Suncoast Waterkeeper’s new Executive Director Abbey Tyrna brings an impressive record of accomplishments to the organization.
Tyrna received her doctorate in geography from Pennsylvania State University in 2015, where she researched the effects of development on wetlands. Tyrna earned a master’s degree in wetland science and management in 2008 from Louisiana State University and has a Bachelor of Science degree in environmental studies from Florida State University. She has taught at Penn State University and State College of Florida.
Suncoast Waterkeeper Executive Director Abbey Tyrna takes a water sample from one of the area’s creeks. – Rusty Chinnis | Sun
She has honed her leadership skills serving as secretary of the Florida Association of Natural Resources Extension Professionals while co-creating and chairing the Society of Wetland Scientists’ Wetlands of Distinction initiative. She has been a member of the UF/IFAS Extension and Sarasota County Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee. In addition, she is a technical advisor for the Natural Assets Advisory Committee with the Palmer Ranch Community Association in Sarasota.
Before joining Suncoast Waterkeeper, Tyrna worked with Sarasota County government and the University of Florida to help bring scientific knowledge and expertise to the public as a water resources agent for UF/IFAS Extension and Sustainability.
“The board of Suncoast Waterkeeper is proud to welcome someone with Tyrna’s experience and credentials,” founder Justin Bloom said. “The board and I look forward to taking this organization to the next level under the direction of someone with the dedication, energy and expertise of Abbey Tyrna.”
Raised in Cape Coral on Florida’s west coast, Tyrna realized the importance of clean water, ponds, creeks and coastal estuaries as a child.
“In seventh grade, I got to walk through Six Mile Cypress in Fort Myers,” she said. “I was in water up to my chest and I couldn’t have been happier. Even though it was 30-plus years ago, I still remember the serenity of the swamp and the feel of the water. I knew the swamp was special and learned it was connected to our limited groundwater resources. From that day on, I devoted my education to learning about wetlands and protecting Florida waters.”
She believes working with Suncoast Waterkeeper is a natural extension of that work.
“At Suncoast Waterkeeper, I plan to expand our waterway monitoring efforts and staff capacity to engage the community and influence decision-makers to protect our waters,” Tyrna said of her future plans with the organization. “I will be intentional in my effort to seek out diverse voices and points of view. In doing so, I hope to lead Suncoast Waterkeeper to realize its vision of clean water for all.”
Tyrna lives in Sarasota County with her husband, two kids and their dog.
She likes to kayak and paddleboard with her kids and intends to explore every creek and bay on the Suncoast.
MANATEE COUNTY – The Suncoast Waterkeeper organization remains concerned about the Florida Department of Environmental Protection’s (FDEP) response and oversight of the mangrove trimming that occurred earlier this year at the Aqua development.
Currently being developed with numerous single-family and multi-family structures, the Aqua development, previously known as Long Bar Pointe, is located in unincorporated Manatee County between El Conquistador Parkway and Sarasota Bay, lined in places with state-protected mangroves.
The mangrove trimming that occurred earlier this year created a better view of the bay from the multi-family residential buildings being constructed on the Aqua property. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
On Aug. 19, Suncoast Waterkeeper founder and Vice-Chair Justin Bloom emailed a letter to FDEP environmental specialist and compliance coordinator Derrick Hudson and several other FDEP staff members, including FDEP Southwest District Director Kelly Boatwright and FDEP Secretary Shawn Hamilton. Bloom also sent the letter to state legislators Jim Boyd and Will Robinson Jr.
The letter’s subject matter was “Long Bar/Aqua Mangrove trimming violations,” and was signed by Bloom, Suncoast Waterkeeper Chair (and The Sun’s outdoors columnist) Rusty Chinnis and Executive Director Abbey Tyrna.
“Thank you for following up on the numerous citizens’ complaints relating to mangrove trimming permit violations at Long Bar Point (Aqua),” the letter began. “It appears the investigation has resulted in some remedial action for which we are pleased, however current conditions at the site reveal significant debris remaining and further evidence of permit violations.
“A recent visual observation from the water revealed that only the small portion of the mangrove forest that corresponded with the GPS coordinates contained within the inspection report were cleaned up. However, the extent of the trimming damage was much more extensive suggesting that the investigatory measures taken by DEP have not been adequate to achieve compliance,” the letter states.
