks on . Posted in Community News, Manatee County.

MANATEE COUNTY – Manatee County paid APTIM approximately $140,000 for a week’s worth of canal cleaning services, according to Information Outreach Manager Nick Azzara.

During a Monday, Aug. 27, press conference, county officials announced APTIM’s services had been discontinued

“The contractor was able to manage to have all those fish picked up in a week,” County Administrator Ed Hunzeker said.

Hunzeker and Commissioner Steve Jonsson also announced the county was transitioning to a voluntary “Nets to Neighbors” maintenance program that involved hand nets, buckets and dumpsters being placed in some waterfront neighborhoods.

Dated Aug. 17, the county’s contract with APTIM’s Boca Raton office included a not to exceed amount of $468,988. The contract stated APTIM would collect biological debris along the Bradenton Beach, Holmes Beach and Anna Maria bayside shorelines as well as the mainland shorelines along the Palma Sola and Sarasota Bay. The contract stated APTIM wouldn’t cleanup along the Gulf of Mexico, Longboat Key or the Manatee River shorelines.

The contract stated APTIM would provide three 26-foot marine work vessels manned by a captain and two deckhands who would manually skim the surface with nets to remove the floating debris. The contract also called for a survey vessel and a dedicated collection vessel to transport the collected debris to offloading areas for transport to the county landfill.

APTIM’s fee proposal listed $145,680 in labor costs, $35,698 in equipment costs and $287,610 in direct costs if the contract was carried out in full. APTIM’s projected direct costs included $272,580 for SWS Environmental Services – a national firm with locations in Tampa and St. Petersburg that offers on-water spill response services. SWS comprised 95 percent of APTIM’s projected direct costs.

APTIM’s work assignment sheet listed daily rates for engineers, managers, surveyors, a hydrographer, biologists, geologists and more. In addition to survey boats, the daily equipment rates included cameras, a pitch and roll compensator, tidal gauges, a fathometer, a navigation system and more. The direct cost rates consisted of meals, lodging, and mileage.

On Saturday, Aug. 25, Manatee County Environmental Program Manager Damon Moore sent an email to County Commission Executive Assistant Sheri Smith explaining his decision to discontinue APTIM’s services.

“We were relying on this contractor to remove large mats of floating rotting fish in canals and boat accessible shorelines. By midday Friday they had worked through the existing large contiguous masses mostly within the areas of Coral Shores, Bowlees Creek, and Trailer Estates. With the lack of accessible floating masses and fish rotting to the extent that they could not effectively be removed via the nets, I made the decision that this waterside approach was no longer an effective or wise use of funds at over $25k per day. I did this after a report from the helicopter survey on Friday of no more significant floating masses in the bay and speaking with Ed (Hunzeker) and Dan (Schlandt),” Moore’s email said.

On Aug. 21, county commissioners amended the fiscal year budget and appropriated $750,000 in county funds for red tide response. In turn, the county has a received a funding commitment for a $750,000 FDEP grant.

During the press conference, Hunzeker said the cleanup costs were $250,000, but he provided no details. Azzara said later that figure included APTIM’s fees, overtime pay for county employees and other costs associated with the county’s red tide response.

Canal conditions

A Wednesday, Aug. 29, visit to the Coral Shores neighborhood on Cortez Road revealed only small amounts of dead fish and horseshoe crabs floating in the canal ends. Two weeks ago, those canal ends were filled with dead and rotting fish, and the smell was nearly unbearable.

A dumpster had been placed along the main entry road, accompanied by a sign that said, “Fish Disposal Only.” A peek inside the dumpster revealed no dead fish.

red tide canal dumpster
The county placed this dumpster in the mainland Coral Shores neighborhood. – Submitted | Sun

A visit to the neighboring Mt. Vernon community revealed similar canal conditions.

On Sunday, Coral Shores resident Lindy Gallagher said she didn’t see dead fish in her canal, but black algae had appeared. Resident Kelly Strom said there was a bad odor in the air, and she was seeing sheets of green algae floating in the canal.

An Aug. 29 visit to a residential canal at 20th Place North in Bradenton Beach revealed a bayside canal end covered with seagrass, dead fish, eels and horseshoe crabs, with flies and maggots congregating on the decomposing marine life.

One block over, the 21st Place North canal contained only a few floating fish and crabs.

When contacted, County Commissioners Carol Whitmore and Steve Jonsson said they were not aware of APTIM doing any work along the Island shorelines, and Whitmore said none of the Island mayors requested assistance.

