What is an ERT?
Kent SmithFlorida Fish and Wildlife Commission
Marine/Estuarine SubsectionAnnie Roddenberry (FWC), Jeff Beal (FWC), Katie
Konchar (FWC), Kim Wren (FDEP) Ron Brockmeyer(SJRWMD), Scott Eastman (FDEP), Melody Rae-Culp
(USFWS), Gian Basili (USFWS)
Beyond Terrestrial
Regional Estuarine Restoration Teams In
Florida
Informal group of practitioners planning and implementing estuarine restoration on an aquascape-level
• Open discussion group• Sharing programmatic expertise • Focus on restoration projects not mandated by
regulatory actions in estuaries• No authority distinct from participating
organizations
Informal group of practitioners planning and implementing estuarine restoration on an aquascape-level
In other words… Think-tanks
Combined Resources
Broader network
Collective experience
Constructive feedback
Leveraging opportunities
Regional-scale planning and implementation
Group Problem-solving
Increased communication
More efficient use of resources
NERT
NERT
ECERT
NERT
ECERT
PERT
SWERT
NERT
ECERT
PERT
BigBERT?
SWERT
SOFLERT?
Vision: To create healthy, thriving estuarine habitats of sufficient quantity and quality throughout northeast Florida.
Mission: To facilitate and implement restoration and bring together partners to develop a regional landscape-level habitat initiative focused on the restoration and enhancement of estuarine and shoreline habitats including coastal marsh, mangroves, oyster communities and seagrass for estuaries extending from the St. Marys River to Sebastian Inlet on the east coast of Florida
Northeast Florida Estuarine Restoration Team (NERT) Guidance
How does it work?
Steering committeeMax 10 members
NOAA (1), FWS (1), FWC (1), SJRWMD (2), DEP (1), NGO (1)
Regional team leads for North (1) and South (1), rotating members
Chair: one SC member, rotating each year
Dedicated coordinator
SC calls one month prior to NERT meetings
Operate by consensus voteSource: www.bybus.co.uk
Membership• No limit, no requirements
• Open door policy
• Agencies (state and fed), universities, non-profits, consultants, counties, cities, coastal land managers, land trusts
• Meetings 3x per year, rotating within the region (N to S)
• Not a group for approval or endorsement
• Online forum for resource sharing
How does it work?
• Reconnection of impounded coastal marsh
• Oyster shell recycling and reef restoration
• Subsided marsh restoration • Living Shoreline creation
• Seagrass restoration• Shoreline characterization
Source: SJRWMD
Source: SJRWMD
Source: Sarasota Bay Estuary Program
Example Collaborative Projects:
• Post construction monitoring
Shoreline characterization
2015-2016
Shoreline characterization
2015-2016
2016-2017
Shoreline characterization
2015-2016
2016-2017
2017-2018
Salt marsh restoration, plant nursery, and Living Shoreline Demonstration Site, New Smyrna Beach, Volusia County
Photo: R. Parkinson
>600 hours>25,000 plants
Photo: Marine Discovery Center
Photo: Marine Discovery Center
Photo: Jeff Beal
Photo: R. Parkinson
What does a successful ERT look like?• NO approval or endorsement• Multi-organization leadership• Clear steering committee direction• Open lines and means of communication• Integrated projects with funds (grants +
match)• Subgroups
• Spoil Island Working Group• Shellfish TAC• Others as needed
Photo: Marine Discovery Center
Kent SmithFWC Marine/Estuarine Subsection
Any questions?
mailto:[email protected]
Example NERT Success Story Projects
Dragline ditched marsh, Mosquito Lagoon
Courtesy: J. Beal, FWC
Mosquito Lagoon Dragline Ditching
Open water
marsh
Upland hammock
Open water Open water
Artificialupland
Artificialupland
Wetlands?
Courtesy: J. Beal, FWC
Dragline ditch
Courtesy: J. Beal, FWC
Mosquito Ditch Restoration
2yrs post-restoration
Mosquito Ditch Restoration
Courtesy: J. Beal, FWC
$3650 per acre to restore
Provides 50lbs of fish biomass per acre annually to adjacent waters Stevens et al. 2007(600 restored acres produce 15tons annually)
Provides $13,400 per acre in coastal storm protection Costanza 2008(600 restored acres provide $8,040,000 protection)
Courtesy: J. Beal, FWC
• Provides free shell material for regional restoration • Started in 2014• Recycled >450,000lbs of shell
• > 10,000 oyster bags• > 2,000 oyster mats
• Strong partnerships with 3 organizations in 3 counties • 18 restaurants, 1 shuck house
Photo: FAU Harbor Branch
Slide Number 1Slide Number 2Slide Number 3Slide Number 4Slide Number 5Slide Number 6Slide Number 7Slide Number 8Slide Number 9Slide Number 10Slide Number 11Slide Number 12Slide Number 13Slide Number 14Shoreline characterizationShoreline characterizationShoreline characterizationSlide Number 18Slide Number 19Slide Number 20Slide Number 21Slide Number 22Slide Number 23What does a successful ERT look like?Slide Number 25Example NERT Success Story ProjectsSlide Number 27Slide Number 28Slide Number 29Slide Number 30Slide Number 31Slide Number 32Slide Number 33Slide Number 34Slide Number 35Slide Number 36