Earth Day is on the horizon and the cities of Anna Maria and Holmes Beach are exploring possibilities for better protecting an essential part of the island’s ecosystem: mangroves.
One possibility, voiced by both Anna Maria Mayor Dan Murphy and Holmes Beach City Commissioner Terry Schaefer over the week of April 8, could involve intercity or islandwide collaboration on enforcing mangrove regulations.
Mangroves provide environmental benefits, such as a unique ecosystem for marine life, protection from land erosion and improving nearshore water quality.
The 1996 Florida Department of Environmental Protection Mangrove Trimming and Preservation Act establishes regulations to protect coastal vegetation.
The law sets standards for trimming mangroves and some alterations require DEP permitting and a licensed landscape contractor.
A discussion about those regulations and their enforcement was sparked last Decem- ber, when Bradenton-based Mason Martin construction company removed more than 100 feet of shoreline mangrove fringe at 111 Gull Drive, Anna Maria.
The work was exempted by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection because it was not a natural shoreline, but had not yet been permitted by the city and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
The situation inspired the cities to explore potential changes to further protect mangroves, to reclaim the authority to enforce mangrove regulations from the DEP.
City officials, such as Schaefer, have argued the municipalities could better enforce mangrove regulations since they have localized resources, allowing them to more closely oversee trimming and removal activities.
“We can do a better job. More comprehensive. We have the eyes and ears of our own faculties and personnel,” Schaefer told The Islander April 10.
Only seven governments across Florida have been delegated authority, including Miami-Dade, Broward, Hillsborough, Pinellas and Sarasota counties, as well as the town of Juniper Island and the city of Sanibel.
Neither Anna Maria nor Holmes Beach have fully tackled the question of whether or not to request that authority, but Murphy and Schaefer have both expressed desire to do so.
Murphy said during an April 11 city commission meeting that he believed the “ultimate position” would be to handle the enforcement of mangrove regulations on a county or islandwide basis.
“I think we’re probably overdue to get ourselves in a position to do something about it,” Murphy said.
Schaefer said he wanted to continue learning more about what claiming such authority would entail for the island cities, but was hopeful they could get it done.
“I continue to favor going forward with it unless there are compelling reasons to leave it as is,” Schaefer said. “I think we’re going to have to. We’re not going to get any help. … The enforcement side of it has really been so lacking.”
He added that he also hoped to coordinate with Anna Maria about the matter.
“I would like to meet with Anna Maria to determine where they are so our efforts could be coordinated and more or less in lockstep,” Schaefer said.
However, Holmes Beach planning and zoning administrator Chad Minor told The Islander April 11 that if the cities could enforce mangrove regulations, they could still be hamstrung by weak legislation.
Minor said the cities would only be able to enforce the state’s regulations, so they would be unable to prevent the exempt removal of mangroves at 111 Gull Drive.
“A lot of research still needs to be done if we really want to take over this mangrove responsibility,” Minor said.
He said he has requested DEP staff visit the city to educate officials about the enforcement of mangrove regulations.
In the meantime, the cities have separately pursued additional efforts, such as the city of Holmes Beach’s mapping of mangroves throughout the municipality.
“To me, it showed that we have an awful lot to be protective of,” Schaefer said.
Murphy told The Islander April 11 that the city has not mapped mangroves throughout the municipality, due to the large amount of vegetation.
Nevertheless, he said that such a task could be essential to the city’s efforts to better enforce mangrove protections.
“If we’re going to regulate it, it has to be done,” Murphy said.
Bradenton Beach Mayor John Chappie did not respond to an April 12 call from The Islander.