Significant amounts of mangrove trimming debris remain along the Aqua development shoreline. – Rusty Chinnis | Sun
“Furthermore, from what we have seen, there has been no compliance assistance offer, no warning letter, no notice of violation or other enforcement action taken. This is concerning to us. We believe that but for our advocacy, the DEP would have dropped the matter long ago without finding any violations. We want to see DEP play this matter out according to your own rules and regulations,” the letter states.
The Waterkeeper letter included a link to several photographs Chinnis took on Aug. 17 of the trimming debris that remains along the Aqua shoreline.
Trimming concerns
In February, FDEP received two complaints that questioned whether the mangrove trimming that occurred along the Aqua shoreline was conducted in compliance with state laws and regulations. FDEP received a third complaint in April.
In May, FDEP released an investigation report that included a site inspection overview stating that Hudson and FDEP staff member Pamala Vazquez made their first site visit to the Aqua property on April 26, accompanied by Medallion Home/Long Bar Pointe/Aqua representatives Rob Bosarge and Chris Chavez.
Hudson conducted a second site visit on May 3, accompanied by Chavez and Dave Fister, the arborist who owns the Fort Myers-based Coastline Tree Service company that recently trimmed the Aqua mangroves.
The compliance status determination listed in Hudson’s report references “minor non-compliance.” Regarding a return to compliance, Hudson’s report says, “It is recommended the permittee provide the pre and post trim photos required by the permit within 30 days of receipt of this letter. Please ensure during the next trim event, photographs are submitted 14 days prior and 14 days following the activity. Please contact department staff to schedule a joint site inspection within 30 days following the trim event.”
When contacted by The Sun on May 17 regarding the inspection report, FDEP Press Secretary Alexandra Kuchta said, “The mangroves appeared to be healthy and trimmed within the permit limits. Trimming did not result in more than 25% of the foliage being removed and trimming did not induce tree mortality. However, no pre or post photographs or pre or post trimming notifications were provided to the department, which are required by the mangrove trimming plan.”
Additional correspondence
On June 23, Hudson sent an email to Fister, which he also copied to Chaves, Bosarge and Medallion Home founder, CEO and president Carlos Beruff.
Hudson’s email contained an aerial map that identified where the mangrove trimmings took place and several pages of inspection photos and photo descriptions that referenced “oversized trimming,” “aggressive trimming,” “spot of significant trimming litter left,” “trimming location below authorized height,” “location of possible tree topping” and “tree removal.”
In his July 1 response to Hudson, arborist Fister wrote, “On June 29th we conducted a site visit to the mangrove fringe at Long Bar Pointe. We did observe that not all trimming debris greater than 3 feet (in length) or 3 inches (in diameter) was completely removed from the fringe. We will be responsible to clean that debris from the fringe. It is our desire to allow this to take place during the next trimming event.”
Fister also suggested some of the trimming debris cited in the FDEP photos may have been the result of previous trimming efforts.
On July 12, Hudson sent an email to Chavez and Bosarge that included the following FDEP-requested actions: Within 30 days (by Aug. 12) remove the trimmings longer than 3 feet long and/or larger than 3 inches in diameter, remove the ‘hot spot’ trimmings and large piles of authorized trimmings, provide pre and post photos of the work conducted and investigate and provide photos of map location #5.
Overall enforcement concerns
The Suncoast Waterkeeper letter also addressed FDEP’s overall enforcement efforts.
“We have witnessed a disturbing pattern of mangrove trimming violations and a lack of DEP enforcement, particularly in Manatee County. Manatee County still has significant mangrove coverage, (but) permitted and unpermitted mangrove trimming and removal is taking a disturbing toll on these precious environmental resources. We believe that property owners and contractors perceive that DEP is not providing oversight and that there will be little or no consequence removal. The environmental degradation that results is significant,” the letter states.
The Aqua/Long Bar Point shoreline looked like this before the mangroves were trimmed. – Rusty Chinnis | Sun
In closing, the letter encouraged FDEP officials to take appropriate actions to protect the remaining mangroves along Sarasota Bay and to also protect the integrity of the environmental laws and regulations that pertain to mangrove trimming.
