2
Officers Boating Industry: Bruce Popham (Chair) Alternate: Michael Martin Fishing – Commercial - Marine/Tropical: Ken Nedimyer (Vice Chair) Alternate: Forrest Young Other Non-Governmental Members Citizen At Large – Lower Keys: David Hawtof Alternate: Walter Drabinski Citizen At Large – Middle Keys: Dolly Garlo Alternate: Marvin Schindler Citizen At Large – Upper Keys: Jim Trice Alternate: David Makepeace Conservation and Environment: Jason Bennis Alternate: vacant 2009 ACCOMPLISHMENTS Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary surrounds the Florida Keys archipelago and supports one of the most diverse marine ecosystems in North America. The sanctuary is home to the continent’s only living coral barrier reef and beckons divers from around the world. The shallow waters of the 2,900-square nautical mile sanctuary also contain mangrove fringed islands and lush seagrass meadows. Together, these complex ecosystems provide the basis for the valuable tourism and fishing industries that are vital to Florida’s economy. Established Nov. 16, 1990. SOUTHEAST REGIONAL PRIORITIES Science Staff Provide Support for Southeast Region The Southeast Region of the NOAA Office of National Marine Sanctuaries provides direct support to the sanctuary sites through its regional science coordinators, who are active in a wide range of projects within NOAA as well as with other agencies and academia. In 2009, the region’s science coordinator worked to support the science program at Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, in addition to several national initiatives such as the Southeast Atlantic and Caribbean Regional Team. The region’s associate science coordinators helped Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary prepare an environmental impact statement that will support the site’s proposed sanctuary expansion; represented the sanctuary on NOAA’s Gulf of Mexico Regional Collaboration Team; served as the co- chief scientist for the Gray’s Reef sanctuary cruise aboard the NOAA ship Nancy Foster that supported four separate research projects and involved 12 organizations and numerous volunteers; and helped lead an acoustic study of fish movement underway at Gray’s Reef. Collaborative Efforts Help Protect U.S. Coral Reefs The region has been an active part of the U.S. Coral Reef Task Force and has worked closely with NOAA’s Coral Reef Conservation Program to help implement programs and steer the future direction of the United States’ coral reef protection efforts. The Southeast Region director chairs the land-based sources of pollution task force working group that has developed strategies for addressing water quality decline in coral reef areas of the U.S. These collaborations with the Coral Reef Task Force and with NOAA’s Coral Reef Conservation Program are testament to the important role that our sanctuaries play in research, education and management of coral reefs and in demonstrating the success of coral reef conservation policies. Regional Staff Focus on Climate Change, Fisheries Management Issues The region has taken a leading role in helping to guide local, regional and international responses to climate change and its impacts. Staff have been invited to several conferences and participated in panel and roundtable discussions with state governments, academic institutions and conservation groups to help direct science and policies in response to climate change and its impact on coastal and marine environments. These efforts have helped to promote the value of the sanctuary system as sentinel sites, locations with particular importance in understanding and monitoring climate change impacts on marine ecosystems. The region also represented the Office of National Marine Sanctuaries at meetings of South Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico regional fisheries management councils and commissions in 2009. These opportunities have ensured our participation in regional habitat monitoring, catch assessment and law enforcement programs established by these organizations. The meetings have also shown the national marine sanctuaries’ commitment to fisheries management and conservation strategies, and to fully engaging resource users in sanctuary management plans. The Southeast Regional Team also worked closely with the Florida Institute of Oceanography, the Coral Reef Conservation Program and sanctuary headquarters to keep SeaKeys operating, and is continuing to work to integrate the system into the NOAA Integrated Ocean Observing System Network. SeaKeys is one of the longest-standing networks of oceanographic monitoring stations. FKNMS ADVISORY COUNCIL MEMBERS Conservation and Environment: Chris Bergh Alternate: Peter Frezza Diving – Lower Keys: Don Kincaid Alternate: Bob Smith Diving – Upper Keys: Rob Mitchell Alternate: Robert Bleser Education and Outreach: Martin Moe Alternate: Alex Brylske Elected County Official: George R. Neugent Alternate: Heather Carruthers Fishing – Charter Fishing Flats Guide: Richard Grathwohl Alternate: Stephen Friedman Fishing – Charter Sports Fishing: Robert Simonds Alternate: Jim Sharpe Fishing Commercial - Shell/Scale: Jeff Cramer Alternate: vacant Fishing - Recreational: Jack Curlett Alternate: Bruce Frerer Research and Monitoring: Jon Fajans Alternate: David Vaughan South Florida Ecosystem Restoration: Jerry Lorenz Alternate: Joseph Boyer Submerged Cultural Resources: Corey Malcom Alternate: vacant Tourism – Lower Keys: Bob Holston Alternate: Clinton Barras Tourism – Upper Keys: vacant Alternate: Susan Ford Hammaker http://floridakeys.noaa.gov