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Red tide lingers

Written by Joe Hendricks on . Posted in Uncategorized.

ANNA MARIA ISLAND – Today’s red tide update from Manatee County indicates improving conditions on some Anna Maria Island beaches, but red tide levels remain high in the water at both ends of the Island, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

Red tide levels remain high at the Rod & Reel Pier in Anna Maria, the Longboat Pass boat ramp in Bradenton Beach and the Palma Sola Bay Bridge, according to Wednesday’s report from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

Red tide was present in very low to high concentrations in 11 water samples collected from Manatee County. Levels ranged from 5-25 percent higher in Manatee County from Aug. 18-24 compared to the previous week, according to the FWC.

Respiratory irritation was reported from Aug. 16-23 at Coquina Beach and Manatee Beach, and fish kills continue.

Aerial surveys from Pinellas to northern Charlotte counties, including Manatee County, also indicate the presence of offshore blooms of the marine cyanobacterium Trichodesmium, which is not harmful to people.

According to today’s Manatee County beach update:

  • Beaches are open
  • Coquina Bayside, Coquina Beach and Cortez Beach north to Bean Point are clean
  • Bayfront Park has minor seaweed
  • Coquina North and South Boat Ramps are clean
  • Crews are working to rake the beaches as needed
  • Red tide signs are posted at affected beaches and will remain until the red tide bloom is over.

Manatee County beach rake operator Mark Taylor said the beaches today are “Much better. The water still doesn’t look right because that stuff is just offshore.”

As for the type of dead marine life on the beach Thursday morning, Taylor said, “Just a few catfish, horseshoe crabs, queen crabs, etc. But it’s very light. The east wind is definitely our friend for now.”

RTU AM Beach
This jogger enjoyed a run on a clean beach in Anna Maria this morning. – Chantelle Lewin | Sun

After taking a walk on the beach in Anna Maria this morning, Sun Advertising Director Chantelle Lewin said that area of beach was clear.

“All’s good. Looks like an awesome weekend,” Lewin said.

As has been the case since the red tide reached Anna Maria Island on Aug. 3, the impacts of red tide vary from day to day and location to location.

On Thursday morning, Bradenton Beach resident Steve Schewe said, “It smells in Bradenton Beach and it stinks on Longboat Key.”

Residential canals

On Wednesday, the residential canal at 21st Place North contained only a few dead and floating fish, but a block away the end of the residential canal at 20th Place North was filled with dead fish and horseshoe crabs. One of the floating fish was filled with maggots and flies were active on several others.

RTU BB Canal II
This residential canal on 20th Place North in Bradenton Beach remains filled with dead marine life and seagrass. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

On the mainland, the Coral Shores canals along Cortez Road that looked horrific two weeks ago had only a handful of floating fish still remaining Wednesday afternoon.

Last week, the Coral Shores canals were among those cleaned by APTIM – the Boca Raton firm contracted by Manatee County at a cost of $140,000 for one week’s worth of cleanup services. APTIM’s services were discontinued at the conclusion of the workday on Aug. 24.

RTU Coral Shores Canal
On Wednesday, this Coral Shores canal looked much better than it did two weeks ago. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

The canals at the nearby Mt. Vernon community were also free of any large masses of dead fish on Wednesday, but a couple of dead horseshoe crabs were spotted floating in one of the canals.

On Monday, the county announced that it was transitioning to a voluntary “Nets to Neighbors” maintenance and light cleanup program that includes nets, buckets and dumpsters provided by the county in certain areas. The Coral Shores dumpster contained no dead fish or red tide debris as of Wednesday afternoon.

RTU Coral Shores Dumpster
On Wednesday, this dumpster in the Coral Shores neighborhood contained no dead fish. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

Local fishermen

After being contracted by the city of Anna Maria for a second time, Cortez fishermen Nathan Meschelle, Tanner Pelkey, Matt Smith and Michael Dolan spent Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday down at the former and future site of the Anna Maria City Pier cleaning seagrass and a very few number of dead fish off the beach.

Pelkey said the presence of seagrass is a normal occurrence. Meschelle said he thinks the red tide is dissipating and he hopes to return to fishing as soon as possible. Over the past weekend, Meschelle was contracted to do some canal cleanup for the Wild Oak Bay community on Cortez Road.

“That was some pretty nasty stuff down there,” Meschelle said. “We cleaned over 1,000 square yards of carnage that had drifted in.”