Suncoast Waterkeeper and partner environmental groups Tampa Bay Waterkeeper, Manasota-88 and Our Children’s Earth Foundation have once again given local anglers cause for some badly-needed optimism. This past week the settlement of a Clean Water Act lawsuit against the city of Bradenton was announced.
Suncoast Waterkeeper initiated the lawsuit last year in response to repeated sewage spills into the Manatee River and local waterways. Local guides like Captain Justin Moore suspected that those releases may have exacerbated the historic lyngbya we’ve experienced over the past three years.
“Bradenton’s wastewater system and water infrastructure were woefully outdated as they are in too many communities throughout Florida,” said the Suncoast Waterkeeper board’s environmental attorney, member and founder Justin Bloom. “The historic lack of investment in infrastructure harms the health of our communities and waterways. This settlement guarantees that the city of Bradenton will make much-needed upgrades in their wastewater and sewage treatment system.”
The groups documented that the city had spilled over 160 million gallons of partially treated sewage into the Manatee River, bypassing the city’s treatment plant over the past five years. During that time frame, the city discharged millions more gallons of reclaimed and raw sewage from its aging sewage system, which is plagued by structural deficiencies.
“Citizen suits are critical for addressing pollution problems that would otherwise be ignored,” said Annie Beaman of Our Children’s Earth. “In Bradenton (and many other Florida cities), government officials have been kicking the can down the road for too long. Clean water is a priority and, in coming to the table to settle, the city of Bradenton has demonstrated that it is willing to prioritize water quality. If we invest in clean water now, we will avoid much higher costs to people and the environment in the future.”
The settlement sets firm deadlines for improvements to the city’s sewage treatment plant, including increasing pumping and treatment capacity and upgrading disinfection capabilities. The city will also have to address issues in the collection system, including assessing the condition of pipes, finding leaks and ensuring the availability of backup power. Along with all these changes will be an update to the city’s capacity, management, operation and maintenance programs for its sewage collection system.
“The public has a right to know what is flowing into our waterways and how municipalities are managing their wastewater systems,” said Glenn Compton of ManaSota-88. “Reporting has been lacking. This settlement lays out protocols for how the city needs to report spills and diversions and also requires the development of a website that will provide the public with up-to-date information on water quality and incidents.”
Bradenton also will be required to invest at least $220,000 in projects to improve local waters and/or estuarine habitats.
“The city’s approach to the lawsuit was collaborative and highly productive,” said Justin Tramble, executive director of Tampa Bay Waterkeeper. “The parties worked together to understand the issues and negotiate solutions, resulting in the detailed work requirements reflected in the settlement. The city is clearly committed to focusing on fixing its sewage infrastructure issues as soon as possible.”
The Bradenton settlement is a part of an ongoing effort by environmental advocacy groups to protect waterways through legal action. The successful Clean Water Act cases the Waterkeeper groups, led by Bloom, have initiated against St. Petersburg, Gulfport and Largo have been one of the few bright spots for Florida’s environment.
SCWK’s work with Sarasota County, where a settlement was negotiated without filing suit, looms large. Once again, the parties were able to focus their time, energy and resources on resolving the claims and fixing the failed sewage system, rather than litigating. Like many municipalities in Florida, the county’s collection system needed upgrades and repairs.
The most significant failure, which was the focus of that case, was the reclaimed water system from the county’s largest sewage treatment plant. For nearly a decade, the effluent from the plant flowed over the storage pond into Phillippi Creek and into Sarasota Bay, bringing nearly a billion gallons of wastewater with high concentrations of nitrogen into an estuary that was seeing increased algae blooms and seagrass losses associated with excess nutrients. The spills were hidden from the public and other stakeholders that were working hard to improve water quality in Sarasota Bay. This case was resolved with a commitment, under a federal court order with oversight and monitoring, to upgrade the collection system and stop the spills. Sarasota County recently broke ground on $215 million in upgrades as a result of this case and to date, there have been no new spills from the storage pond.
The waterkeeper groups and their partners’ work has made a difference in water quality and helped the fishery resource as well. As good as these wins were for anglers, much remains to be done. Join in this effective movement online.