floridakeys.noaa - Microsofthe capacity of local tour operators to act as educators and foster respect and understanding among their customers, turning divers and snorkelers into coral

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Page 1: floridakeys.noaa - Microsofthe capacity of local tour operators to act as educators and foster respect and understanding among their customers, turning divers and snorkelers into coral

Offic

ers

Boati

ng In

dustr

y: Br

uce P

opha

m (C

hair)

Al

terna

te: M

ichae

l Mar

tin

Fishin

g – C

omme

rcial

- Mar

ine/T

ropic

al:

Ken N

edim

yer (

Vice

Cha

ir)

Alter

nate:

For

rest

Youn

g Ot

her N

on-G

over

nmen

tal M

embe

rs

Citiz

en A

t Lar

ge –

Lowe

r Key

s: Da

vid H

awtof

Al

terna

te: W

alter

Dra

binsk

i

Citiz

en A

t Lar

ge –

Midd

le Ke

ys: D

olly G

arlo

Al

terna

te: M

arvin

Sch

indler

Ci

tizen

At L

arge

– Up

per K

eys:

Jim T

rice

Alter

nate:

Dav

id Ma

kepe

ace

Cons

erva

tion a

nd E

nviro

nmen

t: Jas

on B

ennis

Al

terna

te: va

cant

2009

ACC

OMPL

ISHM

ENTS

Flor

ida K

eys N

atio

nal M

arin

e San

ctua

ry su

rroun

ds th

e Flor

ida K

eys a

rchipe

lago a

nd su

ppor

ts on

e of th

e mos

t dive

rse

marin

e eco

syste

ms in

Nor

th Am

erica

. The

sanc

tuary

is ho

me to

the c

ontin

ent’s

only

living

cora

l bar

rier r

eef a

nd be

ckon

s dive

rs fro

m ar

ound

the w

orld.

The

shall

ow w

aters

of the

2,90

0-sq

uare

nauti

cal m

ile sa

nctua

ry als

o con

tain m

angr

ove f

ringe

d isla

nds a

nd lu

sh

seag

rass

mea

dows

. Tog

ether

, thes

e com

plex e

cosy

stems

prov

ide th

e bas

is for

the v

aluab

le tou

rism

and f

ishing

indu

stries

that

are v

ital to

Flo

rida’s

econ

omy.

Estab

lishe

d Nov

. 16,

1990

.

SOUT

HEAS

T RE

GION

AL P

RIOR

ITIE

S Sc

ience

Sta

ff Pr

ovid

e Sup

port

for S

outh

east

Reg

ion

The S

outhe

ast R

egion

of th

e NOA

A Of

fice o

f Nati

onal

Marin

e San

ctuar

ies pr

ovide

s dire

ct su

ppor

t to th

e san

ctuar

y site

s thr

ough

its

regio

nal s

cienc

e coo

rdina

tors,

who a

re ac

tive i

n a w

ide ra

nge o

f pro

jects

withi

n NOA

A as

well

as w

ith ot

her a

genc

ies an

d aca

demi

a. In

2009

, the r

egion

’s sc

ience

coor

dinato

r wor

ked t

o sup

port

the sc

ience

prog

ram

at Flo

rida K

eys N

ation

al Ma

rine S

anctu

ary,

in ad

dition

to

seve

ral n

ation

al ini

tiativ

es su

ch as

the S

outhe

ast A

tlanti

c and

Car

ibbea

n Reg

ional

Team

. The

regio

n’s as

socia

te sc

ience

coor

dinato

rs he

lped F

lower

Gar

den B

anks

Nati

onal

Marin

e San

ctuar

y pre

pare

an en

viron

menta

l impa

ct sta

temen

t that

will s

uppo

rt the

site’