RTU Cortez Fishermen
These Cortez fishermen spent three days cleaning a stretch of city beach in Anna Maria. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

 – Cindy Lane contributed to this report.

For more information, visit The Sun’s Red Tide Resources.

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red tide canal cleanup

County contracting APTIM for canal cleanup

Written by Joe Hendricks on . Posted in Community News, Manatee County.

BRADENTON – Manatee County is contracting APTIM to remove the dead fish and marine life accumulating in residential canals and channels due to red tide.

The pending contractual arrangement was announced at a press conference on Friday afternoon and the decision disappointed some local fishermen who previously offered their assistance to the county.

County Administrator Ed Hunzeker said he would ask the County Commission to appropriate $500,000 when presenting the APTIM contract details on Tuesday, Aug. 21.

Hunzeker said the county already does business with APTIM and Parks and Natural Resources Director Charlie Hunsicker said later that APTIM provides design and engineering services for the county’s beach renourishment program. With offices in Tampa, St. Petersburg, Boca Raton, Miami, Orlando and Jacksonville, the Texas-based company also offers environmental and disaster recovery services.

The Aug. 17 press conference began with County Commissioner Steve Jonsson saying, “We’re going to do our best to alleviate some of the situations our citizens are experiencing.”

Hunzeker said the cleanup would occur in canals and channels on Anna Maria Island, the mainland and Longboat Key. He said the goal was to pick up the maximum amount of fish in the shortest amount of time.

“We don’t want to represent that we will get every fish in every canal and every waterway, but we’re trying to do the major cleanup. We have no idea how long this will last nor how long this contract will be in place,” Hunzeker said, noting the county budget includes contingency funds set aside for these types of unanticipated expenditures.

Serving as the county’s point person, Hunsicker said reconnaissance work conducted over the weekend would determine where the cleanup occurs.

Hunsicker said the cleanup would be done by hand, using boats and nets. “We’re not going to get every fish. And we’ll have to be patient because they are floating fish in the open waters. We’re not going to be able to remove the floating fish in our open bays, our rivers and the Gulf.”

Hunsicker said APTIM will clean mangrove shorelines because those shallow waters are difficult to access by boat.

Hunsicker said local fishermen could still be hired by those who desire a more thorough cleaning and Hunzeker noted that those who contract private fish removal services will not be reimbursed by the county.

Hunzeker was asked why the county didn’t contract local fishermen to clean the canals.

“We just don’t have time to deal with each individual fisherman to enter into each individual contract with 20, 30, 40, 50 fishermen that might be willing to help,” he said, also noting liability insurance and permitting requirements.

Fishermen disappointed

On Sunday, the county website still listed contact information for nine businesses or individuals offering fish removal services. Among them was Nathan Meschelle, president of the Cortez chapter of the Organized Fishermen of Florida (OFF).

“I’m not happy about the situation and there are many others that feel the same way. I am very curious to see how well of a job this outsource group does and what they actually cost us,” he said of the county’s decision.

Meschelle leases a boat from Adam Sears, who led a crew that assisted with the Deepwater Horizon oil spill cleanup efforts in 2010.

“We’re available, we worked on the oil spill, we’re insured,” Sears said, noting that OFF members are covered by the organization’s liability insurance. “We could have already had this done and cleaned. They’re basically saying we couldn’t do the job.”

When contacted, Jonsson said he would ask APTIM to consider using local fishermen if possible.

Coral Shores

During the press conference, Jonsson said dead fish were creating public health concerns in residential areas, including the Coral Shores community on Cortez Road.

“It’s critical to give these people some relief,” he said.

A visit to Coral Shores on Wednesday, Aug. 15, revealed three residential canals whose landward ends were filled with dead and rotting fish that created a nearly unbearable stench. That afternoon, resident Cynthia Saint Cacchiotti received from one individual listed at the county website a $6,000 bid to clean the three canals.

Cacchiotti’s husband, Rick, is president of the Coral Shores homeowners’ association and the bid she obtained was research for a potential association expenditure – a process that would require 10 days advance notice before a vote of members could occur. Instead, the Cacchiottis and some of their neighbors hired local fisherman Preston Rowland to begin cleaning their canal on Friday, before the APTIM contract was announced.

Coral Shores residents were scheduled to meet at the Cortez Baptist Church on Tuesday, Aug. 21, to discuss the ongoing cleanup efforts.

Manatee County also is now operating a Citizens Information Center that includes a hotline for citizens who have questions about red tide and the cleanup operations. The hotline number is 941-749-3547.

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