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Educator's Workshop
Explores Tampa Bay History, Habitat
A few slots still remain for high school teachers and informal educators to participate in a one-day summer workshop "Tampa Bay: Living Legacy."
The workshop will be held Thursday, August 2, from 9 a.m.- 4 p.m. at Weedon Island Preserve in St. Petersburg.
Participating teachers will receive a $35 stipend, along with a CD of the teaching guide, a DVD of the documentary film "Tampa Bay: Living Legacy", maps and many other classroom resources.
Click here for more info and to register.
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TBEP Staff Stays Busy In and Out of Office
TBEP Environmental Scientist Lindsay Cross recently graduated from the Florida Natural Resource Leadership Institute (NRLI). NRLI is an 8-month program through the University of Florida that focuses on environmental issues, concepts and policy; conflict management techniques; personal and group leadership skills; and communication tools.
The program involves seven three-day seminar and activity sessions at locations throughout the state, highlighting key natural resource issues and discussions with managers, leaders, and policy-makers directly involved in natural resource issues.
Lindsay also is involved in resource protection outside the office, as President of the Friends of Weedon Island, a non-profit citizens' support group for the popular Pinellas County Preserve.
TBEP Project Manager Misty Cladas is pursuing a degree in Business Management through Eckerd College's Program for Experienced Learners.
TBEP Outreach Coordinator Nanette O'Hara was selected for training as a Master Gardener by Hillsborough County Extension. Training runs from July-September.
And TBEP Executive Director Holly Greening is winding down her 4-year term as Chair of the Association of National Estuary Programs. As Chair, Holly has worked to coordinate communication and a common vision among the nation's 28 community-based NEPs. Holly will step down as Chair in October.
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The summer rainy season has arrived and heavy rains from Tropical Storm Debby made this June the wettest on record for Tampa, with 18.66 inches for the month. Local fertilizer ordinances in Tampa, and all of Pinellas and Manatee counties, restrict use of nitrogen fertilizer during the summer to prevent fertilizer-laden runoff from polluting the beautiful bays, rivers and Gulf that are the major reason so many of us moved here in the first place.
Learn how to keep your lawn and landscape healthy through our long summer the Florida way at:
BeFloridian.org
Here you'll find
Florida-friendly products and services for your yard
YARD 911 Got a question? We've got an answer Event Calendar Yard and garden workshops, plant fairs and more Visit our YouTube Channel to find short videos with instructions and tips on landscaping like a Floridian and more. 
LIKE us on Facebook to receive timely information geared for Floridians who want to spend more time enjoying our waters and less time mowing, weeding and watering their yards! 
Sign up for our e-newsletter Be Floridian: Protect Fun to receive bi-monthly news on creating and maintaining a Florida-friendly lifestyle |
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Need Water Info ASAP?
Go to wateratlas.org
With the summer storm season well underway, keeping track of water levels and conditions in water bodies near you is vitally important.
The Water Atlas network of web-based data portals provides a valuable tool for citizens and scientists alike to monitor what's going on in a specific watershed.
The Tampa Bay Estuary Atlas
provides unique information on the Tampa Bay watershed, including downloadable maps; tide charts; water quality, water levels; news and events; historic and current photos and much more.
Be sure to check out the
Atlas' Real Time Date Mapper for up-to-date readings of tide gauges and stream flows, as well as rainfall amounts for a variety of locations around the bay. You can also track water quality, look at maps of seagrass coverage and other vegetation, and plan your next fishing trip around the best tides through the Atlas. The Tampa Bay Water Atlas is maintained by the University of South Florida with funding from TBEP, Manatee County and Pinellas County. The Tampa Bay Atlas is part of a larger digital network of resource-based web sites that cover more than 11,000 square miles in the state of Florida, with information on more than 7,700 ponds, lakes, rivers and coastal waters. Other water atlases feature water bodies in Pinellas, Manatee, Hillsborough and Sarasota counties.
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 National Estuary Conference Comes to Tampa This Fall
The 6th annual Restore America's Estuaries Conference on Coastal and Estuarine Habitat Restoration will take place Oct. 20-25 at the Tampa Convention Center. Early-bird registration is available through Sept. 7 for this major national conference that will bring together scientists and citizens from coastal areas around the United States to share information about restoration programs and techniques. For more information, go to estuaries.org/conference
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Think Before You Drink
(From a Plastic Bottle)
Although it can be easy and convenient to pick up bottle beverage products the end cost to the environment is staggering.