s pr

opos

ed sa

nctua

ry ex

pans

ion; r

epre

sente

d the

sanc

tuary

on N

OAA’

s Gulf

of M

exico

Reg

ional

Colla

bora

tion T

eam;

serve

d as t

he co

-ch

ief sc

ientis

t for t

he G

ray’s

Ree

f san

ctuar

y cru

ise ab

oard

the N

OAA

ship

Nanc

y Fos

ter t

hat s

uppo

rted f

our s

epar

ate re

sear

ch pr

ojects

an

d inv

olved

12 or

ganiz

ation

s and

nume

rous

volun

teers;

and h

elped

lead

an ac

ousti

c stud

y of fi

sh m

ovem

ent u

nder

way a

t Gra

y’s R

eef.

Colla

bora

tive E

fforts

Help

Pro

tect

U.S

. Cor

al Re

efs

The r

egion

has b

een a

n acti

ve pa

rt of

the U

.S. C

oral

Reef

Task

For

ce an

d has

wor

ked c

losely

with

NOA

A’s C

oral

Reef

Cons

erva

tion

Prog

ram

to he

lp im

pleme

nt pr

ogra

ms an

d stee

r the

futur

e dire

ction

of th

e Unit

ed S

tates

’ cor

al re

ef pr

otecti

on ef

forts.

The

Sou

theas

t Re

gion d

irecto

r cha

irs th

e lan

d-ba

sed s

ource

s of p

olluti

on ta

sk fo

rce w

orkin

g gro

up th

at ha

s dev

elope

d stra

tegies

for a

ddre

ssing

wate

r qu

ality

decli

ne in

cora

l reef

area

s of th

e U.S

. The

se co

llabo

ratio

ns w

ith th

e Cor

al Re

ef Ta

sk F

orce

and w

ith N

OAA’

s Cor

al Re

ef Co

nser

vatio

n Pro

gram

are t

estam

ent to

the i

mpor

tant r

ole th

at ou

r san

ctuar

ies pl

ay in

rese

arch

, edu

catio

n and

man

agem

ent o

f cor

al re

efs an

d in d

emon

strati

ng th

e suc

cess

of co

ral re

ef co

nser

vatio

n poli

cies.

Re

gion

al St

aff F

ocus

on

Clim

ate C

hang

e, Fi

sher

ies M

anag

emen

t Iss

ues

The r

egion

has t

aken

a lea

ding r

ole in

helpi

ng to

guide

loca

l, reg

ional

and i

ntern

ation

al re

spon

ses t

o clim

ate ch

ange

and i

ts im

pacts

. St

aff ha

ve be

en in

vited

to se

vera

l con

feren

ces a

nd pa

rticipa

ted in

pane

l and

roun

dtable

disc

ussio

ns w

ith st

ate go

vern

ments

, aca

demi

c ins

titutio

ns an

d con

serva

tion g

roup

s to h

elp di

rect

scien

ce an

d poli

cies i

n res

pons

e to c

limate

chan

ge an

d its

impa

ct on

coas

tal an

d ma

rine e

nviro

nmen

ts. T

hese

effor

ts ha

ve he

lped t

o pro

mote

the va

lue of

the s

anctu

ary s

ystem

as se

ntine

l site

s, loc

ation

s with

partic

ular

impo

rtanc

e in u

nder

stand

ing an

d mon

itorin

g clim

ate ch

ange

impa

cts on

mar

ine ec

osys

tems.

The r

egion

also

repr

esen

ted th

e Offic

e of

Natio

nal M

arine

San

ctuar

ies at

mee

tings

of S

outh

Atlan

tic an

d Gulf

of M

exico

regio

nal fi

sher

ies m

anag

emen

t cou

ncils

and c

ommi

ssion

s in

2009

. The

se op

portu

nities

have

ensu

red o

ur pa

rticipa

tion i

n reg

ional

habit

at mo

nitor

ing, c

atch a

sses

smen

t and

law

enfor

ceme

nt pr

ogra

ms es

tablis

hed b

y the

se or

ganiz

ation

s. Th

e mee

tings

have

also

show

n the

natio

nal m

arine

sanc

tuarie

s’ co

mmitm

ent to

fishe

ries

mana

geme

nt an

d con

serva

tion s

trateg

ies, a

nd to

fully

enga

ging r

esou

rce us

ers i

n san

ctuar

y man

agem

ent p

lans.

The S

outhe

ast

Regio

nal T

eam

also w

orke

d clos

ely w

ith th

e Flor

ida In

stitut

e of O

cean

ogra

phy,

the C

oral

Reef

Cons

erva

tion P

rogr

am an

d san

ctuar

y he

adqu

arter

s to k

eep S

eaKe

ys op

erati

ng, a

nd is

conti

nuing

to w

ork t

o inte

grate

the s

ystem

into

the N

OAA

Integ

rated

Oce

an O

bser

ving

Syste

m Ne

twor

k. Se

aKey

s is o

ne of

the l

onge

st-sta

nding

netw

orks

of oc

eano

grap

hic m

onito

ring s

tation

s.

FKNM

S AD

VISO

RY C

OUNC

IL M

EMBE

RS

Cons

erva

tion a

nd E

nviro

nmen

t: Chr

is Be

rgh

Alter

nate:

Pete

r Fre

zza

Divin

g – Lo

wer K

eys:

Don K

incaid

Al

terna

te: B

ob S

mith

Divin

g – U

pper

Key

s: Ro

b Mitc

hell

Alter

nate:

Rob

ert B

leser

Ed

ucati

on an

d Outr

each

: Mar

tin M

oe

Alter

nate:

Alex

Bryl

ske

Elec

ted C

ounty

Offic

ial: G

eorg

e R. N

euge

nt

Alter

nate:

Hea

ther C

arru

thers

Fishin

g – C

harte

r Fish

ing F

lats G

uide:

Rich

ard G

rathw

ohl

Alter

nate:

Step

hen F

riedm

an

Fishin

g – C

harte

r Spo

rts F

ishing

: Rob

ert S

imon

ds

Alter

nate:

Jim

Shar

pe

Fishin

g – C

omme

rcial

- She

ll/Sca

le: Je

ff Cra

mer

Alter

nate:

vaca

nt Fis

hing -

Rec

reati

onal:

Jack

Cur

lett

Alter

nate:

Bru

ce F

rere

r Re

sear

ch an

d Mon

itorin

g: Jo

n Faja

ns

Alter

nate:

Dav

id Va

ugha

n So

uth F

lorida

Eco

syste

m Re

stora

tion:

Jerry

Lore

nz

Alter

nate:

Jose

ph B

oyer

Su

bmer

ged C

ultur

al Re

sour

ces:

Core

y Malc

om

Alter

nate:

vaca

nt To

urism

– Lo

wer K

eys:

Bob H

olston

Al

terna

te: C

linton

Bar

ras

Tour

ism –

Uppe

r Key

s: va

cant

Al

terna

te: S

usan

For

d Ham

make

r

http

://flo

ridak

eys.n

oaa.g

ov

Page 2: floridakeys.noaa - Microsofthe capacity of local tour operators to act as educators and foster respect and understanding among their customers, turning divers and snorkelers into coral

Sanc

tuar

y Com

bats

Illeg

al Po

achi

ng, R

emov

es A

ssoc

iated

Deb

ris

Two o

f Flor

ida’s

large

st lob

ster p

oach

ing bu

sts on

reco

rd to

ok pl

ace i

n 200

9, bo

th oc

curri

ng in

Flor

ida K

eys N

ation

al Ma

rine S

anctu

ary.

Poac

hers,

divin

g on i

llega

l artif

icial

struc

tures

know

n as c

asita

s, we

re ca

ught

harve

sting

mor

e tha

n 10,0

00 po

unds

of lo

bster

s in

two s

epar

ate ca

ses b

uilt b

y NOA

A an

d stat

e of F

lorida

enfor

ceme

nt off

icers.

The

se

struc

tures

on th

e sea

floor

are b

eliev

ed to

disru

pt the

migr

ation

of lo

bster

s and

caus

e the

m to

cong

rega

te on

artifi

cial h

abita

t, res

ulting

in in

creas

ed po

achin

g. Ca

sitas

also

smoth

er

the se

afloo

r on w

hich t

hey a

re pl

aced

, and

whe

n disr

upted

by st

orms

have

the p

otenti

al to

dama

ge va

luable

mar

ine re

sour

ces.