- 1500 plastic bottles of water are consumed every second
of every day - 80% of all plastic water bottles end up in landfills or waterways
- There are 5 major trash whirlpools in the world's oceans, filled mainly with pulverized plastic. Some are over 1,000 miles wide and a mile deep.
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Old Tampa Bay Research Continues
With Sampling of Bay Sediments
Field sampling to better understand where nutrients come from in Old Tampa Bay, and how they move through the water column and bottom sediments, is being conducted by two separate teams this summer.
The work is part of a comprehensive TBEP study to assess recurring water quality problems in Old Tampa Bay. The multi-year study is supported by $1.2 million from the Southwest Florida Water Management District.
The research ultimately will lead to recommendations for improving water flow and habitat conditions in the bay north of the Courtney Campbell Causeway. Scientists believe that improved tidal flow may help to flush excess nutrients from this area and improve water quality so seagrasses can flourish.
Understanding how nutrients such as nitrogen cycle in and out of bay sediments is an essential step to understanding what is happening in Old Tampa Bay. It is especially important for development of an accurate computer model of this area that will simulate real-world conditions under a variety of management options. This sophisticated model will be used to "test" various strategies - such as adding culverts or small bridges to the Causeway - to determine which bring the greatest environmental benefit at the most reasonable cost.
A team from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the University of Southern Mississippi is using two methods to measure nutrient flux, or exchange, into and out of sediments. One method deploys tentlike opaque chambers on the bay bottom to isolate specific sampling sites and measure nutrient flow. Watch the short video below explaining use of an underwater chamber deployed by the U.S. Geological Survey that is similar to those being used by the EPA team.
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The SHARQ Submersible Chamber
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A second, experimental method uses diffusion gel plates the consistency of Jello. As nutrient-laden water passes over the membranes on the plates, the rate at which nutrients are assimilated is calculated, providing an estimate of nutrient flux to and from sediments.
The second team, from Chesapeake Biogeochemical Associates, is incubating sediment samples gathered from Old Tampa Bay in a laboratory and measuring nutrient flux over time.
In addition to the two sampling efforts, scientists with the Environmental Protection Commission of Hillsborough County are measuring the amount of microscopic algae found on top of the sediments to help determine what role they play in assimilating nutrients.
Click here to learn more about the Old Tampa Bay research project.
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Mini-Grant Writing Workshop on Aug. 6
Get free instruction on applying for TBEP's popular mini-grant program
The Tampa Bay Estuary Program will once again offer Bay Mini-Grants for community groups seeking to conduct projects that help to improve Tampa Bay.
Groups and organizations from Hillsborough, Manatee and Pinellas counties may apply for grants. Both non-profit and for-profit organizations are eligible, as are schools and neighborhood associations. Projects should promote public involvement and have a direct ecological benefit to the bay watershed. School projects that benefit more than one class are encouraged.
A free workshop to provide an overview of the grant program and the application process will be offered at 6 pm on Monday, August 6 at the Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council in Pinellas Park. Space is limited and reservations are required.
Deadline to apply is Monday, October 1
Learn more about the Bay Mini-Grants program at www.tbep.org/bayminigrants.html or contact misty@tbep.org or (727) 893-2765
Here's an example of a 2011 mini-grant project called "Art From Flotsam":
In this project, teens from the Community Stepping Stones program conducted beach cleanups, collected and learned about marine plants and animals, and then created a 12' x 8' mural using flotsam gathered during their cleanups. The mural, "One Waterway One Tampa Bay," was exhibited June 15-28 at Hillsborough Community College and will travel to other venues the remainder of the year.
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These photos were taken during low and high tide at Robinson Preserve in Bradenton.
Photo by Tammy Durst
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King Tide Photo Contest A 'Royal' Success
Amateur photographers across two watersheds volunteered time and talent in early June to help visualize the effects of climate change through images they gathered comparing water levels at low and extremely high, or "King," tides.
The King Tide Photo Contest, sponsored by Tampa Bay Estuary Program (TBEP) and Sarasota Bay Estuary Program (SBEP), received 161 individual photos from 32 area photographers. A King Tide occurs when the moon and sun align on one side of the Earth and their gravitational pull creates higher tides than normal. King Tides normally occur twice a year. This summer's King Tide event took place June 3-5.