Summ

er 20

09 al

so m

arke

d the

end o

f a th

ree-

year

de

bris

remo

val p

rojec

t in w

hich r

emote

sens

ing w

as us

ed to

loca

te ca

sitas

. The

NOA

A Fis

herie

s Res

torati

on C

enter

, with

supp

ort fr

om th

e NOA

A Ma

rine D

ebris

Pro

gram

, the

sanc

tuary

and o

ther s

tate a

nd fe

dera

l age

ncies

, ove

rsaw

the id

entifi

catio

n and

remo

val

from

sanc

tuary

water

s of 8

9 ton

s of il

legal

gear

plac

ed by

poac

hers.

Sa

nctu

ary E

nlist

s Com

mun

ity in

Res

pons

e to

Lion

fish

Inva

sion

Th

e firs

t Indo

-Pac

ific lio

nfish

sigh

ting i

n Flor

ida K

eys N

ation

al Ma

rine S

anctu

ary w

aters

was c

onfirm

ed in

Janu

ary 2

009.

This

non-

nativ

e, inv

asive

fish h

as no

know

n pre

dator

s in

the A

tlanti

c, an

d res

earch

ers a

re co

ncer

ned a

bout

its po

tentia

l to di

srupt

the fr

agile

ba

lance

of th

e cor

al re

ef ec

osys

tem if

left u

nche

cked

. The

sanc

tuary,

in co

njunc

tion w

ith

NOAA

’s Na

tiona

l Cen

ters f

or C

oasta

l Oce

an S

cienc

e, the

non-

profi

t org

aniza

tions

Ree

f En

viron

menta

l Edu

catio

n Fou

ndati

on an

d Mote

Mar

ine T

ropic

al Re

sear

ch La

bora

tory,

and

other

state

and f

eder

al ag

encie

s, im

pleme

nted a

n ear

ly de

tectio

n and

rapid

resp

onse

plan

to

help

contr

ol es

tablis

hmen

t of th

is un

welco

me vi

sitor

. An

nual

Rese

arch

Exp

editi

on S

urve

ys C

oral

Healt

h Th

e 200

9 ann

ual F

lorida

Key

s Nati

onal

Marin

e San

ctuar

y Cor

al He

alth S

urve

y abo

ard t

he

NOAA

ship

Nanc

y Fos

ter m

onito

red c

oral

reef

healt

h alon

g the

Flor

ida R

eef T

ract

and

gathe

red d

ata on

dise

ase p

reva

lence

and b

leach

ing co

nditio

ns. W

hile a

varie

ty of

huma

n an

d env

ironm

ental

facto

rs ha

ve co

ntribu

ted to

the d

eterio

ratio

n of r

eef h

ealth

wor

ldwide

, dis

ease

and b

leach

ing ar

e amo

ng th

e lea

st un

derst

ood c

ulprits

. San

ctuar

y scie

ntists

wer

e joi

ned b

y res

earch

ers f

rom

Mote

Marin

e Lab

orato

ry, H

arbo

r Bra

nch O

cean

ogra

phic

Institu

te at

Florid

a Atla

ntic U

niver

sity,

the S

miths

onian

Insti

tute,

Geor

ge M

ason

Univ

ersit

y, Au

burn

Univ

ersit

y, the

Flor

ida D

epar

tmen

t of E

nviro

nmen

tal P

rotec

tion,

and t

he ci

ty of

Mara

thon.

This

scien

ce m

ission

also

hoste

d its

first N

OAA

“Tea

cher

at S

ea.”

Scien

tists

perfo

rmed

175 d

ives,

surve

ying c

orals

at 42

sites

thro

ugho

ut the

Key

s and

Dry

Tortu

gas.

Multib

eam

sona

r was

used

to m

ap po

rtions

of th

e Tor

tugas

Ban

k and

area

s betw

een K

ey

Wes

t and

Key

Larg

o.

Facil

ity A

ward

ed S

ilver

Lev

el Re

cogn

ition

Th

e Dr.

Nanc

y Fos

ter F

lorida

Key

s Env

ironm

ental

Com

plex i

n Key

Wes

t, Fla.

, hom

e of th

e Flo

rida K

eys N

ation

al Ma

rine S

anctu

ary a

dmini

strati

ve of

fice a

nd m

ainten

ance

build

ing,

south

east

regio

nal o

ffice,

and F

lorida

Key

s Eco

-Disc

over

y Cen

ter, h

as be

en re

cogn

ized a

s a L

eade

rship

in En

ergy

and E

nviro

nmen

tal D

esign

(LEE

D) ce

rtified

gree

n buil

ding a

nd

awar

ded a

LEED

Silv

er ra

ting b

y the

U.S

. Gre

en B

uildin

g Cou

ncil.

The s

anctu

ary’s

en

viron

menta

lly fr

iendly

offic

e com

plex h

as m

any “

gree

n” fe

ature

s. Na

tive p

lants

were

us

ed w

hen l

ands

capin

g the

grou

nds,

lesse

ning t

he ne

ed fo

r fer

tilize

rs an

d pes

ticide

s, an

d cis

tern w

ater is

used

whe

n flus

hing t

oilets

to he

lp co

nser

ve w

ater.

In ad

dition

, rec

yclab

le an

d sus

taina

ble gr

owth

prod

ucts

were

inco

rpor

ated i

nto th

e con

struc

tion o

f the b

uildin

g. Th

e san

ctuar

y is a

ctive

ly en

gage

d in i

ncre

asing

ener

gy ef

ficien

cy, r

educ

ing its

depe

nden

ce

on fo

ssil f

uels

and d

ecre

asing

impa

cts to

cora

l reefs

asso

ciated

with

gree

nhou

se ga

s em

ission

s.

Mutto

n Sn

appe

r Spa

wnin

g Se

en in

Tor

tuga

s Eco

logi

cal R

eser

ve

Sinc

e the

estab

lishm

ent o

f the T

ortug

as E

colog

ical R

eser

ve in

Flor

ida K

eys N

ation

al Ma

rine S

anctu

ary i

n 200

1, fis

hery

scien

tists

have

been

docu

menti

ng th

e effe

cts of

habit

at pr

otecti

on on

explo

ited p

opula

tions

of co

mmer

cially

impo

rtant

reef

fishe

s like

snap

per a

nd

grou

per.

Mutto

n sna

pper

has b

een t

he ta

rget

of a p

opula

r fish

ery i

n the

Flor

ida K

eys s

ince

the ea

rly 19

00s a

nd ha

ve hi

storic

ally a

ggre

gated

in pa

rts of

the T

ortug

as fo

r spa

wning

pu

rpos

es. B

y the

late

1990

s, fis

hery

surve

ys su

gges

ted th

at su

ch m

ass s

pawn

ing

aggr

egati

ons i

n the

Tor

tugas

had a

ll but

ceas

ed du

e to o

verfis

hing.

Sinc

e the

im

pleme

ntatio

n of th

e san

ctuar

y’s “n

o-tak

e” re

serve

, the n

umbe

rs of

mutto

n sna

pper

ob

serve

d hav

e slow

ly inc

reas

ed an

nuall

y. In

summ

er 20

09, fo

r the

first

time s

ince t

heir

surve

ys be

gan,

scien

tists

from

the N

OAA

Fishe

ries S

ervic

e and

the F

lorida

Fish

and

Wild

life C

onse

rvatio

n Com

miss

ion ob

serve

d tho

usan

ds of

indiv

idual

mutto

n sna

pper

sp

awnin

g ove

r two

cons

ecuti

ve m

onths

. This

was

the f

irst m

utton

snap

per s

pawn

ing

captu

red o

n rec

ord i

n Flor

ida.

New

Educ

atio

n In

itiat

ive T

arge

ts D

ive C

omm

unity

SC

UBA

diver

s and

snor

keler

s floc

k to t

he F

lorida

Key

s in t

he hu

ndre

ds of

thou

sand

s an

nuall

y to e

njoy t

he w

aters

of the

natio

nal m

arine

sanc

tuary,

mak

ing it

one o

f the w

orld’

s mo

st po

pular

dive

desti

natio

ns. T

o bett

er re

ach t

his im

porta

nt us

er gr

oup,

the sa

nctua

ry lau

nche

d Blue

Star

, an e

duca

tion p

rogr

am to

reco

gnize

char

ter op

erato

rs tha

t wor

k to

prote

ct the

cora

l reef

ecos

ystem

of th

e Flor

ida K

eys b

y pro

motin

g pro

per r

eef e

tique

tte an

d ed

ucati

ng th

eir cu

stome

rs ab

out th

e ree

fs, th

e san

ctuar

y and

its re

gulat

ions.