A panel of judges has announced the following photo contest winners:
1st Place: Larry Stultz - Siesta Key boat dock
2nd Place: Kristen Pate - Snead Island seawall
3rd Place: Alice S. - Fort De Soto Park beach
Visit our Flickr site to see many of the entries. Winning photos can be seen by clicking here. SBEP and TBEP will be using some of the photos to educate the public about the longer term impact of gradual sea level rise. The effort to collect these images is occurring in coastal communities throughout the U.S. as well as Canada and Australia.
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Filling of McKay Bay Dredge Hole Aimed
at Improving Water Quality, Habitat
Filling of part of a deep dredge hole in McKay Bay near downtown Tampa is expected to improve fisheries habitat and expand feeding areas for wading birds.
The work, now underway, will fill most of the 60-acre hole created in the 1960s and 1970s from dredging associated with various construction and flood control projects.
The project was first identified by a TBEP study of dredge holes in the bay conducted in 2003-2004. That work analyzed water quality and habitat value of 11 dredge holes, and concluded that many of them should be left alone since they provide valuable winter refuges for fish.
Of the holes where filling or partial filling were deemed beneficial, the McKay Bay was given highest priority. The hole, up to 16 feet deep, is located in a highly industrialized part of Tampa Bay, with poor dissolved oxygen levels and low numbers and diversity of bottom-dwelling (benthic) creatures that are important food sources for wading birds and fish. In addition, toxic contaminants such as pesticides and Polyaromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) have been found throughout McKay Bay.
Despite these problems, McKay Bay is heavily used by wading birds; Tampa's McKay Bay Nature Park is a popular spot for viewing roseate spoonbills, white ibis and many other species.
TBEP renewed the dredge hole discussion by forming a Tampa Bay Dredging Advisory Group in 2010. That group supported filling part of the McKay Bay hole, and partners began examining the feasibility of filling the hole in 2011. Construction work began in January 2012 with completion in October.
The project is being financed by the Southwest Florida Water Management District, with design and construction by the Tampa Port Authority. The material being used to fill the hole comes from dredging of a new shipping berth at the Port of Tampa, as well as from a mitigation site adjacent to the Wheelabrator garbage incineration facility on McKay Bay. The Port Authority is donating the 316,000 cubic yards of fill as a beneficial use of dredge and excavation material. Bay managers expect the project to result in greater abundance and diversity of shallow-water benthic animals such as marine worms and small crustaceans that are eaten by both wading birds and game fish such as redfish and snook. Pre- and post-fill monitoring is being conducted by the Environmental Protection Commission of Hillsborough County.
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This burrowing amphipod found in
bay sediments is an important food
for both birds and fish.
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In addition to the dredge hole project, McKay Bay is also the focus of a study coordinated by TBEP to pinpoint the extent and sources of toxic pollutants in the sediments. This research will analyze tissues samples from fish and shellfish to determine whether and to what extent toxics are moving through the food web. This is important since people, as well as birds, are consuming fish from this area.
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Getting Our (New) House In Order
When Tampa Bay Estuary Program staff settled into a new office in the former Progress Energy plant on St. Petersburg's Bayboro Harbor in March, the view from their 3rd floor digs was great -- except for one thing. After a heavy rain, an ocean of trash from stormwater runoff would collect in a "water goat" in a canal adjacent to the building. The water goat, intended to contain trash in a convenient place so it can be more easily scooped up, would remain filled for weeks as staff watched countless manatees, turtles and fish swimming amid the debris. TBEP project manager Misty Cladas is now working with the St. Petersburg USF's Student Environmental Association to establish a regular cleanup schedule for the neglected water goat, seen here with a floating mattress amid the refuse. TBEP staffers were joined in a recent cleanout of the contraption by employees of NOAA's Southeast Regional Office, the Fish and Wildlife Commission, and USF students.  |
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About the Tampa Bay Estuary Program
The Tampa Bay Estuary Program is an intergovernmental partnership dedicated to restoring and protecting Tampa Bay, Florida's largest open-water estuary. TBEP is one of 28 "Estuaries of National Significance" designated by Congress.
Our partners include Hillsborough, Manatee and Pinellas counties; the cities of Tampa, St. Petersburg and Clearwater; the Southwest Florida Water Management District; the Florida Department of Environmental Protection; and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
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