Staff

me

mber

s of B

lue S

tar op

erato

rs ar

e req

uired

to pa

rticipa

te in

sanc

tuary

traini

ng an

nuall

y an

d, in

turn,

impa

rt the

ir kno

wled

ge to

their

custo

mers.

Rec

ogniz

ed op

erato

rs mu

st off

er

cons

erva

tion-

relat

ed di

ve co

urse

s and

partic

ipate

in ac

tivitie

s suc

h as f

ish co

unts

and r

eef

clean

-ups

. The

Blue

Star

prog

ram

helps

build

the c

apac

ity of

loca

l tour

oper

ators

to ac

t as

educ

ators

and f

oster

resp

ect a

nd un

derst

andin

g amo

ng th

eir cu

stome

rs, tu

rning

dive

rs an

d sn

orke

lers i

nto co

ral re

ef ste

ward

s. Fo

r mor

e info

rmati

on, v

isit w

ww.sa

nctua

ryblue

star.o

rg.

Seaf

arin

g Hi

stor

y Tau

ght i

n Un

derw

ater

Arc

haeo

logy

Tra

inin

g

In su

mmer

2009

, the N

OAA

Mariti

me H

erita

ge P

rogr

am su

ppor

ted N

autic

al Ar

chae

ology

So

ciety

traini

ngs i

n Flor

ida K

eys N

ation

al Ma

rine S

anctu

ary f

or m

embe

rs of

the N

ation

al As

socia

tion o

f Blac

k Scu

ba D

ivers

(NAB

S) an

d san

ctuar

y staf

f. The

cour

se is

desig

ned t

o tea

ch pr

incipl

es an

d pra

ctice

s of m

aritim

e arch

aeolo

gy. P

artic

ipants

lear

ned h

ow to

iden

tify

cultu

ral re

sour

ce si

tes, a

s well

as te

chniq

ues i

n und

erwa

ter m

appin

g, co

nser

vatio

n and

re

portin

g. Th

e cou

rse in

clude

d clas

sroom

activ

ities a

nd fie

ld se

ssion

s tha

t wer

e con

ducte

d on

the F

lorida

Key

s Nati

onal

Marin

e San

ctuar

y Ship

wrec

k Tra

il. Th

e tra

ining

for N

ABS

memb

ers i

s par

t of a

new

Offic

e of N

ation

al Ma

rine S

anctu

aries

educ

ation

initia

tive —

“V

oyag

e to D

iscov

ery”

— to

explo

re th

e mar

itime h

erita

ge of

Afric

an-A

meric

ans a

nd

enga

ge th

e com

munit

y in m

arine

reso

urce

cons

erva

tion.

Tu

rnin

g St

uden

ts in

to C

oral

Reef

Ste

ward

s Flo

rida K

eys N

ation

al Ma

rine S

anctu

ary c

ontin

ued t

o brin

g oce

an en

richm

ent to

the

stude

nts of

the F

lorida

Key

s thr

ough

Cor

al Re

ef Cl

assro

om, it

s lon

gest-

runn

ing ed

ucati

on

prog

ram.

Thr

ough

clas

sroom

and o

n-the

-wate

r acti

vities

, midd

le sc

hool

stude

nts le

arn

abou

t the d

iverse

and f

ragil

e natu

re of

the c

oral

reef

ecos

ystem

. A gr

ant fr

om M

ote M

arine

La

bora

tory’s

Pro

tect O

ur R

eefs

prog

ram

throu

gh th

e San

ctuar

y Frie

nds F

ound

ation

of th

e Flo

rida K

eys m

ade i

t pos

sible

for st

uden

ts to

learn

basic

cora

l reef

biolog

y and

conc

epts

of ha

bitat

inter

depe

nden

ce. F

ield a

ctivit

ies su

ch as

snor

kelin

g, a p

lankto

n tow

, and

the

colle

ction

and a

nalys

is of

water

quali

ty da

ta en

cour

ages

analy

tical

think

ing, a

nd

demo

nstra

tes th

e nee

d for

man

agem

ent to

prote

ct na

tural

reso

urce

s.

P

BS&J

F

razie

r Nive

ns, O

cean

Imag

ing

Co

ry W

alter

(MML

)

La

rry B

enve

nuti